94. Ellen Latham, Creator of Orangetheory Fitness

Ali on the Run Show

“I finally thought, ‘Why not me? Why not give it a shot?’” —Ellen Latham

Ellen Latham is the creator and co-founder of Orangetheory Fitness. Orangetheory is the fastest-growing fitness franchise in the world: It's currently in 18 countries, it brought in more than $700 million in sales last year, and Ellen and her team recently celebrated the opening of the brand's 1000th studio. Of course, the road to super success hasn't been simple for Ellen. Before she was the founder of Orangetheory, she was a single mom who had just gotten fired from her job and had to figure out what to do next. On this episode, Ellen, who lives in Fort Lauderdale, FL, reflects on those challenges, how she decided to become an entrepreneur, and what makes OTF special. She also talks about her greatest successes and scariest failures and growing pains.

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What you’ll get on this episode:

• How Ellen made her way into the fitness industry (1:50)
• How being a single mom who got fired from her job led Ellen to create Orangetheory, and how she bounced back from extreme discomfort (2:40)
• Whether Ellen always knew she would be a huge success, and how she learned to be an entrepreneur (8:45)
• What Ellen says are the most important decisions she’s made to grow Orangetheory to become the fastest-growing fitness franchise in the world (16:00)
• Why Orangetheory’s motto is “More Life,” and what that means to Ellen (22:30)
• What a day in the life of Ellen Latham is like (26:00)
• Ellen shares her future goals for Orangetheory (28:00)
• Ellen’s advice for first-time Orangetheory-goers and for women who want to pursue careers in the fitness industry (30:45)
• What keeps Ellen up at night (33:45)

What we mention on this episode:

Orangetheory Fitness

Ellen’s Ultimate Workout

Massage Envy

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