From Strategy to Repetitions: Sara’s Jump from Consulting to Building a Training Lab

Every fitness studio has a backstory – ours begins in a high-rise office and ends on the training floor. Meet Sara, the founder of Protagonist Zurich. Not long ago, she was charting corporate strategies and Excel models as a consultant, spending late nights in boardrooms near Paradeplatz. Today, you’ll find her in leggings and a headset, coaching a class on Zurich’s first smart Reformers. The journey from strategy to repetitions (and yes, a whole lot of sweat) is a story of passion, vision, and a little bit of rebellion against the status quo of fitness. This is Sara’s story of leaping from PowerPoint slides to power squats – and in the process, building a one-of-a-kind training lab.

From Boardrooms to Basements (of Gyms)

Sara’s jump might seem drastic, but if you ask her, the writing was on the wall for years. Imagine spending your day advising companies on efficiency and optimization, then heading to an evening gym class that feels anything but efficient or optimized. That was Sara’s life. Like many busy professionals in Zurich, she turned to boutique fitness studios to stay in shape and de-stress from her high-pressure job. But class after class, something kept nagging at her. “Why are these sessions so one-size-fits-all?” she would think, frustrated when a workout was either too easy to be effective or so hard it risked injury. Consultants are trained to spot gaps, and Sara spotted a big one in the fitness landscape: a gap between what people needed and what most studios were delivering.

In her consulting world, everything was data-driven and personalized for each client’s situation. Yet at the gym, personalization was rarely more than a cheerful instructor remembering your name. Many studios in Zurich – even the high-end ones – were relying on sheer vibe and variety rather than strategy. Workouts were randomly thrown together, or every week felt the same with no progression. For someone who thrives on logic and results, this was maddening. Sara realized that while she loved the community and energy of group classes, she missed the purpose and measurement that her day job was all about. Where was the fitness equivalent of a quarterly business review? Where were the metrics to show you’re improving? Where was the plan?

So, she started sketching one. During flights to client meetings and in late-night hotel rooms, Sara began mapping out what a truly strategy-driven fitness studio might look like. She imagined a place that combined the precision and personalization of personal training with the buzz and camaraderie of group classes. A place where every class had a clear purpose and built on the last – much like a well-structured consulting project or an effective training program. Over months, her notebook filled with ideas: integrating technology for tracking progress, fusing two complementary disciplines (she was hooked on Reformer Pilates for its precision, and strength training for its tangible power gains), and designing levels of classes that actually make sense (instead of vague “all levels” promises).

What Was Missing in Most Studios

When Sara finally decided to swap her blazer for a coaching vest, it wasn’t on a whim – it was on a mission. She had a vision of what was missing, and she was determined to build it. First, she noted that most studios lacked a true methodology. Sure, they had catchy class names or signature workouts, but few had a coherent system that connected everything. At Protagonist, Sara established The Protagonist Method, which fuses Reformer Pilates and Strength into a single training approach. It’s not Pilates on Monday and random HIIT on Tuesday just to mix it up; it’s a deliberate combination of controlled reformer work and functional strength moves that together yield balanced, measurable improvements. She chose Reformer Pilates because it’s unparalleled for building core strength, stability, and muscular control – all with low impact. And she chose strength training because it’s the proven path to building muscle, bone density, and that empowered feeling of lifting heavy things. Marrying the two was her answer to what she saw missing: a full-picture workout regimen under one roof. Pilates alone didn’t build enough raw power; weight training alone often missed the finesse and injury-prevention of Pilates. Together, they’re allies, each filling in the other’s gaps.

Second, Sara wanted to introduce standards and structure that she rarely experienced elsewhere. Think of it this way: in most gyms, you drop into any class and hope the instructor can handle both the newbie and the athlete. Often, either the beginner feels lost or the advanced person feels bored. Sara’s solution was to implement distinct levels (BASE, BUILD, PEAK – and even a QUICKIE format) so that everyone could train at an appropriate intensity (more on those levels in a later blog post). This wasn’t about elitism; it was about clarity and progress. If you’re new or rebuilding, you start at BASE – slower pace, fundamentals locked in. When you’re ready for more challenge, you move to BUILD – the “sweet spot” where most people make steady gains. Hungry for a test? Try PEAK – fast-paced, advanced sequences that make even seasoned athletes dig deep. By structuring classes this way, Sara addressed what was missing: a clear progression path. No more guesswork about which class to attend. You know where you fit, and you know how to advance when you’re ready. It’s fitness with a built-in growth trajectory, rather than the haphazard “hope I’m improving” approach.

