Gamble’s entry into the fitness industry wasn’t planned. After helping with strength and conditioning in college, he found himself working for a healthcare company in Nashville, doing health coaching over the phone from a cubicle, unlike where his career would eventually lead.
“The nine to five office thing really just wasn’t my style,” Gamble recalls. “Just sitting in a cubicle all day wasn’t really what I wanted to do.”
The turning point came when he met a personal trainer at his healthcare job whose gym needed additional trainers. Gamble began working as a personal trainer on the side while maintaining his office job, a dual existence that lasted four to five years before a chance encounter would change everything.
The opportunity that would define Gamble’s career came through an unexpected source, a personal training client who was starting a bootcamp gym. That gym was Barry’s Bootcamp in the Gulch.
“Honestly, I had never even heard of Barry’s,” Gamble admits. “The concept of how great it was and how no one had done it before.”
After auditioning for a position, Gamble joined Barry’s Bootcamp Nashville as one of nine original trainers. What followed was a 13-year tenure that saw him rise to head trainer, during which he helped establish the studio as a cornerstone of Nashville’s emerging boutique fitness scene.
The timing couldn’t have been better. When Barry’s opened in Nashville, group fitness options were scarce. “There was a spin gym in Green Hills, there was a kickboxing studio in the Gulch, and then there was our HIIT gym in the Gulch,” Gamble explains. “So there really wasn’t a whole lot of options.”
The studio quickly became more than just a place to work out, it evolved into a social hub for young professionals seeking alternatives to Nashville’s bar-centric nightlife. “It really was kind of like the hot commodity there for the first three or four years, because it was a good, young professionals gym to come and mingle and socialize,” Gamble says.
Gamble’s two-decade residence in Nashville has given him a front-row seat to one of the most dramatic transformations in the city’s workout landscape. The boutique fitness industry has exploded from a handful of specialized studios to what Gamble describes as universal presence throughout the city.
“I live in the Gulch and there’s either a barre studio or a HIIT gym or something, it seems like on every block,” he observes. “Group fitness, at least in Nashville 13 years ago just really wasn’t a thing. As you look at it now, it’s kind of blown up. It’s everywhere.”
This transformation reflects broader changes in how people approach fitness. Where traditional gym-goers once focused on isolated activities, the boutique fitness model has popularized comprehensive workouts that combine strength training and cardio into single, high-intensity sessions.
After 13 successful years at Barry’s Bootcamp, Gamble recently made the decision to step aside from his head trainer role to pursue more solo work as a personal trainer. This transition represents not just a career change, but an evolution in how fitness professionals can build their brands in the digital age.
Gamble’s current approach is notably modern and flexible. He hopes to keep you smiling and engaged, understanding very well, working out can feel tiresome and unexciting. He also provides comprehensive nutrition guidance through his work with Build Your Temple, a local meal prep company that delivers fresh meals throughout Middle Tennessee.
The meal prep partnership is particularly innovative, with Gamble and the Build Your Temple team creating custom nutrition plans based on individual goals. Whether clients want to build muscle, tone up, or lose weight, the service delivers meals that align with each person’s specific fitness objectives.
Gamble’s current workout routine reflects the abundance of options now available in Nashville’s fitness landscape.
His go-to is Get Fit Anytime in Berry Hill, owned by longtime Nashville fitness veteran Adam Semanchik.
As Gamble continues to build his independent fitness brand, his story reflects broader trends in both Nashville’s development and the fitness industry’s evolution. The city that once offered limited options for health-conscious professionals now boasts a fitness scene that rivals major metropolitan areas.
To get started with him, follow along with him on Instagram.
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