*Anything boldened is a direct quote. However, there have been small changes to better the reading flow of this post, but the meaning has stayed the same.
I met Claran Massie because we both worked at UREC together before she graduated in May 2025. She began in Member Services, interned in the Fitness Center, got certified in the Group Exercise Training program, and made her way to an Operations Supervisor.
She walked with her head high, cracking jokes to employees all over the building. She was cool and could shoot the shit. When she told me she wanted to open a women’s only gym, I thought how much better can she get? Then she drove me to my car because it was night and I had parked it far from the building.
Today I walked into PUMP24, the gym she manages. She stood at the front desk, hair in a low ponytail and a Gymshark hoodie on. The large room was intense with its dark floor, walls, ceiling, and equipment, yet when she saw me she came around the desk and gave me a big hug. It was her presence that felt welcoming. When I told her she smelled good she said, “Girl, something has to here.”
I didn’t have many expectations going into this interview with Claran, but I didn’t expect to laugh so much about depression and ADHD.
What is your personal journey with fitness/lifting?
I did all the sports. I didn’t love them, but I was committed. I did Basketball, soccer, and tennis, which was my favorite. During my junior year of high school my family moved closer to the gym, and I had always been interested in going, so I said, “why not?” I would go really early at 5 AM, go to school, then play my sports. I felt crazy at the time and this made me feel strong and powerful.
When you say crazy, what do you mean?
I was sad, yeah. Depression. And ADHD. I felt so crazy. You know with ADHD it feels like your brain doesn’t function properly and you don’t feel your emotions properly.
Claran talked quickly and with lots of humor. She played with her hair and often looked around her small office that also acted as a storage and housekeeping closet. She was vulnerable in an evasive way. Making jokes about her pain, making light of the torture of having a different processing system than what is supported in our society. She kept saying she was “crazy” but to me it seemed that her teenage self was lost and unsupported. She wasn’t diagnosed with ADHD until college. She spent so much of her life thinking that something was “wrong” with her. She brought up how ADHD if often manifested differently in women than in men. When she started going to the gym, a shift started with her coping. “You know the whole moving body, quiet mind thing,” she said.
So she lifted consistently through high school and into college. Often skipping class to go to the gym.
Early into college, she questioned what she wanted pursue for her career.
I’m the type of person who wants to be fulfilled with their day. I’m Christian, and I felt that I was meant for more than just living for me. I thought to myself, “who could I help and how can I help them?”
She knew immediately that she wanted to help women.
I love women. They’re so special. And if I can go to the gym and have it heal me, I knew it could heal another woman.
And so began Gained Glory
Claran was hesitant to include her religious beliefs in the brand. Some people told her not to do it, but it felt vital to her story. She wanted people to know that part of this journey of hers is to serve her god and therefore serve women.
Don’t let this deter you, though. She chose the word “glory” for a much greater purpose than the religious connotation. “Glory does not have to be for Him. Pursue your own glory in your life,” she said emphatically. The importance of her message is evident in all her words, all her mannerisms this. She is determined to make something she loves and that is dominated by men much more accepting of women.
How did Gained Glory begin?
Throughout all of my sophomore year [of college] I was thinking about it. I never thought to switch to a Business major even wanting to own my own business. I’m so serious. But I learned so much as a Sports and Recreation Management major, so it’s fine. My junior year I got to do an internship called Dukes Venture Accelerator. I had to sacrifice a lot to make the time for it. I got paid, but not enough for my bills, so I still had to work at UREC during this summer.
Her experience taught her about action over thinking within the business world is how things get accomplished. She also learned how to defend herself. They challenged her pink website, asking if it’s sexist. Her rebuttal was quick and snarky, “No, it’s not. It’s a brand for women.” Pink is not inherently sexist. Quite honestly, I think her using pink furthers her hope of a welcoming and inclusive space. Most gym-related brands are dark toned and heavy on the traditional masculinity. Her choice to embrace what is deemed traditionally feminine spreads the message that women belong there.
So, now she’s graduated and she’s taken another step in her journey. While managing the gym she’s at now, she’s had conversations with the owners to move to one of their women only gyms. She’s hoping it will happen within the next year, but she’s willing to be patient. However, she does have other potential options she could explore if the owners don’t follow through. “Working here, being here everyday, you get to know lots of other gym people.”
As for Gained Glory, she has recently started working on it again.
I let myself take a step back during the summer. After three years, I was burnt out. I lost my love for it. But I’m hoping by this time next year it will be fully up and running again.
Any advice for women hoping to get into the gym-sphere?
You need to know why you’re doing whatever it is you choose to do to be able to first accept yourself and then make any sort of change.
And of course, she wants to inspire everyone to be themselves. She wants to promote inclusion and acceptance within the fitness community. Every day, she creates a space in her gym and in her brand for women to gather and find a safe space in taking care of their bodies.