When you think about starting a fitness business, you probably picture helping people get healthier, stronger, and more confident. That’s an amazing goal, and it’s absolutely possible, but many fitness professionals hit a wall when their business relies entirely on 1:1 in-person sessions.
You’re dealing with unpredictable schedules, income that’s tied to your availability, and the physical exhaustion that comes with hours of training every day. And even if you wanted to take on more clients, your reach is limited to the people who live nearby.
That’s why so many personal trainers and fitness coaches look online.
Going digital lets you reach more people, diversify your offers, and sell fitness programs that run even when you’re not actively teaching. That means more ways to grow without working around the clock.
In this guide, we’ll walk through:
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Why starting your online fitness business feels complicated (and why it doesn’t have to be)
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The three things you actually need to get started
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A simple system you can use to attract more clients and earn more income
Plus, you’ll get to see how building everything in one platform can make life much easier, so you can focus on doing the work you love.
Why building an online fitness business feels harder than it should
Once you decide to bring your fitness business online, two challenges that might come up next are setting up your tech and figuring out your marketing.
Building an online business isn’t just about recording workouts or offering coaching sessions. You also need a way to take payments, handle bookings without double-scheduling yourself, deliver programs, share resources, check in with clients, and keep everything organized in one place.
And then there’s the marketing side. You know your coaching gets results, but finding clients (and keeping them coming back) can feel like a full-time job. Posting on social media, answering DMs, and trying to stand out online takes a lot of time, and it’s hard to stay consistent without a system behind you.
The good news? You don’t need a complicated tech stack or a full-time marketing team to grow your online fitness business. You only need three core pieces in place, and once you’ve got them, everything else gets a whole lot easier.
So let’s get the basics set up first, then I’ll show you how to scale without the burnout.
You only need 3 things to take your fitness business online
Yup, just three! You can get your training business up and running with:
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Digital products so people can work with you
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A website so people can find you
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An email list to stay in touch with your customers and drive repeat sales
Here’s how to set up each piece.
Your fitness products: how clients train and learn from you
First, you need something people can buy from you, a clear offer that helps them get stronger, healthier, or closer to their goals.
This could be a 1:1 session, an online program, a course, a membership, or a simple downloadable guide. Online fitness products are incredibly flexible, and with a tool like Podia, you can create as many as you like based on what your audience needs.
Here are a few product types to spark ideas for your online fitness coaching business.
1:1 personal training and group coaching
This is the easiest place to start, especially if you already work with clients in person. Virtual coaching sessions let people meet with you from anywhere to create a training plan, learn proper form, and get feedback on their progress.
In Podia, you can set this up using the coaching product type. Once someone pays, they’ll see your booking calendar immediately, making sign-ups and scheduling a breeze.
For example, personal trainer Alvin from Reboot Fitness Coaching offers a 6-week training program with online group training, virtual 1:1 options, and in-person sessions. Every client gets a custom fitness plan plus weekly check-ins, group calls, and access to a community space.
Fitness ebooks and workbooks
If you want an offer people can use anytime, digital downloads work beautifully.
Think:
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Workbooks
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Progress trackers
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Online workout plans
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Strength training guides
Or another PDF product that helps your ideal client hit their fitness goals.
They’re simple to build, too. All you need to do is create your content in the word processor of your choice, save it as a PDF, and upload it to Podia. When someone buys, the file is delivered automatically.
That’s how Dr. Marcia from Move with Marcia teaches mobility and posture. She offers a series of written guides, exercise lists, and structured programs that clients can use at home, and they’re all available as convenient instant downloads.
Online courses
Another option for sharing your expertise is an online course. Courses let you organize your work into a complete, self-paced program. You can include videos, audio files, photos, demonstrations, written guidance — whatever helps your clients follow the plan. Courses are available 24/7 and can be bought by unlimited customers, so you can earn income without adding more hours to your day.
Bee Varga the Hula Hooper teaches several courses on hula hoop fitness, including a beginner course, a core series, and a 30-day immersion program. She also runs a hooping studio membership with access to 700+ classes for a monthly fee.
Live workshops or webinars
If you love teaching in real time, you can host virtual workshops, events, or group classes. Podia’s webinar feature lets you sell access or run sessions for free, and the replay can be sold afterward for ongoing income.
