A Personal Touch

Dublin mom expands her personal training business at home

SSUzIE HARNESS FIGHTS against the evils of obesity and unhealthy foods one client at a time from inside her Dublin home.

“Initially, moving my business inside my home was for convenience. But I also like that personal aspect of welcoming someone in,” says Harness. “Very rarely do I take someone right off the street … so I feel comfortable having people here in my home.”

In between caring for her four children, working as a nurse practitioner, running marathons and training at various local gyms, Harness is certified in seven types of training, including personal and group fitness.

“I wish I could cure obesity, make people move more,” says Harness. “Actually, I didn’t like (personal training) at first … I didn’t want to just sit there and say ‘OK, give me ten more.’ But I like the life coach aspect of it. It is really rewarding to see those results. It gives me satisfaction as much as it gives them.”

Thanks to Harness’ can-do attitude, her in-home, 10-client business is burgeoning into something far greater.

“I have a client now who has lost 35 pounds. … I love to see the end results. It’s not really about helping people get skinny, but helping people to get healthy. I really enjoy transforming people’s bodies and see them go from obesity to being very healthy and physically fit,” says Harness.

To accommodate her growing list of clients, Harness just relocated her home gym from a smaller room on the upper level of her Muirfield home to the basement.

“I’ve grown a little bit and I have too many clients. I need more separation and more privacy with people and to have a bigger space,” says Harness.

“When we first moved in here three years ago from our other house in Muirfield, I thought the original room was going to be big enough, and it really isn’t.”

The walkout basement seemed like the perfect location for a larger gym space.

To give the downstairs room a more urban look, Harness is installing black ceilings, a metal bar, granite countertops, large windows, mirrors on each wall and gym equipment including treadmills, bikes, free weights and training balls. The gym is inspired by another home gym Harness saw last year.

Although the remodel requires hours of work, it will be worth it, Harness says.

“I do find that some of the people that come, come in groups of two. I always felt that, even with one person, we were too crowded in the first room. The room looks like an office that we just converted. So I just feel like it’ll be a better environment to let people thrive,” says Harness.

When working with clients, Harness believes in incorporating a wide range