World Gym’s Mission to Empower Women with Strength Training
World Gym was built on strength and has created a welcoming and enriching environment for women looking to make gains. ATN caught up with Tiffany Hamlin, World Gym’s VP of fitness operations and strategic development, to learn more
Tiffany Hamlin has dedicated her entire life and career to changing lives through the power of fitness. Immersed in the fitness world since a young age and now a senior leader at one of the most well-known gym brands, Hamlin has emerged in an important role and she sets out to support the women fitness consumers who are redefining fitness on their own terms.
Read on to hear Hamlin’s history in the fitness sector, her new role as World Gym’s vice president of fitness operations and strategic development, how World Gym is championing strength training for its female members, and her words of wisdom for those hoping to embark on a career in fitness.
A Fitness-Focused Family
It’s no surprise that Hamlin entered the fitness industry, as both her parents held leadership roles for a fitness certification company.
“The family business was the fitness industry, and the dinner table conversation was work sometimes,” Hamlin reflects. “I kind of grew up in a gym, and in addition to their corporate roles, my mom was a group exercise instructor and worked in the gym.”
At around ten years old, Hamlin ventured out of the kid’s club at her mom’s gym to explore, fascinated by the treadmill and weight room. She then began taking her mom’s group exercise classes, finding herself at the head of the class.
“She wouldn’t let me be in the back,” Hamlin laughs. “She’d always pull me up to the front because everybody loved that there was a 12-year-old, and we would dress the same, and it was a fun thing in her class.”
Hamlin Finds Her Passion
By age 15, she decided it was time to get certified and began teaching a variety of group exercise classes — first a 30-minute ab class, then Pilates, Zumba, cycling and resistance training.
“It just kind of grew from there,” she says. After working at several fitness companies, Hamlin found a home at World Gym, joining the brand as the national director of group fitness in 2020 before moving ahead to senior director of fitness and technology. This summer, she was promoted to a new leadership role as vice president of fitness operations and strategic development.
Balancing A Fitness Career and Self-Care
Her responsibilities are expansive, overseeing the fitness business and operations, acting as the primary decision maker for all vendor partners and overseeing all things fit tech for World Gym, from the club management system to the mobile app to fitness wearable partners. She also oversees the member experience.
With such a full plate, Hamlin says she prioritizes taking care of herself.
“When I’m feeling really good, I can be my best self for other people,” she says. “I make sure that I exercise every day, I make sure that my nutrition is on point every day, and I dedicate that first hour of my day to setting myself up for success.”
Women Embrace Strength Training
As a fitness expert who has seen the industry’s evolution over the years, Hamlin points out the growing strength training trend among female fitness consumers.
“Historically, weight rooms were considered like the domain of men, but more and more women are in the weight rooms, they’re taking over squat racks, they’re completely embracing strength training,” she says.
Fueling the shift, Hamlin says, is the emerging science that has shown the benefits of strength training for women, such as improved bone density and its positive mental health benefits.
“I also think that the reasons women are going to the gym in the first place are changing,” Hamlin adds. “I think women are redefining it as a way to achieve strength goals, health goals, for promises of longevity over maybe traditional ideals of why women were in the gym — maybe to look a certain way, or have a certain body type — so I think we’re kind of seeing the broader cultural movement where women are pursuing fitness because they want to feel empowered, they want to feel strong, they want to be healthy, instead of looking a certain way.”
World Gym’s Strength-Focused Approach
It’s the perfect movement for World Gym, which Hamlin notes is well-positioned to meet the needs of female fitness consumers.
“It’s a brand built on strength training with decades of experience and helping people in this specific fitness category,” she points out. “World Gym has always been a strength training gym with a focus, and they cater that goal from everything that they do, from the personal trainers that they hire to the equipment that they pick, to how the floor plan of our gyms are structured — everything’s kind of geared towards strength.”
As for women specifically, Hamlin notes that World Gym offers a dedicated space that is separate from the rest of the gym floor and a ‘Booty Boulevard,’ with a line of glute-focused strength training machines.
“While another gym might have two or three machines, we’ll have eight or nine machines and put them all in one row, so it’s very easy for people to be in the area and know what machines are going to help them with that goal,” she explains.
Making an Impact
As personal training becomes a priority for many looking to get fit and healthier and the job market for fitness trainers and instructors signals significant growth in the coming years, Hamlin encourages people to “remember their ‘why.'”
“This is a unique industry, a unique role,” she says. “You will get to know a lot about a client or a member of your group fitness class. People share their lives, their struggles and their goals with you. They come to the gym because of something they’re hoping to achieve — they’re hoping to make friends and have more of a community, they’re hoping to get healthier or maybe fight against an ailment that’s been giving them a hard time. So I think you have to be prepared in this industry to be able to (and want to) honestly help people and make a change in their lives because that will be a lot of responsibility.”
Despite the commitment, Hamlin reflects on the importance that those in the fitness industry play.
“You have the power to really change and impact lives,” she says. “And they’ll always remember the impact that you had. CEOs and COOs of fitness companies — everybody has that story, everybody has that moment, everybody has their why. And I think that as long as you know what that is, and that’s your strong base and your root, that you’ll be able to go really far.”
