About | Personal Trainer Development Center

We believe health and fitness professionals provide preventative medicine, helping society become healthier and happier—one client at a time.

Who We Are

At the Personal Trainer Development Center, we believe health and fitness professionals have the ability to create sustainable businesses that provide them with the freedom that comes with breaking away from the standard 9-to-5 career path. We provide our students with the tools they need to give clients the programs they deserve. We equip our students with the skills and confidence they need to grow their businesses and create positive change for their clients.

The PTDC team includes fitness, marketing, and publishing professionals with decades of experience in our specialties. We combine the skills we honed at some of the world’s top brands to bring you the most complete and authoritative career guidance in the fitness industry.

Jonathan Goodman

FOUNDER (I GUESS)

Jon launched the Personal Trainer Development Center in 2011 with the goal of bringing his fellow fitness professionals the information, support, and business guidance they needed but couldn’t find anywhere else. He published Ignite the Fire, the first of his 11 books for personal trainers, in 2012; and founded the Online Trainer Academy, the first-ever certification for online fitness and nutrition coaches, in 2016. Originally from Toronto, Jon spends his winters traveling the world with his wife Alison and son Calvin. They’ve lived in 10 countries, including Mexico, Costa Rica, Uruguay, Thailand, Greece, and Montenegro.

Alex Cartmill

HEAD OF PRODUCT

Alex has worn a lot of hats since he joined the PTDC in 2014 as an intern while he was still training clients. The biggest one began in 2016, when he got in on the ground floor of the Online Trainer Academy. He’s overseen the operation ever since, and now manages a team of eight coaches and mentors. He lives in Portland, Oregon, with his dog Charlie.

Amber Reynolds

ONLINE TRAINER ACADEMY LEVEL 1 PROGRAM DIRECTOR

Amber is an OTA Level 2 graduate, OTA coach, podcast production manager, and our team’s gifting guru. When she’s not helping students, she’s running her own online personal training business and managing the chaos of a toddler and three rescue dogs.

Avigayil Basser

CUSTOMER CARE AND ECOMMERCE MANAGER

Avigayil not only has the longest title in PTDC history, she’s the only full-time staffer who’s trained to beat people up. She currently applies her BJJ skills at home in Toronto, where she and her husband tag-team against their two kids.