Today we’d like to introduce you to Aaron Trains.
Hi Aaron, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
My story is about a kid from a small city who is chasing two dreams at once. I went from a college dropout and McDonald’s cook to a Brand owner, YouTuber, and Unattached track athlete. My dream has always been to play a collegiate sport, and I fell in love with track during my high school years. Unfortunately, covid ended my senior track season early in 2020. So, I didn’t run track for about 2 years, but it crossed my mind every day, and I always wondered about what could’ve been if I just chased after that dream and trained for it. With the help of new friends and role models, I decided to chase after track and document my journey through YouTube hoping to inspire other athletes to do the same. I see too much-wasted potential, and I just want that to change that. The ultimate goal of my story, my brand, and YouTube channel is to inspire and motivate. The Leonard Hilton invitational in 2023 was my first time competing, and although I didn’t perform as well as I could’ve, I hadn’t felt that joy or adrenaline rush of competing in years, especially at a higher level against Olympic sprinters. As far as my brand, AaronTrainsApparel, I was working 3 jobs at one point in 2020 before I realized I needed to go back to school in 2021. Still working 2 jobs at once I went back to school, and it opened my eyes. I started to view the world differently and observe the way people behaved and the type of mindsets people have that put them in the position they are in right now whether it was being successful or being unsuccessful. School was going great, but I was never happy wherever I ended up working. I always felt out of place and trapped between the 4 walls of a building or restaurant. Eventually, I got tired of working for managers who were jerks and dealing with disrespectful people for money. Thankfully, I had saved enough money to pay for my car so I could quit one of my jobs and just work at my other job which was training people at a fitness gym. I liked my job and helping people reach their goals, but it wasn’t enough. One day my coworker planted an idea in my head about starting her own brand, but she never went through with it. She had asked me to come up with designs for men, so I started doing my own research and soon became obsessed with the idea of creating something for people to wear and represent proudly. I started to think to myself, why help one person at a time with my current job when I can help as many people as I want with this new business. I then made it my mission to see this creation all the way through and make it my mission to inspire and motivate people to believe in themselves the way I did with my track dreams and starting my fitness brand, AaronTrains. My central message around the brand is to train your body and your mind to both be strong. Without a strong physical body, you won’t live very long or have a happy life, and without a strong mind you won’t be successful in life. They go hand in hand and work together to prepare you for life. A strong healthy person with a strong mindset is more likely to be happy because they have self-confidence, practice more acceptance, and tend to be more prepared for obstacles in life both physical and metaphorical.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Some struggles that I have gone through have just been overcoming self-doubt and having the courage to step out of my comfort zone and go public with my brand. As far as my track career, it has been tough to balance a full-time business on Instagram, go to school, train for track, travel to competitions, and still work my other job at the gym part-time. Balance has been my biggest obstacle and sleep lol.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I currently study Physical Education at Texas southmost College. Although I know nothing about business, marketing, or finance, I am no stranger to hard work and the hustle. I am most proud of being able to step out of my comfort zone and put myself out there for track and my business. I was able to gain more self-confidence and overcome most of my fears. What separates me is that I am willing to make the sacrifices others aren’t willing to make. I sacrificed things such as social life, spending money on food, and spending money on things I don’t need to survive. Simple but effective formula for success that people have a hard time following. I have never done drugs or drank alcohol in my life which is very rare for a 20-year-old, but that doesn’t mean I haven’t seen what drug abuse and addiction can do. I’m no stranger to the effects and consequences that have impacted the lives of my family and friends. This is why I make sure that I work hard enough to never be put in that position and hopefully inspire others to break that cycle and be strong.
Can you talk to us a bit about the role of luck?
I often ask myself the same question because I feel that I am very blessed and lucky to be able to pursue these dreams and have fun doing it. I think the position that I am currently in is due to a combination of a little luck and a lot of hard work. I wouldn’t say I have bad luck even when things do go wrong because I expect things to go wrong, so I am prepared most of the time which allows me to bounce back and overcome obstacles.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/aarontrainsapparel?igshid=YWJhMjlhZTc=
- Facebook: aaron_trains21 & aarontrainsapparel
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/@AaronTrains
Image Credits
Aaron Amaro
