Shahbaz Haider resonates greatly with clients due to his performance and word of mouth
Personal trainer Shahbaz Haider trains Mysha Omer Khan UAE to top the girls’ under-15 badminton competition at AB Fitness in Dubai. Photo by Neeraj Murali.
Lahore-born Shahbaz Haider has long been a fitness freak in his own right. Shahbaz graduated from the Punjab Business School (PCC) in Lahore in 2004 and took up fitness training at a local wellness studio the following year to keep his passion going.
However, fitness training in Pakistan 17 years ago was hardly a profession because of the low awareness of staying in shape.
Shabazz had no choice but to look for a viable career – he worked as a quality assurance supervisor at Warid Telecom and part-time as a fitness trainer.
When he first visited Dubai in July 2010, he hardly realized that his side hustle would become his livelihood. During that brief trip, he quickly realized that there was a thriving but untapped fitness market in the Middle East’s most dynamic and cosmopolitan city.
Shahbaz Haider, Personal Trainer at AB Fitness in Dubai. Photo by Neeraj Murali.
A sedentary lifestyle combined with indulging in calorie-dense foods is a potent combination for a portion of Dubai’s residents to gain weight quickly. Shahbaz landed a job at a fitness center in Dubai with a four-week certification program from the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM).
He jumped ship in March 2012 and stayed on for the next three and a half years, honing his skills and getting his driver’s license before diving headfirst into becoming a personal fitness trainer.
Personal trainer Shahbaz Haider trains Abdulla AlOlama at AB Fitness in Dubai. Photo by Neeraj Murali.
“The timing is just right. The country has introduced the REPS UAE – Register of Sports Professionals. I am the 23rd member of REPS UAE and the number is now in the thousands,” Shahbaz said.
“Membership in REPS UAE does more than provide a badge to enhance the professional profile of an instructor. It differentiates qualified and dedicated instructors from those with little to no training. Becoming a member of REPS means fitness professionals will hold a recognized and approved qualifications and are committed to continuous professional development,” he added.
Personal trainer Shahbaz Haider trains Abdulla AlOlama at AB Fitness in Dubai. Photo by Neeraj Murali.
In 2013, there were around three or four schools in Dubai that offered functional training courses. Shahbaz attended MeFitPro’s series of functional training certificate courses, which cost him around AED 20,000.
Soon he was awarded a TRX Suspension Training Certificate, a ViPR Certificate, which bridges the gap between exercise and strength training, kettlebells (boxer size) and trigger point massage, which allowed him to expand his business independently in November 2016 Become a champion personal fitness trainer.
Personal trainer Shahbaz Haider trains UAE’s Taabia Khan to finish in the top three in women’s badminton at AB Fitness in Dubai. Photo by Neeraj Murali.
“Fitness has become an organized sector. It’s mostly motivation-driven. If you can make a name for yourself in this market, it’s easy to sustain,” he said. Shahbaz, one of the Pakistani expats, dreams of becoming a personal fitness trainer in a competitive market dominated by Filipinos and Europeans.
“Personal Training Module (PTM) is a rigorous program. Typically, clients sign up for 20 sessions per month for AED 5,000 and each session costs AED 250. The trainer is as good as the results he can deliver. “The goal is never for the client to lose 20kg in one month, but to gradually lose 3-4kg over the next five to six months,” he said.
Photo by Neeraj Murali.
Because of his performance, he resonated greatly with his clients, and word of mouth brought him a wonderful world.
“There was a time when I worked six days a week from 6am to 11pm. I did 228 one-hour sessions in a month. But it was tiring because I was training clients 100 percent effort. Now, to save energy, I have reduced my workload to just six lessons a day,” said Shahbaz, whose clients are mainly Emiratis, South Asians and Arabs from the wider region.
Photo by Neeraj Murali.
The Covid-19 pandemic has led to a paradigm shift in personal fitness training regimens. More and more people are paying attention to personal fitness and paying more attention to nutritional supplements.
“At the height of the pandemic in 2020, I had to struggle for about six months. But it’s been business as usual since then,” he said. Shahbaz wants to take his PTM outside of Dubai and is considering the idea of going digital for a larger global audience.
“It’s convenient and cost-effective. I would like to see myself moving in this direction within a year, even though many personal fitness trainers are running boot camps in Dubai,” he added.
His ambitions are in sync with the global trend of PTM aspirants.