Third, and perhaps most defining, Sara insisted on a data and feedback loop in the workouts. This is where her consulting brain really flipped the script on traditional training. She believed that if studios could incorporate tech to track progress – in real time and over time – members would be more engaged and see better results. It’s the principle of “what gets measured, gets managed” applied to your deadlifts and planks. That’s why Protagonist invested in Reform RX smart reformers (the first in Switzerland) and performance tracking. After each session, members get tangible readouts. The standard we hold is not just in how you perform (with good form and focus) but in how we show you that you’re performing better week by week. Many places talk about “listen to your body,” which is great, but Sara wanted to give people something in addition to gut feeling – she wanted numbers to validate or recalibrate that intuition. It’s a higher standard of accountability for us as coaches, too. If members aren’t improving in some way, it forces us to ask why and adjust the program.

And speaking of form, pacing, progress – those became Sara’s holy trinity of class design. Every instructor she hired knows that form is king (doing it right beats doing it fast or heavy), pacing is queen (the tempo of a session can make or break its effectiveness), and progress is the endgame (we’re here to get better, period). It’s why you’ll hear consistent cues in class, why we don’t blare music so loud that you can’t hear coaching (pet peeve of Sara’s from her gym days), and why we have a method to gradually up the intensity over a multi-week cycle. All of that was missing in the fitness experiences Sara had as a client, and all of that is baked into Protagonist’s DNA now.

From White Paper to Sweat Equity

The jump from consulting to running a fitness studio was not a gentle hop – it was more like a cliff dive. Sara swapped PowerPoint slides for laying down rubber flooring at 5 AM. Instead of pitching ideas to a CEO, she was assembling Reformers and testing sound systems. The studio space at Zeughausstrasse 3 became her new project site. True to form, she approached it like a strategy case: Who are our clients (busy Zurich professionals, curious beginners, serious athletes – each with different needs)? What’s our value proposition (efficient, measurable workouts with a dual-method twist)? What are the risks (people not understanding the tech, or being intimidated by “Pilates,” or thinking it’s only for women)? With every question, she had a plan. For example, to ensure even the most time-crunched banker can fit a workout, she created the 30-minute QUICKIE class – half the time, but no shortcuts in intensity. To appeal to men who thought Pilates wasn’t for them, she programmed specific Reformer drills that mimic strength moves (guys who love lifting, wait until you try reformer skater squats and resisted rows – they burn so good and carry over directly to your lifts). To prevent newbies from feeling lost with the tech, she instituted a quick intro tutorial before your first class and deliberately offers BASE classes that move at a teaching pace.

One of Sara’s key consulting skills was change management – implementing new processes smoothly. She’s brought that to Protagonist in how we onboard members. You won’t just jump in clueless; we guide you through the new format so it feels exciting, not confusing. And unlike many places that just “set and forget” their model, Sara treats the studio like an evolving prototype. This is a “training lab” in the true sense – we test, observe, and tweak. If something’s not optimal, we don’t wait for a quarterly meeting to change it (one of Sara’s joys in leaving corporate life!). We’ll adjust by the next day or even the next class. In the first few weeks of opening, Sara would often be found chatting with members in the lobby, asking what they loved and what they’d improve. That feedback loop led to immediate tweaks – from small things like adjusting the class playlist balance, to bigger things like refining the on-screen display so it’s easier to follow at a glance. (Insider tip: one early member suggestion was a clearer timer on screen for intervals – Sara had it updated within 48 hours.)

What It Means for Your First Session

So what does Sara’s journey mean for you, someone considering coming in for a workout? It means that when you step into Protagonist Zurich, you’re benefiting from a fusion of analytical thinking and fitness passion. You’ll notice the difference that a standards-obsessed, progress-obsessed mindset brings. In your very first session, you might not know Sara’s whole story, but you’ll sense it in how things run. The class will have a clear structure and purpose (not just “we’ll do some legs and some abs and see what happens”). The coach will be attentive to form like a hawk, correcting you in that exact moment your spine loses alignment. You’ll see visual feedback on the screen that helps you understand your effort, because Sara wanted to eliminate the guesswork she once disliked. And you’ll feel part of something a bit experimental, in the best way – like this studio isn’t stuck in its ways, but rather always looking to push the envelope of what a fitness experience can be.

Sara often jokes that she left a job of making slide decks for a job of making people sweat – and she’s never been happier. Her story is a reminder that fitness isn’t just about muscles and calories; it’s about problem-solving and innovation, too. She took the precision of the consulting world and injected it into the often sloppy world of gym routines. The result is Protagonist Zurich: a place where strategy meets sweat. If you’re reading this, you’re invited to be part of the next chapter. We promise, it’s going to be a smart, exciting, and rewarding ride.

Protagonist Zurich | Reformer Pilates & Strength Boutique Studio