From Econometrics Student to Co-Owning an Award-Winning Gym
Source Dobie Optimum Fitness
Erik didn’t grow up dreaming of becoming a sports massage therapist. In fact, fitness wasn’t even on his radar! He hated PE in school. However, after moving to the UK from Lithuania and stepping into a gym in Manchester for the first time, something clicked.
“I was more kind of a student council person… more of a geek.”
Now, nearly 15 years later, Erik co-runs a thriving fitness and massage studio in Liverpool. He’s a fully qualified L4 Sports Massage Therapist, a passionate Personal Trainer, and someone who knows the grind of building something from the ground up.
We were honoured to have caught up with him to see what he had gotten up to since leaving Fitasylum.
How it started
A few years after that fateful day at the gym, Erik worked extremely hard on his physique. As a man in his early 20s starting out in fitness, his results were rapid. It was so quick that people thought Erik was a Personal Trainer and started asking him for advice. Ultimately, though, Erik wasn’t interested in being a Personal Trainer. Instead, massage called to him: “Massage actually was something that attracted me. It’s rewarding in the sense that you get results straight away.”
With a different training provider, Erik went on to train in Sports Massage Therapy.
The Start of Dobie Optimum Fitness
Erik and Ste Dobie met in Manchester a little over a decade ago. At that time, neither of them worked in the fitness industry. “Ste was working as a project manager in Liverpool, and he hated that job. He wanted to become a personal trainer himself, but from the very start, he said, ‘I don’t want to work for any gyms. I want to work for myself.’”
Erik, now a superb, qualified Sport Massage Therapist, knew it would be easier to open up and manage a gym studio with two people, so the two already good friends went into business together. That studio became what is now known as Dobie Optimum Fitness, with Ste as the trainer and Erik focused on sports massage. “It just made sense to do both under one roof.”
Covid, Struggles, and Staying Open
Dobie Optimum Fitness officially opened in 2019, just months before the pandemic hit, and like all gyms, Dobie Optimum Fitness was hit hard by the shutdowns. But the pair adapted quickly. “We went into online classes. We gave all our clients our functional equipment to use at home, connected on Zoom, and did the classes together in the garden.”
Sports massage, of course, was harder to adapt. “Massaging with gloves, face shields… it was tough to massage in those conditions.”
They pushed through with safety gear, upskilling and communicating with their clients to keep the community alive. Coming out stronger than ever. “After Covid, we picked up a lot. I feel like we started being more successful… Now we’re actually sometimes turning clients away because we can’t fit them in.”
Starting with FitAsylum
“Ste actually found FitAsylum first.” Ste, an already qualified PT, wanted to offer more to his clients, so he chose to upskill into Level 3 Sports Massage with us! He, of course, talked about the course with Erik while he was training, and Erik could see the value of our courses, even from the sidelines!
So, Erik also decided to upskill with us, but this time as a Personal Trainer, then since he “had been enjoying the first course,” so much he joined us once again to complete the Level 4 Sports Massage course. “Everyone was really friendly … Even though it was all mixed - half online and half in person - it made you appreciate the in‑person days more.”
“Don’t be scared to ask stupid questions or look stupid … you’re just going to learn more as you go on... and you might find that you already know the answers.”
The Difference is in the Detail
What truly sets Dobie Optimum Fitness apart is its private, attentive environment. Their model is intentionally boutique with near perfect ratings on Yell, highlighting their “personal training without a gym membership,” clean facilities, top equipment, and highly professional service.
Clients and visitors frequently note the welcoming studio atmosphere and tailored service—everything from posture work to sports massage is designed for individual growth and confidence. “I have never been confident about going to the gym … but after my first session with Ste … it has boosted my confidence … I would highly recommend going to Dobie Fitness.”
(Source Dobie Optimum Fitness)
Award-Winning Recognition
And the recognition doesn’t stop there. Dobie Optimum Fitness have won many awards over the years, all due to their clients submitting them every year. In the past, they’ve won business awards, Best Sports Massage Therapist and Best Personal Trainer. This year, the studio has been nominated again as a finalist in the Liverpool Lifestyle Awards 2025; they clearly must be doing something right!
More Than Massage: Services That Deliver
The studio offers personal training, circuit fitness, Power Pilates, group classes, Reformer Pilates, Spin Six, plus sports massage, dry cupping and even electro-therapy. Clients frequently remark on their “tailored approach to individual needs” and welcoming tone, regardless of fitness background.
Community, Confidence & Care
Erik sums this up: “Each client is like my own little project … I want to just take them from one point to another, to make them as good as, at least, myself.” It reflects a level of care rarely found in bigger gyms.
Clients confirm it: after her first session, one new customer said, “I have never been confident about going to the gym … but after my first session with Ste … it has boosted my confidence … I would highly recommend going to Dobie Fitness”
(Source The Liverpool Echo)
What’s Next?
“I’d like to go into Level 5 Sports Therapy, maybe dry needling.” Erik says, but the team’s ambitions extend beyond client work, “Eventually we’d love to go into teaching, teach other future personal trainers with the same passion as well.”
Dobie Optimum Fitness was launched from a love of fitness and care, and it shows.
They’ve faced COVID, come out the other side, and held their business for over 5 years (when most new businesses stop trading).
Now they’re on a trajectory toward mentorship and a thriving community. It goes to show that if “if you do your work right, if you do it with passion, people will notice that and they will tell someone else, and then it will grow quite fast into kind of a snowball, where people tell each other that this is the place to go.”
