Recognized by Fitness Living Magazine™ For building an independent personal training brand in Santa Maria around patience, confidence, and clients from age 5 to 60, after starting out as a boot camp member himself.
That invitation started a path through boot camp coaching, certifications, and eventually personal training. Today Richard works as an independent personal trainer inside Custom Workouts in Santa Maria, California, under his own brand, RG Athletics. He holds about 16 certifications and master trainer status, and his clients have ranged from a 5-year-old to a 60-year-old.
“Changing their lives, building their confidence, regaining their mental health, and just overall living. That’s my biggest mission.”Richard Guerrero / RG Athletics
Richard would rather learn about a client before that person ever steps into the gym. A call, a text, an email, or a booking through the RG Athletics website starts a conversation about long-term and short-term goals, what the person wants to achieve inside the gym and outside it, and what their small wins might look like.
The first visit is personal. Richard introduces himself, gives a tour of Custom Workouts, and talks through what the client hopes personal training will do for them. New clients can then take a complimentary session to see whether he is the right fit. There are no strings attached, he says, and no obligation to sign up.
Then there is the patience. Richard keeps the early sessions simple, puts proper form ahead of heavier weight, and takes extra time with older clients. A client review supplied for this profile describes him as knowledgeable and encouraging, and adds that, yes, he is funny.
Richard Guerrero started as an overweight boot camp member himself, and he built RG Athletics one client at a time inside a small gym. His coaching is shaped by patience: with beginners, with older clients, with children, and with clients facing health challenges. His stated mission goes beyond workouts, to changing lives and building confidence.
Building Confidence at Every Age
Personal training in Santa Maria can mean many things. For Richard Guerrero, it means a child who stops believing a movement is too hard, an adult who regains confidence, and an older client who gets the time and patience they need. It also means a business he built himself, one client at a time, inside a small gym on South Broadway.
RG Athletics is Richard Guerrero’s personal training brand in Santa Maria, California, operating inside Custom Workouts on South Broadway.
Richard offers one-on-one and group training, bodybuilding and powerlifting coaching, nutrition coaching, corrective exercise, InBody analysis, DNA-based lifestyle programming, online coaching, and youth training, including lessons for charter school and homeschool students.
New clients can begin with a complimentary training session with no obligation to sign up.
Richard describes himself as a bodybuilding and powerlifting specialist with about 16 certifications and master trainer status through the company where he earned them. The RG Athletics website lists credentials that include certified personal trainer, certified nutrition coach, Precision Nutrition Level 1 coach, DNA genetics lifestyle program designer, and InBody analysis specialist.
His clients have ranged in age from 5 to 60, and he has also worked with children and adults with autism. He trains a lot of young people, and he has recently started working with charter school and homeschool students.
Inside the RG Athletics Approach
This profile looks at how Richard Guerrero built RG Athletics one client at a time, and why patience and confidence sit at the center of his work with clients of nearly every age.
A boot camp member at close to 290 pounds who became a coach, earned about 16 certifications, and built his own brand.
Adults, beginners, competitive lifters, children as young as five, and charter school and homeschool students.
A conversation about goals, a tour of Custom Workouts, and a complimentary session with no strings attached.
From Boot Camp Member to Coach
Richard’s start in fitness was a family affair. His mother joined a boot camp, and he joined her, weighing about 280 to 290 pounds at the time. The RG Athletics website dates that start to 2015, at Fit Body Boot Camp. He lost about 20 pounds, and within about six months the program wanted to make him a trainer. About a year later, that boot camp closed.
Another opportunity came quickly. An owner from a different boot camp approached him with the same message: they saw his motivation and his drive and wanted him on the team. The website notes that he became a coach at Life Purpose Boot Camp, where he was appointed Accountability Coach, and he stayed on through a change in ownership. Then came the chance to become a personal trainer. Richard earned his certifications, learned how to approach clients and help other people, and, according to the website, began personal training at Custom Workouts in 2018 and created RG Athletics.
Building a Clientele One Person at a Time
The biggest challenge in building RG Athletics, Richard says, was clientele. Custom Workouts is a small gym, and while members do ask about personal training, he wanted to build a client base of his own. That meant a lot of marketing. He had to really market himself, and he calls that the hardest part.
