Get Out!
Ron Wells’ outdoor workouts don’t require a gym.
Originally from New Orleans, personal trainer and wellness coach Ron Wells played football in high school and in college at the University of North Carolina at Pembroke. When an injury to his ACL and three subsequent surgeries ended his football career, Wells focused on coaching. In 2012, he graduated from UNC Pembroke with a bachelor’s degree in exercise physiology. “Then I moved home, and I’ve been changing lives ever since!” he says.
Wells, who will receive his master’s degree in kinesiology from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette this December, founded Inhance Fitness Sports & Performance with the goal of changing even more lives — and without the constraints of gym policies and hefty training fees.
“I started my own company because I just felt like an alligator in a cage in the gym,” Wells says. “I wanted to branch out and do my own thing, so I could impact people a little more. I wanted to do things the Ron Wells way.”
Wells trains most of his clients at Oakdale Park in Gretna, incorporating a variety of movements and exercises into each workout. “Most of my workouts are focused on the full body,” he explains. “For example: Hold some 10-pound dumbbells, and squat down and press up. The second station may be all abs; the third may be push-ups. We’re incorporating every part of the body.”
On Staying Motivated: Wells likes to shake it up, and he tests new workout plans himself before sharing them with clients. “My clients motivate me,” he says. “I can’t be the guy trying to explain exercises that I don’t know how to do! I’m always combining movements [and] looking up new exercises. I’m always trying to find new things to do.”
His Fuel: Wells keeps it simple and nutritious, and he makes sure to keep a meal replacement shake on him at all times in case he doesn’t have time to cook or grab a healthy snack — though he admits he has a weakness for sugary cereal.
A normal day’s meals for Wells might consist of oatmeal for breakfast, chicken for lunch and tilapia for dinner, with plenty of vegetables, fruits and nuts throughout. He encourages clients to try a similar diet. “I try to keep the diet really general, [so it’s] something everyone can do,” he says. “Just foods that we normally eat every day — but there’s also portion control. That’s where the education comes in.”
Client Success Story: One of Wells’ very first clients, Tiffany, has been as beneficial for his business as he’s been for her health. “I was new to training, and she was having bad experiences with [her former] trainer — so she really pushed me to expand my knowledge of personal training,” Wells remembers. “She helped me become a great trainer, and I helped her lose a lot of weight. Now we’re in the toning, tightening and maintaining stage.”
Wise Words: Don’t be intimidated by working with a trainer. “The first step is seeking help,” Wells says. “What I want clients to realize is that trainers are here to help you. I know the gym can be an intimidating place … but the first step is letting someone know that you do need help — walking up to someone and saying, ‘Hey, these are my goals. Can you help me?’”