By Ginger DeShaney

For Brian Castellucci, “Fitness is not a destination. It’s a way of life.”

So when he was let go during the pandemic from the gym he worked at for a dozen years, the personal trainer found a way to rebuild himself and build his own fitness business. 

“I kind of got forced into a situation,” said Brian, 34, owner of BCFitness. But he has made the best of it.

​​”I did a lot of virtual stuff at first. I contacted every client I’ve ever been with,” he said, noting he was able to reconnect with people and was training clients as far away as England. “So it was kind of cool.”

When restrictions lifted a bit and he could work with clients outside, he would fill his son’s wagon with weights, drag it a half-mile from his parking spot to a field in the Fenway area, and train 10-12 people a day. 

As it started getting too cold to train outside, and as more COVID restrictions were lifted, Brian contacted about 400 gyms to find space to rent. Initially, he heard from only two CrossFit gyms.  As time went on, he heard from more places and currently trains in nine locations over six neighborhoods: Norwood (where he lives with his wife and two kids), Newton, Fenway, South End, Back Bay, and South Boston.

In South Boston, Brian trains out of The Shed on D Street and CrossFit Southie on Dorchester Avenue. 

With training locations all over the place, Brian needs to be ultra organized. Some days he starts training at 3:30 a.m. and he can go as late as 9:30 p.m. He recently went from working seven days a week to six.

But he wouldn’t have it any other way.

“I’m more busy than I can handle,” he said, noting that is a good problem to have. So he’s hired trainers who have varied personal training experience, including yoga, mixed martial arts, and CrossFit.

“I’m just trying to kind of grow the business a little bit more,” he said. “Eventually, I’d like to have my own studios.”

Brian was destined to succeed in personal training. He has always been an athlete. He was a standout football player in high school (Pinkerton Academy in Derry, N.H.) and college (Plymouth State). He was a competitive powerlifter and has competed in half-marathons.

He’s a natural at it, making his clients feel at ease, instilling trust, and building their confidence.

Brian, who specializes in strength training and weight loss, believes fitness is a way of life for everyone. “The good thing about fitness is the bad thing about fitness: You’re never done; you can always be stronger, you can always be faster.”

Brian doesn’t like to have any hindrances. If you can’t run because of your knees, or you can’t climb because of your back, you find something else you can do. “You have to keep going.”

Brian’s philosophy on fitness is that you can do anything at any point. “You don’t have anything holding you back from doing any sort of activity. If we train the right way, then we can do anything.”

Brian’s clients have been super supportive. “They’ve made life changes to stay with me. With all the COVID stuff … I mean, all personal training is a luxury, right? That’s usually the first thing to go if anyone has any financial issues. But a lot of my clients find so much value that I’m a non- negotiable, and that’s been very nice.”

Brian is grateful for his clients’ continued support and loyalty, especially over the past three years. “All of them have been/are an integral part of the current and future success of BCFitness. I thoroughly enjoy training each and every one and I’m so grateful that they’ve chosen me to guide them through their personal fitness journeys. Watching them get stronger, making progress, and hitting their goals is why I do this. 

“Without them I wouldn’t be where I am today, doing what I love for a living.”

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If you’re interested in training with Brian, send him an email at brian@bcfitness.fit

Client Nelson DeMoraes works out under the watchful eye of personal trainer Brian Castellucci at The Shed in South Boston. Nelson has been working with Brian for about nine months and is down 25 pounds.