Meet Kevin Hanover | Performance Coach for Endurance Athletes

We had the good fortune of connecting with Kevin Hanover and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Kevin, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
I grew up in a small town south of Boston that was mostly a tourist industry. My father owned a coffee shop that expanded into an award winning breakfast spot, and by the time I was seven years old he had renovated an inn and rebuilt another bed and breakfast. So being a part of the entrepreneurial world was natural for me. I fried clams in the kitchen on a milk crate, raised money for the local sheriffs department and cleaned pools throughout the summer until I was old enough to get into the bar scene. At one point in high school I drove taxi through the winter months for extra cash. In college I spent my summers bartending and winters waiting tables. The hospitality industry was a place where I felt in control of my earnings. After college I found myself in NYC and for the first time was fired from a bar gig. There was a gym opening up in mid town and I needed to make some money. I quickly became a certified strength coach and only two years into my fitness journey the gym was bought by a large company. That was the pivot point for me. It was an easy decision for me to take my clients to an independent studio and build from there. I think the most important decision I made, and continuously make, is to go “all in” on what i’m building. When you start a business there is risk, that’s inevitable. And for those that think the journey will be a linear progression with no speed bumps, well then those are the ones who need to fail the most. If you give your business weak energy, you’ll get weak results. I like to say “random training leads to random results”. Same goes for how you treat your business.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
In 2012 I branded HBodyLab with the intent to help endurance athletes stay injury free and perform at their best by adding strength training to their programs/routines. NYC had a very specific energy about it at the time and everything was growing. Small boutique studios were popping up and there was a lot of innovation in the industry. Some of the most influential time I spent growing my business was in a 2,000 square foot power based cycling studio called T2 Multisport, the first of its kind in NYC. I helped manage the studio and coached full time in exchange for a weekend team slot. This is when things exploded. Multisport athletes and cyclists were craving performance through the winter months and this is where we created a very unique culture and experience. It was the only place that wasn’t a bar with a wait list and line out the door on a Friday night. That experience taught me how to work with cyclists and I knew that I had a unique perspective with my background in strength & biomechanics that would set me apart from other coaches. Even though there was early success in my business the journey was not easy. You need to love what you do and i’ve always been relentless in my company mission. I think the two biggest lessons I learned was to not undervalue my services and to not take things personally. I think those that start a business quit because they charge too little or they just can’t handle rejection. You have to have thick skin and if you’re lucky enough, somebody in your life to tell you to keep going.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
If in the summer months i’m a huge fan of finding local points where you can plunge in the creek. Lyons would be my first stop on a hot day. After a cold plunge I would rock some tacos at Mojo Taqueria followed by sweets at the Dairy Bar. Then it’s a toss up between GeorgeTown & Leadville. I like to walk and explore small towns. And not just what they look like on the surface. Leadville has a rich mining history that collapsed and then was revived through tourism. I spent a long weekend there for my 40th and discovered a fishery and some very accessible epic hiking spots.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
When I began my career in fitness there were two head coaches that encouraged me to hustle; Ante and Jason. They were from two different worlds but they knew physiology and sales, the two things you needed in order to grow and stand out from the crowd. Later on when I built a team of endurance athletes, they brought energy and created friendships that may never be organically produced in that way again. I’m grateful to have worked with every single one of them, especially Carlos, the kindest man I know.

Website: https://www.hbodylab.com

Instagram: kevhanover