GetFitAthletic

Early life and background

Ali Hamza Baloch says he was bullied at school from about grade nine until he finished his A levels. He says he went to a gym that cost 500 rupees. He says he shifted to another gym, where the trainers were somewhat better. [1]

Baloch says his father is a chartered accountant. He says his mother gave him a lot of support. [1]

Education

Baloch joined the ACCA accountancy qualification. He joined in 2014 and spent about five years on it. He says he realised he was not meant for accounts. He says his interest was lost completely and that it was taking a toll on his mental health. He dropped out of ACCA in 2019. [1]

Baloch says he enrolled in a certification after he felt idle at home and wanted to learn. He says certifications alone do not teach, and that they give only a basic guideline. [1]

Career

Baloch says he started his personal training and nutrition work in 2017. He describes himself as a personal trainer and a nutritionist. He says he first trained friends for free. He says that "we" started a flexible dieting initiative, and that he started it with a friend whom he had trained. He answers audience questions every Friday on Instagram. [1]

Baloch says a cousin suggested he try YouTube. He says a person charged him 20,000 rupees for four videos. He bought a camera and a lens and learned the basics himself so he could make his own videos. He says he makes and shares videos about fitness and weight loss. He says his YouTube channel kept growing and stood at about 35,000 subscribers. [1]

Team and coaching process

Baloch says he is a co-founder of the company. He discussed his business model with his father. He says one person or two people cannot do it all, and that a team should be created. He says he has built a team of nutritionists, doctors and physiotherapists. [1]

Baloch says every coach is trained because the Pakistani curriculum is very outdated. He says his workforce has grown as his workload has grown. He says he connects dietitians with clients, through WhatsApp for now and later through the app. [1]

Baloch says his social media team connects people with its coaches. He says a coach messages the client, talks to them and takes their history. He says the coach sends the client workouts and makes a meal plan for them. He says he has a Facebook group where a dietitian answers questions. [1]

Baloch says his process is structured and centralised, not decentralised. He says a regulatory body behind the process oversees which meal plan and which workout plan is sent to a client. He says there is a retail business offering weight scales, kitchen scales and protein powders. He says he intends to give people clients to work with, acting as a bridge. [1]

GetFitAthletic app

Baloch came up with the idea for the app in 2017 or 2018. He says he previously had limited clients because his platform was small. He says he made an app that holds the solution to all the problems. He says weight logging, macro calculation and measurements were each handled in a separate app. [1]

Baloch says the app takes a user's data and tells them how many macros to take. He says users open the app and enter their workouts and how many sets they did. The GetFitAthletic app has two versions, and the trainer version needs an invite code. The trainer version shows trainers the insights of their premium users. [1]

Baloch says development has three phases and was then in the third. He says testing would run for about 10 to 15 days before rollout. [1]

Views

Baloch says he once wanted to appear in ads, but realised that this was not the same as creating yourself as a brand. He says anyone can open a YouTube channel and build a platform when mainstream channels do not take them. He says that even if only ten people watch, he is helpful to those ten people. He says business growth creates demand for graphic designers, video editors and coaches. [1]

Baloch says people should test methods on themselves first, because what works for one person may not work for another. He says he would learn from a coach, weigh that against his book knowledge, combine the two and make his own strategy. He says he does not reach a verdict on a nutrition claim until he has checked the evidence. He says he began reading research and case studies on his own. [1]

Baloch describes advice such as eating bananas to build the chest and peaches to build the arms as absolute poor advice. He says nutrition has not been properly understood in Pakistan, either in the past or today. He says bodybuilding is more like a showcase. He says people doing heavy training need more calories, because their metabolic rate is higher. He says it comes down to how consistent and how patient a person is. [1]

Baloch says a person must first define their goal, such as sprinter, marathon runner or bodybuilder. He says clients who have paid want the most out of it and are going to lie. [1]

Timeline

2014

Ali Hamza Baloch joined ACCA.[1]

2017

Baloch started his personal training and nutrition work.[1]

2017 or 2018

Baloch came up with the idea for the app.[1]

2019

Baloch dropped out of ACCA.[1]

Appearances

Frequently asked questions

References

1. Diet plans, fitness myths, and building a science-based approach to nutrition . Thought Behind Things , 2021-04-26.