The second challenge came from the clients themselves. Every person arrived with a different goal, and each one raised its own questions. Did their nutrition need to change? Did their training plan need to change? Were they keeping up with daily activity, such as walking? Working through those questions client by client shaped the individual attention RG Athletics is built on.
Goals First, Then a Free Session
A client at RG Athletics is never rushed. The relationship starts with a conversation about goals, the big ones and the small wins, inside the gym and outside it, before the person ever walks through the door. On the first visit, Richard introduces himself, gives a tour of Custom Workouts, and talks through what the client hopes personal training will do for them.
From there, new clients can take a complimentary session. According to the RG Athletics website, it is a chance to try the equipment, get a form evaluation, and ask questions. Richard is clear that there is no guarantee and no strings attached: the session simply shows both sides whether he is the right fit. Once training begins, he keeps the early sessions basic and takes extra time with anyone who needs it.
From a Five-Year-Old to a 60-Year-Old
Asked what makes his community special, Richard points to its range. His youngest client has been 5 years old, and his oldest has been 60. That span keeps him learning. He has to figure out what a 5-year-old enjoys and what makes training fun at that age, then turn around and work with a 60-year-old who needs more time, more patience, and a weight that is exactly right for finishing every set.
He has also worked with children and adults with autism, and he names patience as what makes that work meaningful. The same patience shapes his mission with young clients. Richard does not want children thinking they are overweight, too skinny, or not capable. He keeps them focused on the positive side of fitness and on what they will gain, rather than on how hard something is or how easy it would be to give up.
RG Athletics matters because it shows how far patience can carry a one-trainer business, from a child’s first workout to an older client’s steady progress, inside a small Santa Maria gym.
What RG Athletics Offers
Based on the interview and the official website, RG Athletics serves adults, youth, and competitive lifters inside Custom Workouts in Santa Maria, with corrective exercise and online coaching available alongside the core programs below.
Who RG Athletics May Be a Good Fit For
Richard trains clients across a wide range of ages and goals, and his patient, one-trainer approach suits people who want individual attention.
Adults who are new to training, or coming back to it, may appreciate a coach who learns their goals first, keeps early sessions simple, and offers a free first session. Anyone with an injury or medical condition should check with a physician first.
Parents looking for youth training, and charter school and homeschool families looking for physical education, may value Richard’s focus on building confidence and a positive view of fitness.
Lifters interested in bodybuilding or powerlifting can work with a trainer who describes himself as a specialist in both, with nutrition coaching and InBody analysis available.
“Richard is very knowledgeable as a trainer. He set me up on an eating plan to get results and to help me eat healthier. Richard encourages and yes, he’s funny. Thank you Richard for all you do.”
The Client Who Taught Him More Patience
Asked about a client experience that stayed with him, Richard did not point to a single dramatic moment. He pointed to a current client living with Parkinson’s disease.
Working with that client, Richard says, has made him learn what to do for them and has asked more patience of him than his work with other clients, because the client cannot always do as much as they would like to do.
The experience has also shaped his next step. When Fitness Living Magazine™ interviewed him in late October, Richard said that, encouraged by that client, he would begin a certification focused on Parkinson’s disease within a couple of weeks.
His reason is simple: he wants to be able to help others living with the same disease. For a trainer who began as a boot camp member, it is one more example of a practice that keeps growing around the people in it.
The Trainer and His Clients
RG Athletics is a one-trainer brand. Richard coaches his clients himself, one-on-one and in groups, on the Custom Workouts floor on South Broadway.
Why This Matters Locally
For people searching for personal training in Santa Maria, RG Athletics offers a trainer who works with almost every stage of life: young children, teens, charter school and homeschool students, adults chasing strength or fat loss, competitive lifters, and older clients. All of it happens inside Custom Workouts on South Broadway, with online coaching available for clients who train elsewhere.
The local value lies in that combination of range and patience. A family looking for youth training, an adult returning to exercise, and a lifter preparing to compete can all work with the same coach, each on a plan built around their own goals and pace.
Training in the Open Air
Not all of Richard’s coaching happens indoors. Photos from the RG Athletics gallery show group workouts on mats under the open sky and young athletes outdoors, and his youth work reaches charter school and homeschool students.
Questions Readers Ask
Who Is Richard Guerrero?
Richard Guerrero is the founder of RG Athletics and an independent personal trainer at Custom Workouts in Santa Maria, California. He began as a boot camp member, became a boot camp coach, and now holds about 16 certifications and master trainer status.
