The fitness industry has long been criticized for being too young, too thin, too straight and too White. No shocker there, right? But considering that the average Black woman wears a size 14 or above, not only is it disappointing not to see ourselves represented in the overall fitness space, but it’s also a gross misrepresentation of the general population.
Fortunately, one executive is on a mission to change all that from the top down: Bryan Myers. As president and CEO of the Pilates-based, full-body workout training system [solidcore], he is revising the “White, thin, cisgender” fitness narrative—and making history as one of the nation’s few Black, LGBTQ+ CEOs spanning every industry. “I stepped into the role as both a leader of color and a leader who identifies as LGBT. For me, what it really meant was continuing to open those doors for other underrepresented communities within fitness, through representation,” Myers says.
One doesn’t acquire a résumé like Myers’s without a lot of blood, sweat (literally) and tears. The Virginia native has an undeniable talent for growing businesses and for building strong, inclusive communities of clients and employees. Prior to joining the [solidcore] team as COO in 2018, Myers was VP of Development for the fast, casual salad chain Sweetgreen, helping grow the brand from around 20 locations to 90.
“We still have a long way to go at [solidcore],” says Myers. “When people congratulate me for the work that we’ve done—we have more leaders of color than any major fitness brand out there—I’m like, yes, I appreciate it, and we’ve made great strides, but let’s not fool ourselves. We have so much more to do—because we are still overwhelmingly White, despite the work that we’ve already done. We are still overwhelmingly thin, despite the work that we’ve done. We are still overwhelmingly heterosexual, despite the work that we’ve done. So it’s a journey, and it’s a process.”
Unfortunately, making gyms and fitness studios more diverse isn’t as simple as hanging a “Welcome” sign on the door. These issues are a part of long-standing inequities that impact almost every corporation in the United States. Prior to taking on the role of CEO in April 2021, Myers led the company’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion task force, committing to making every member of the community feel respected, supported, motivated, empowered and engaged.
“I think one of the challenges that I often feel, rightly or wrongly, is that because I’m in the position that I’m in, I have to single-handedly solve diversity within the entire fitness industry myself—and all within my first two years of being a CEO at [solidcore],” Myers admits.
It is vital to recognize that diversity does not necessarily equate to inclusion and equity—in fitness or any other field, he points out. You can invite people into the room, but if they’re not made to feel welcomed, valued and appreciated, then inclusion and equity can’t truly exist. What good is being included within an advertisement if we aren’t represented at the employee and leadership tables?
“The reason that it’s called systemic racism is because it is entrenched in the system itself,” notes Myers. “So we have to change the system—not an individual, right? One individual is a part of the system, but one individual cannot change the whole. I’m the only Black CEO of a major fitness company. I cannot single-handedly change the system. We have to get more of us into these roles, so that we can drive systemic change. And I think that’s where sometimes people’s frustration at the problem that they see gets taken out on the individual, when what we’re really talking about is the need to address a larger systemic issue and challenge.”
Since [solidcore] opened its first studio in Washington, D.C., in 2013, it has become one of the fastest-growing companies in the fitness sector—with more than 90 locations across 24 states currently and hundreds of thousands of clients, including Michelle Obama. It offers arguably one of the toughest routines you’ll ever encounter: a 50-minute, intense, full-body workout that combines Pilates and strength training to take fitness conditioning to a whole new level.
Popularized during an ESSENCE red carpet interview at the 2022 Met Gala, when Lori Harvey famously shared that Pilates was the secret to her toned body, the workout quickly became a TikTok craze among Black women. Myers readily admits that the Harvey interview added more appeal to the fitness brand. “When Lori Harvey started talking about Pilates, the [solidcore] mentions were off the chart,” he says. “And so it definitely had a positive effect on our business. I can’t quantify exactly how much of an impact it had, but especially for women of color, so many people were like, ‘Oh, wait, Lori Harvey is talking about Pilates. Okay, that’s what I need to do.’”
Bringing the same vigor he had in growing the Sweetgreen chain, the 35-year-old University of Virginia graduate is now guiding a fast-paced and aggressive plan for [solidcore]’s expansion across the country. “We will continue to add more studios, but where we really are focusing our energies is on how we make our existing studios even greater,” says Myers of the company’s current strategy.
“And so today, when we look at our existing locations, we see that they are performing at roughly 30 percent higher than they were before the pandemic,” he adds. “We had a great business before the pandemic. But we’ve really leveled up our game—and how we think about driving deeper penetration of our inclusivity mission and more member engagement.”
