Josh Bowen: Virtuosity

“Nothing great in the world has ever been accomplished without passion.” Hebbel

I started my fitness journey as skinny, puny 145 lbs 18 year old. Like most guys, I wanted muscles to get noticed but what started as a way to get a date with a girl became a lifestyle and a career. After tirelessly trying to break into the fitness industry, I got my first training job in 2004. I was certified and ready to start whipping people into shape. What started as something I was doing on the side became a love and an obsession. Personal training was what I wanted to do! I trained them all; professional athletes, wannabe pro athletes, housewives, wannabe housewives, executives, and wannabe executivesJ. You name it, I trained them. My next moves were instilling the education and know how I developed as a trainer to other trainers. In 2007 I was promoted to Quality Control Director for Urban Active Fitness. I have spent the past 6 years directing and leading 400 personal trainers in 7 states. I’ve certified trainers; I’ve proctored hundreds of seminars and conference calls and even contributed 10 published articles. My mission is to spread the word of fitness to as many people as I can through personal training. My motto is Train, Motivate and Inspire!

This is my listed biography, short form, but doesn’t tell you everything about me. It has been a long road for me, a road with alot of high points, a few low points but otherwise great career. A career that could have been derailed several times but one that keeps going very strong. A great word I like to use is virtuosity. A word that most people are unfamilar with but one that is very important particularly to me. It simply means “doing the common, uncommonly well,” a moniker I strive to live by. The last 60 days have been a challene for me on a professional level but also a personal level. Personal training is life to me; clients, members and trainers are my family. With Urban Active I helped develop thousands of trainers some of which are with the newly name LA Fitness and some are spread throughout the industry. That simply means everything to me. On October 25th, 2012 at 5pm EST Urban Active closed its doors after nearly 20 years of operations. My entire fitness journey occured within the four walls of Urban Active. A part of me died the day we closed the doors. Now, I could of hung my shoes up and moved on to something else but I wouldn’t be living by the virtuosity defininition. There is a fire inside of me that needs to make a difference, that needs to lead. I need it like I need to breath. I am rambling I know but these thoughts have been trapped for the last 2 weeks and I needed an avenue to reliquish it 

To summarize my feelings and future plans I want to say this; I need fitness as I need food. I cannot leave my passion and refuse to let my vision die just because Urban Active closed the doors. It is time for a new journey a journey I have not been on before. My search for new obstacles to conquer has begun, please join me on this ride, I promise you will not be disappointed. I am back jack!