Time is a funny thing. We live in a world of go,go,go. We Workout to a clock. We rush to the next appointment. We Wait to clock out and clock in only to do the same things all over again.
In April of 2024, Lindsay and I sat down for our first real conversation about opening a gym. I asked her if it was okay for Taia to come with me. Because of how important the conversation was, I didn’t want to make any decisions without her—she would be impacted just as much as I would.
I’ll never forget that conversation.
For several years, my heart had been pulling me in a direction it knew was right.
Unfortunately, I kept resisting.
I was scared.
I was scared of not being able to provide the things my ego wanted—more money, newer things, the ability to buy the world for the people I cared about most. I lived in a constant push and pull: my heart trying to take me somewhere meaningful, and my ego telling me to stay put and be comfortable.
Little did I know, my heart was slowly winning.
I quit my hospital job in pursuit of something that felt real to me—coaching. Bridging the gap between fitness and healthcare.
I promised myself one thing: I would never let my dreams die.
That meant I had to keep going, above all else.
While working at 4 Elements, with the help of Dr. K and Moe, I opened my own LLC. I called it Pursuit Fitness, named after The Pursuit of Happiness—one of my favorite movies. https://youtu.be/4zTCd-k–7A?si=iNEeAmotVW2pqgq5
That scene when Will Smith tells his son “ Dont Ever Let somebody tell you, you can’t do something, not even me. Alright?” That scene I still reflect on to this day.
I trained patients upstairs in my nursing office.
Dr. K bought adjustable dumbbells, bands, and foam flooring—which didn’t quite stop the vibrations from some shaky legs.
I bought a Rogue-branded PVC pipe. Figured if it was the only one I had, it might as well be a cool pipe.
I taught and still do teach patients from all health backgrounds. They just need to be willing to get better. People who wanted to exercise but didn’t know where to start. People who didn’t want to go to a gym and felt safer inside a doctor’s office.
Those are my people.
With that PVC pipe, I taught foundational movement patterns like the squat, hinge, press. Sometimes I trained patients outside when the weather was nice.
Little did I know, I was setting the stage for what came next.
I remember Moe and I going to Kloter Farms to look at garage buildings we could possibly put behind Dr. K’s new office. That’s when I learned how expensive that process really was. So there I was, scrolling LoopNet, looking for spaces near the office. I didn’t need much—just something I could break even on with the clients I had.
I came close a few times. None of it panned out.
I simply couldn’t afford anything. That left me feeling stuck—and, at times, full of regret. Buried in debt from nursing school, only to realize that path wasn’t the one I needed anymore.
Time passed.
And I knew I had to make a move.
I needed to keep going.
So one day I told Taia,
“I think I’m going to reach out to Lindsay and see if she’d be interested in actually opening a gym with me.”
And there I was—sitting next to Taia, across from Lindsay, at Doro Coffee.
It was like I opened the door to a house on fire and walked straight in, just to see what would happen.
That conversation turned into many more.
A lot of meetings at Doro Coffee—even though Lindsay usually showed up with Dunkin’ cold brew because she likes that better (lol).
Months passed.
We worked with a mentor to get the business off the ground—someone I’ll always be grateful for. His name was Brooks. I believed that if we wanted to be great, we needed to learn from people who had already been where we were trying to go, and who had already made the mistakes we hadn’t yet.
In February of 2025, the foundation was set.
We held an open house that filled our small garage. There was a coffee guy, conversations everywhere, community, friends, and family all coming together to support us. Honestly, it still makes me emotional thinking about it.
We even got our first members that day—Cass and John. Lindsay and I will forever be grateful to you for believing in us before anyone else did.
From there, time passed.
I found myself on our mentorship calls realizing I needed less help with business—and more help with my relationship with myself.
To be honest, the business exposed me. It exposed my weaknesses and slowly started beating me from the inside out. The anxiety took over, and for a while, it was winning.
Some time passed.
And there I was again, knowing I had to do something. I needed to keep moving forward. But this time, I knew what I needed to do. I had already stepped into the burning house of fear—so why not open another door?
So there I was, sitting across from my therapist.
Talking about time.
Talking about patience.
Talking about relationships.
Talking about becoming a leader.
Talking about fitness.
Talking about fear.
Talking about immediate gratification.
Talking about my childhood.
The list goes on.
I tell you this because I’ve learned something that can’t be replaced.
Pursuit Fitness is not just a place where you come to exercise.
It’s a breeding ground for freedom & strength in all areas of life.
These are two Values I have learned that I hold close to my heart in our purpose and mission here at Pursuit.
Pursuit is a representation of what happens when you don’t give up on yourself.
You don’t just come here to work out.
You come here to become a better human being.
A better leader for your family and your friends.
To get healthy.
To feel better.
To move better.
To live better.
This is Fitness.
, Coach Paul
