CEO Corner: AARMY Co-Founder Akin Akman Believes Future of Fitness is Infinite

For nearly seven years, as OG spinning destination SoulCycle rose to global dominance, there was one New York City instructor who seemed to garner more demand, loyalty, and devotion than any other: Akin Akman. Known for his advanced choreography and high-intensity climbs and sprints, the Miami-born, Turkey-raised trainer was always a natural on the bike, but it was actually the tennis court where he spent most of his early life.

As a student of the Nick Bolettieri’s Tennis Academy—now called IMG Tennis Academy—Akman trained roughly eight hours every day and had ambitions of becoming a professional tennis player until a series of injuries in his college years rendered that dream impossible. Nonetheless, the discipline and dedication he developed from tennis stuck with him and extended to every facet of his life, from fitness to modeling. So, after moving to New York City in 2009, he decided it was time to share that skillset with others.

Akman made a name for himself as a senior cycling instructor at SoulCycle’s downtown studios, but for years, he also ran bootcamp classes at Crunch Fitness and was among the first to be named a Nike Master Trainer. But the thing that set him apart in everything he did was his ability to cultivate a sense of community, one that he continued to grow and support even as his own influence multiplied.

In 2019, Akman chose to leave SoulCycle to open his own fitness studio alongside Trey Laird and Angela Manuel-Davis—but he was sure to bring his cult following with. AARMY was founded on the very tenants of Akman’s approach to fitness: that everyone is an athlete, that mental training is just as important as physical, and that there is unbridled power in community.

With an in-person studio in New York and a virtual fitness platform that reaches every corner of the globe, AARMY has amassed enormous success in its two or so years and has proved more than capable of acclimating to changing needs and concerns throughout the Covid-19 pandemic. For the CEO/Founder interview series, Athletech News caught up with Akman to discuss his training philosophy, how he deals with stress, where he sees the fitness industry going, and more.

Athletech News (ATN): Please tell us about your current company and how your role and the company came to fruition.

Akin Akman: My company is called AARMY. My team and I built it knowing we could help people discover their greatness—to guide them to trust and go after everything they dreamt of and train people to see their own potential. 

To give you some background, I grew up at Nick Bolettieri’s tennis academy, where we trained every day, and all of the students that attended the academy had dreams of becoming professional athletes. We would practice each and every day, and the drills we did were always highly intentional and specific; they would become our artillery of game plans for competition. Physically, the repetition put all the plays on autopilot, and you just knew what to do, which would then free the brain to problem solve. However, mental conditioning was taught differently. We had to sit in a room and talk about “how to think like a champion.”

As a coach, I decided to put action behind that layer as well. Through skill building, physically (i.e. putting you through situations that call for you to be courageous, resilient, relentless, and to have grit), I knew I could coach people to enjoy every day, lean on community, build themselves up, and work to succeed in every part of their lives. I first put it to the test with all the different academies and studios I taught at. I then took the leap to building AARMY and found a team that believed in the mission and had the vision to elevate the brand to reach as many people as possible. We wanted people to know that everything they want is in their hand, and we are here to not only guide you to succeed but also to put the energy of an entire army behind your goals.

ATN: When did you know you had something of substantial value?

Akin Akman: I knew immediately when I started coaching that I could build something special, but honestly, I just loved coaching. Every stage of my now 20-year coaching career has been rewarding in so many ways. However, the biggest reason I took the leap is because of the people I have coached, my ARMY! AARMY actually started as “AKIN’s ARMY.” The people I coached told me to build a website, to make retail, to post sessions online, and told me to call it Akin’s Army. It happened as people went all in and became believers of the mission. 

ATN: What was your journey like to get to this point? 

Akin Akman: The journey getting here was and is an entire lifetime. It’s been both extremely challenging and rewarding thus far. 

ATN: What is your greatest strength? 

Akin Akman: I love what I do, and I can see the best in people. In terms of the business, I have a great vision for the future.

ATN: What motivates you? 

Akin Akman: Progress. 

ATN: How do you manage stress? 

Akin Akman: Through practice. 

ATN: How much sleep do you get? 

Akin Akman: I get a good six or seven hours of sleep every night. I could use some more.

ATN: Who is your mentor? Role model? 

Akin Akman: My biggest mentor and role model has been Nick Bollettieri and my mom, Aylin Akman. 

ATN: Where do you see the future of fitness going? 

Akin Akman: I believe the future of fitness is infinite in so many facets. I believe content will be super valuable, as the initial wave of digital fitness has been so tech- and hardware-heavy. I believe people will partner and collaborate in different ways. I feel like this is just the beginning—fitness will transcend physical goals and dig deeper into mental and emotional goals.