Personal trainer Eric Johnson has worked with celebrities like Scarlett Johansson and Andrew Garfield, and is currently on tour with singer Charlie Puth. He’s also a Westport resident. Here, we chat with Johnson about his career success, his approach to fitness, and his tips for a successful workout.
Meet Eric Johnson
How did you get into personal training?
My first exposure to training was making the weight limit to play youth football. At eight years old, I was running hills with a garbage bag on and sucking and spitting lollipops. It was so unhealthy! Our basement playroom transformed into my brother Ryan’s and my first gym. Now we design and manage gyms throughout the East Coast. I studied exercise science at Sacred Heart and interned with Quinnipiac’s athletic teams before landing in New York–and now Westport!.
What is the age range of your clients?
Besides my three-year-old son who is already doing pull-ups, I typically work with clientele from 25 to 65 years old.
Where do you do your sessions?
In a private facility or in-home.
What is your approach?
The overall goal is functional aesthetics. You could call it “show-and-go.” I want my clients to feel great, move well and look awesome. I’m basically trying to make real life superheroes.
How did you reach the level that stars like Scarlett Johansson, Andrew Garfield and Jonathan Groff come to you?
Right place right time. It’s a combination of direct referrals and movie studios coming to me. Cultivating my craft and caring more than anyone else definitely helped.
Session cost?
I’ve been hosting pop-up workouts for $40/class. They sell out every weekend. I offer a variety of training options (semi-private, private, consulting), so price is dependent on level of service.
Eric’s 5 Tips to Optimal Training
- Get a movement assessment, then address your weakest link.
- Remember you can only adapt to what you can recover from.
- Muscle is underrated for metabolic flexibility.
- Set performance goals to switch your emphasis to the process vs. end goal.
- Stay athletic and prime your nervous system by starting each session with a jump, throw, carry and dynamic mobility.
In-person training in CT. + NYC
eric@homagefitness.com
or DM on IG @ericmjohnson