Today we’d like to introduce you to Harrison Laine.
Hi Harrison, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I grew up in Ojai, California, where I spent as much time as possible outside—playing sports, surfing, and generally finding any excuse to be near the ocean. I didn’t know it at the time, but that love of movement and the outdoors would eventually have a big influence on the career I chose.
After graduating from Northern Arizona University with a degree in business administration, I moved to San Francisco and worked in operations and sales for a growing food-tech startup. It was a great introduction to the realities of running a business, but it also sparked my interest in nutrition and how much what we eat affects the way we feel and perform.
When I moved to Denver, I decided to follow that interest and study holistic nutrition at the Nutrition Therapy Institute in Arvada. While I was there, I realized I didn’t want to talk about nutrition without also addressing movement. The two were too connected. That led me to earn certifications in personal training, sports nutrition, and corrective exercise through NASM, as well as my CrossFit Level 1.
I eventually started my own personal training and nutrition coaching business. Over the years, I’ve had the chance to work with a wide range of people with very different goals. Some want to perform at a higher level, while others just want to get out of pain, feel strong, and keep doing the activities they love. That experience shaped my belief that training should support your life outside the gym. For me, the gym has never been the end goal—it’s what allows you to keep skiing, running, biking, hiking, playing with your kids, or saying yes to the next adventure.
That belief is what led me to start The Outpost. I wanted to create the kind of gym I would want to belong to: a strength-focused space with great equipment and coaching, but also a real sense of community. The vision is for it to feel less like a traditional gym and more like a clubhouse for active people—a place where you can train with purpose, meet like-minded people, and stay ready for whatever you want to do outside of it.
My path here wasn’t perfectly planned out, but looking back, it makes sense. The Outpost brings together my experience in business, nutrition, and coaching with the lifestyle I’ve always cared about.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
It definitely hasn’t been a smooth road. For a long time, I thought I had found my path working at ReGrained in San Francisco. I believed in what we were building and felt like I had found work I was genuinely passionate about. When I left at 29, I felt pretty lost. I was at an age when it seemed like most people were becoming more established in their careers, while I was trying to figure out what I wanted to do with mine.
Going back to school for nutrition was a risk and, in many ways, a complete restart. Once I graduated and began working as a trainer, I often felt behind. I was new to the industry, surrounded by people with more experience, and struggled with imposter syndrome. Even though I knew this was the direction I wanted to go, it took time to trust myself and feel confident in what I could offer.
After spending a short time working for a gym, I decided to start Three Pillars Training. That came with its own challenges. It took me a while to find the right place to train clients and even longer to feel like I had found my footing as a coach and business owner. Finding The Studio was an incredible blessing. It gave me the space and support to grow my business, become more confident in my abilities, and develop the tools I needed to take on something bigger.
The Outpost is that next step. It feels terrifying and exciting at the same time, but I’ve learned that most of the decisions that have changed my life started that way. There are still plenty of unknowns, and I still have moments of doubt, but I’m extremely proud of how far I’ve come. Honestly, writing it all out makes me a little emotional. There was a time when I had no idea what my next chapter would look like, and now I have the opportunity to build something that brings together so much of what I care about.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
The easiest way to describe what I do is that I’m a general population trainer who works with weekend warriors and people coming out of rehab. That probably reflects who I am as well. I’ve never wanted to focus on just one sport or style of training. I love trail running, surfing, backpacking, mountain biking, snowboarding, soccer, and volleyball. I train because I want to stay capable of doing all of those things, and that has shaped the way I work with my clients.
Most of the people I train aren’t trying to become professional athletes. They want to feel strong, move without pain, and be able to keep doing the things that make their lives more enjoyable. Sometimes that means helping someone return to an activity after an injury. Other times, it means preparing them for a ski season, a trail race, or a backpacking trip. I want the work we do together to have a purpose beyond what happens during the hour they spend with me.
Because everyone comes in with a different history, body, and set of goals, I put a lot of thought into how I program for each person. I pay close attention to the details, but I also try to understand what someone is experiencing and meet them where they are. Over time, that has allowed me to build a level of trust with my clients that goes far beyond simply giving them workouts.
That is probably what I’m most proud of. I’m proud of the business I’ve built and excited about where I’m going with The Outpost, but the relationships I’ve made and the people I’ve been able to help are what mean the most to me. There is nothing better than working with someone who has felt limited by pain, helping them rebuild confidence in their body, and then seeing them become excited about pursuing movement outside of our sessions. That is the reason I love what I do.
We all have a different way of looking at and defining success. How do you define success?
My definition of success has changed quite a bit over the years. I used to think it meant finding the right career, reaching certain milestones, or getting to a place where I finally felt established. Now, I see it more simply: success is building a life that feels worth living.
For me, that means showing up each day to work I genuinely care about. I don’t expect every day to be easy or for running a business to never feel like work, but I want the effort to be connected to something that matters to me. Building a business around movement, health, community, and the outdoors has allowed my work to feel like a natural extension of who I am rather than something separate from my life.
If I can continue growing a business I believe in, help people live stronger and more active lives, and still make time for the people and experiences that matter to me, I consider that success. It’s less about reaching one final destination and more about creating alignment between the work I do and the life I want to live.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://theoutpostgym.com
- Other: Harrison@theoutposthighlands.com