What Does This RG Athletics Santa Maria Review Highlight?
This Spotlight follows Richard’s path from boot camp member to coach, the challenge of building a clientele of his own, his mission to build confidence, the wide range of ages he trains, what RG Athletics offers, and how a first visit works.
Where Does RG Athletics Train Clients?
In-person sessions take place inside Custom Workouts at 2125 South Broadway, Suite 108, in Santa Maria, California. Online coaching is also available.
Does RG Athletics Offer Youth Training?
Yes. Richard trains youth clients and offers individual and group lessons for charter school and homeschool students. His focus with young clients is building confidence and a positive view of fitness.
Is RG Athletics a Good Fit for Beginners?
Yes. Richard learns each new client’s goals first, gives a tour of the gym, offers a complimentary session with no obligation, and keeps early sessions basic. Anyone with an injury or medical condition should check with a physician before starting a new program.
What Is the Best First Step for a New Client?
Call or text Richard at (805) 868-0729, email him, or visit the RG Athletics website to schedule an appointment. He will ask about your goals first, then offer a complimentary training session with no obligation to sign up.
Key Takeaways
Richard Guerrero began as a boot camp member alongside his mother, became a boot camp coach, and built RG Athletics inside Custom Workouts in Santa Maria.
His stated mission is to change lives, build confidence, help people regain their mental health, and improve their overall living.
His clients have ranged from a 5-year-old to a 60-year-old, and his work with young people includes charter school and homeschool students.
New clients start with a conversation about their goals and can take a complimentary training session with no strings attached.
Conclusion
RG Athletics grew out of a boot camp Richard Guerrero joined because his mother went first. The motivation others saw in him then became a career built on certifications, a clientele earned through his own marketing, and a mission that goes beyond workouts: changing lives and building confidence.
For clients in Santa Maria, that mission takes a practical shape: a coach who learns your goals before you arrive, a free session with no strings attached, and the patience to work with a 5-year-old, a 60-year-old, and nearly everyone in between.
Richard Guerrero
Richard’s path runs from boot camp member to boot camp coach to independent personal trainer, with about 16 certifications, master trainer status, and clients from age 5 to 60.
Richard Guerrero is the founder of RG Athletics and an independent personal trainer at Custom Workouts in Santa Maria, California. He entered fitness as a boot camp member alongside his mother, lost about 20 pounds, and was soon asked to coach. The RG Athletics website traces that start to Fit Body Boot Camp in 2015, followed by a coaching role at Life Purpose Boot Camp, where he was appointed Accountability Coach. In 2018 he moved into personal training at Custom Workouts and created RG Athletics. He describes himself as a bodybuilding and powerlifting specialist with about 16 certifications and master trainer status, and his clients have ranged in age from 5 to 60.
Richard’s mission is to change lives, build confidence, help people regain their mental health, and improve their overall living. With young clients, he works to keep the focus on the positive side of fitness and on what they will gain, rather than on what feels hard.
He values patience, encouragement, individual attention, and steady learning, as shown by his plans for a certification focused on Parkinson’s disease. RG Athletics specializes in one-on-one and group training, bodybuilding and powerlifting, nutrition coaching, InBody analysis, DNA-based lifestyle programming, corrective exercise, online coaching, and youth and charter school training.
About This Spotlight
Fitness Living Magazine™ selected this Spotlight for Richard Guerrero’s path from boot camp member to independent personal trainer, his mission to build confidence in clients of every age, the patience he brings to children, older adults, and clients facing health challenges, and a free first session that puts the client’s goals first.
Part of the Fitness Living Magazine™ Local Fitness Leadership Series, this profile documents an independent personal training brand through a recorded interview, a client-approved draft, and material supplied by the business.
Richard Guerrero’s recorded October 29, 2026 interview with Fitness Living Magazine™ is the foundation of this Spotlight. A customer review supplied for editorial context, photography and branding provided for publication, and the official RG Athletics website supported his timeline, credentials, services, and first-visit details.
This feature is editorial content and is not medical advice. Service descriptions, client comments, and experiences reflect Richard Guerrero’s account, supplied customer material, and current public business information; they do not establish guaranteed results. Individual experiences vary, and readers should consult appropriate healthcare professionals before beginning a new exercise program, especially if they have an injury or a medical condition.
