Hey - I'm Arick.

I didn’t grow up believing I had what it took to be anything. I always felt like I was missing something—like the tools for success were handed out to everyone but me. Turns out, I had them all along. It just took me a long time to see it.

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I grew up in North Carolina, where the pace was slow, the expectations were simple, and life looked a little different. I wasn’t the best athlete or the smartest kid, but I paid attention. I learned how to work hard, how to endure, and how to keep showing up—even when no one was watching.

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I attended Appalachian State University and earned a BS in Exercise Science with a pre-professional concentration and minors in Biology and Psychology. My original plan was to become a doctor of physical therapy. That curriculum gave me structure—and a language for the things I already understood intuitively: discipline, pain tolerance, adaptation. I learned how to survive, how to push through, and how to keep going. I just wasn’t sure where I was going. And after barely making it through college, I realized grad school wasn’t the path for me. So I took my degree—and the $350 I had to my name—and moved to NYC, where I landed my first job as a personal trainer.

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For years, I trained clients on autopilot, drifted through jobs—gym floors, sales desks, adventure tours—just trying to survive. I was broke, depressed, and had no sense of direction. Most days, I leaned on alcohol and cheap thrills just to feel something. I kept training clients, not because I had a vision, but because it was the only thing I knew how to do.

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When the world shut down in 2020, everything stopped. I had no choice but to slow down, look in the mirror, and ask myself what really mattered. That’s when I decided to stop waiting for someone to save me—and started building the future I knew I deserved. I launched AJ Fit with nothing but a deep belief that consistency, effort, and honesty could take me further than charisma or hype ever would.

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Now I’m busier than ever, training people in one of the toughest cities in the world—and I love it. Not because it’s easy, but because it’s real. I work with people who want to earn their strength.

 

In my free time, I rock climb because it teaches me humility. I write songs because it reminds me where I come from. I lift because it sharpens my focus and rebuilds my confidence.

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And I keep building—not because I’ve got something to prove—but because I finally believe in what I’m building.

 

AJ Fit isn’t a slogan. It’s a reflection of everything I’ve fought for: intensity, consistency, and results.

 

If you’re here for that, then let’s get to work.