The Waldo-based City Gym is earning national attention for a new Google My Business ad that spotlights Momentum, the gym’s fitness program for transgender men.

Owner Hailee Bland-Walsh talked with Thinking Bigger Business about where the idea for the group originated, how it’s meeting an important need and why it’s a perfect example of the kind of business she wants to run.

Where Did the Idea for Momentum Come From?

“It really stemmed from a personal friendship,” Bland-Walsh said. She got the idea for the group after talking with Drew, a friend and client who is transgender.

He needed exercise and nutrition advice for transgender men, but as she was researching the topic, much of what Bland-Walsh found online wasn’t very scientific. It was basically laypeople sharing information on what had personally worked for them.

So, about two and a half years ago, City Gym began offering a 90-day program that’s specifically designed for transgender men. Eight to 10 guys participate in each session. Some of them drive long distances to take part. (Bland-Walsh knows one client who drove 90 minutes each way to attend.)

Until the Google My Business ad, City Gym hadn’t really marketed the Momentum program. Most of the men who participate are referred through a local support group that Drew leads for transgender men and their significant others.

How Does Momentum Help City Gym’s Clients?

There are several steps a person goes through when transitioning, Bland-Walsh said. She and her trainers tailor their advice to where a client is in the process.

Someone who has just started receiving testosterone will have different needs from someone who has completed “top” or breast removal surgery. Their bodies are changing, so they have to adjust how they exercise and build muscle.

In other ways, though, the Momentum group isn’t that different from other clients.

The men in the class want to build a body that looks like the way they feel on the inside, Bland-Walsh said. They’re working to create muscle definition and, like a lot of guys, want to look good when they take their shirt off at the pool.

While the professional workouts and nutritional advice are important to Momentum clients, so is the welcoming environment. Transgender men and women are still highly marginalized by society, Bland-Walsh said, so she and her team work hard to create a safe, unintimidating place.

That’s been City Gym’s philosophy ever since it opened, even before Bland-Walsh formally began Momentum. She wants to operate a gym where everyone’s welcome.

“No matter who walks through the front door,” she said, “we’re going to figure out the best way to serve them.”

How Did the Google Ad Come About?

A friend of Bland-Walsh’s told her about a casting call for a reality TV show and strongly encouraged her to audition. As it turned out, the “show” was actually Google looking for companies that could help illustrate its Google My Business service.

City Gym’s ad was recorded last fall. It features another transgender client, Jake, and shows how the Momentum program has helped him. Bland-Walsh said she hadn’t realized how big the production was going to be until a 20-person film crew took over her gym for a day.

The ad was released last month in honor of LGBT Pride Month.

What Was the Public Reaction to City Gym’s Ad?

Bland-Walsh had prepared herself for some negative responses to the ad. Sometimes the Internet has a tendency to bring out the worst in people, after all.

But all the feedback—on social media, through City Gym’s website, in emails that she’s received—has been 100 percent supportive, she said. Some of the “hundreds, if not thousands” of notes have come from transgender people; others were from friends and family who were glad to see the gym offering a welcoming place for trans men and women.

“Overall,” she said, “we have received overwhelmingly positive response.”