Lydiard Foundation, for example, offers running coaches an annual workshop bundle that includes monthly live webinars, Q&A sessions, and access to all replays.
Fitness memberships and communities
If you want your clients to have an interactive space where they can connect, a community or membership could be a good fit.
With this product type, you can charge a monthly or annual fee to join, and then you can upload videos, share links to live sessions, post new workouts, and create private spaces for different client segments. Paid memberships also give you recurring revenue, which makes income much more predictable.
Meryl from Just Feel It Fitness runs a membership program where clients get five 30-minute workouts per week (four live and one prerecorded). Members can sign up for one-month or three-month intervals, and they get live feedback, replays, and a WhatsApp support group to stay accountable.
To get started, choose one product type above and create your first offer. Add it to Podia, set a price, and press publish. Now you have something ready for customers to buy, so let’s get it out there!
Your website: how people find you and understand what you offer
Once you have a product to sell, you need a place to send people. That’s where your website comes in. Your website is your digital home base. It’s where potential clients can learn who you are, what you offer, and how to work with you.
It’s also one of the only parts of your business that can bring in organic traffic from search engines like Google. When someone searches for online fitness coaching or personal training in your area of expertise, your website gives you a chance to show up in the results.
To get started, you only need a few core pages. A simple homepage, an about page, and a page for your training packages or programs is plenty. As you grow, you can add more, but these basics are enough to help people understand what you do and how you can help them.
You can also publish blog posts to answer common fitness questions, share your methodology, or break down training tips. Blogging helps new people find you through search engines and gives you more content to share with your audience.
The biggest benefit of having your own website is that you control the story. Social media platforms come and go, and algorithms change constantly. But your website is a space you own with no distractions, no competition, and no guessing whether your content will show up in the “For you” pages.
It’s a clear, trustworthy place for people to learn about you and decide if they want to take the next step.
Your email list: how you stay in touch and build long-term clients
Email is one of the highest-converting marketing channels for online businesses, fitness included. In fact, our data shows that Podia customers who use Podia Email have 11x more customers and 2.4x more sales on average compared to those who don’t. That’s because email gives you direct access to the people who want to hear from you.
Your email list is simply a collection of people who are interested in your business, like current clients, past clients, fans, and new prospects.
To start building your list, add an email sign-up form to the website you just created. You can place it on your homepage, your product pages, your blog posts, or any spot where people are already learning about you.
You can also offer a free resource that people can sign up for in exchange for joining your list (more on that in just a minute).
Once someone subscribes, your email newsletter is the easiest way to stay in touch. You can send training tips, routine ideas, fitness coaching availability, blog posts, progress reminders, or even interesting fitness articles you’ve found.
Think of your newsletter as a consistent touchpoint — a quiet, dedicated space where you can help people and build trust without competing with an algorithm.
It’s also the perfect place to gently share info about your products and services. If someone is already choosing to hear from you, they’ll likely want to know when you launch a new program or have openings for coaching.
Podia Email is already built into your account, and your first 100 subscribers are free. Add an email sign up form to your website, and let your audience know how they can join your list to get started.
Your products, website, and email list are the foundation of your fitness business online. Once those are set up, you’re ready for the next phase: building a system that regularly brings in new clients so your business can grow consistently.
The simple sales funnel that brings in new fitness clients automatically
Now that your products, website, and email list are in place, you can add a simple system that brings new people into your business every day. This is called a sales funnel. Think of your funnel as a clear path that helps new visitors discover you, learn from you, and eventually become paying clients.
A good funnel attracts new customers and keeps you connected with your existing clients so they come back when they’re ready for more support. With just a few steps, you can create a steady flow of interest, trust, and sales without having to hustle for every individual booking.
Step 1: Create a free lead magnet and add it to your website
A lead magnet is a free product that people can sign up for in exchange for joining your email list. It grows your audience, gives new people a sample of what it’s like to train with you, and builds trust before they ever spend a dime.
Think of it as a “try before you buy” experience that shows exactly how you can help someone reach their goals. Your lead magnet can take almost any format as long as it solves a relevant problem for your ideal client.
For example, you could make:
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A prerecorded workout video
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A “build strength at home” ebook
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A 7-day challenge
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A stretching routine for beginners
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A meal prep or habit-tracking resource
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A mini personal training consultation
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A short online course for a specific goal
The format matters less than the content, so make sure you’re speaking directly to your audience’s pain points and give them something they can use right away.
