My production company MEGA MACE receives calls every week from personal trainers, professional athletes, and Hollywood celebrities, all looking to make the next big fitness video. The health and fitness business is a multi–billion-dollar-a-year industry, so there’s no wonder everyone’s looking to get a piece of it. I’ve directed and produced hundreds of workouts, including P90X®, which has sold millions worldwide, and I get the same questions over and over again. So, I thought I’d put together a document answering basic questions for those seeking out this information.

I enjoy making fitness videos; when I do a great job I’m helping people become healthier and lead more productive and happier lives. I’m assuming that’s part of what’s driving you too. It’s a worthy pursuit and a lucrative one if you’re good at it. So whether you’re a company looking to break into the market, or a personal trainer trying to get more exposure, this document will give you a solid overview of what it takes to produce your first video and get it out there to share with the world.

Set Realistic Goals

If you’re an individual, you might have to make your first video on your own in order to get noticed. That means you’re most likely going to be working with a small budget and asking a lot of favors, so set your production expectations to match. If you’ve got a company you’ll have more money, but you’ll also have a lot more people to pay. “It takes a lot of money to make a lot of money” – that statement is very true in this business. Keep that in mind moving forward and remember: great careers and brands take time to build.

“I need it good, cheap and fast!” It’s a basic law of production that those three just don’t go together. You can only have two at a time. You can make it good and cheap, but it will take time, maybe a lot of time, which might end up costing you in the end. You can have it good and fast, if you hire the right people but that’s the most expensive of options. You can also get something cheap and fast, but you’ll sacrifice quality, which is often a waste of both time and money in the end. The compromise is somewhere in the middle. To make something of quality takes time and money, period. Everyone new to the industry wants eye-popping quality with an experienced crew; they want it next week for what amounts to a micro budget. It’s just not realistic.