For some inspiration, here’s how other fitness entrepreneurs are using lead magnets in their businesses:
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Meryl from Just Feel It Fitness offers five pre-recorded 30-minute workouts as her freebie so customers can preview her virtual membership program.
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Dr. Marcia from Move with Marcia offers a free journal workbook and YouTube series so people can get a sense of her teaching style.
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And Bee the Hula Hooper has a free mini course to help kickstart your hooping if you’re a true beginner.
Once you’ve created your lead magnet, add it to your Podia website as a free product. You can use “free email delivery” for downloadable files like PDFs, ebooks, and videos, and “free” for courses or coaching-style freebies that need an account.
Then place it prominently on your homepage, product pages, and anywhere people frequently visit. Place it nice and high on the page so it’s easy to find because this is how you’ll move people through your business.
Blogging also helps here. Every blog post you publish gives you another chance to share your free resource, attract organic traffic, and reach people who are searching for the solutions you teach. With each new post, your lead magnet appears in front of a fresh group of readers, making your funnel stronger over time.
Step 2: Build a short automated email sequence
Once someone signs up for your lead magnet, you can automatically enter them into an email sequence that runs over the next few days. This sequence introduces new subscribers to your brand, builds trust, and points them toward your paid programs.
You can set this up in Podia using the campaign feature.
Your email sequence can be as long as you need it to be to introduce your business, but here’s a simple structure you can follow to get started:
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Email 1: Welcome people to your business and thank them for joining. Share a bit about your experience or training philosophy. This sets the tone and helps new subscribers understand who you are and how you can help.
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Email 2: Share actionable fitness content right away. This can be a YouTube video, a sample workout, a blog post, or a free piece of practical advice. Email two is an opportunity to demonstrate your expertise and share value right up front to give subscribers a quick win.
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Email 3: Introduce a paid offer that aligns with your lead magnet. Let people know what’s included and how your program will help them reach their next goal. You can also offer a subscriber-only discount or bonus if you want to add a little extra motivation.
You can expand this sequence with testimonials, case studies, or more training tips, but even these three emails will make sure every new subscriber learns about your paid offer on autopilot. It’s an easy way to turn new leads into clients without having to send dozens of emails manually.
Step 3: Send ongoing newsletters
After someone finishes your automated welcome sequence, you still want to stay connected. That’s where your newsletter comes in. A regular newsletter keeps you top of mind, helps your audience stay consistent with their goals, and gives you a natural place to share new programs, schedule openings, and updates.
Aim for a weekly cadence if you can. Your newsletter doesn’t need to be long. A quick workout tip, a story from a client, a helpful resource, or a new lesson you learned in your own training is enough. What matters is staying present so your audience sees you as a reliable source of support.
You can send newsletters in Podia using the email broadcast tool. This video shows you exactly how to set up your email list and newsletter inside Podia.
Once everything is set up, your system runs automatically.
Anyone who discovers you through your website, social media, a blog post, or a recommendation can join your free lead magnet. They get your resource right away, enter your welcome sequence, and receive your first few emails on autopilot. In that time, you’re building trust, demonstrating your expertise, and showing them the paid offers that might be a great fit.
If they buy something, that’s fantastic! But if not, that’s also fine because they’ll still be on your newsletter list, where you’ll keep helping them, sharing value, and showing up consistently.
By doing this, you’re always bringing new clients into the fold and reactivating past customers. And over time, this steady rhythm of new leads plus automated emails plus ongoing newsletters becomes the engine that grows your fitness business.
Build and grow your online fitness business without the burnout
Building a successful online fitness business doesn’t require complicated tools or an endless workload. With just a few digital products, a simple website, and an email list, you can reach more people, support more clients, and earn income that isn’t tied to your availability or location.
And with a straightforward funnel (a free lead magnet, a short automated welcome sequence, and a consistent newsletter), you’ll have a steady system that attracts new clients and brings past customers back when they’re ready for more support. It all runs quietly in the background while you focus on doing the work you love.
Best of all, you can set everything up in one place with Podia. Podia has your website, digital products, and email marketing under one roof, so you can build your entire fitness business without juggling multiple tools. Start your 30-day free trial today. I can’t wait to see what you create.
