How Pears Dabhi Built a Future Through Personal Training

When Pears Dabhi talks about fitness, it doesn’t sound like someone who simply stumbled into a new career. It comes from lived experience, setbacks, and a deliberate decision to understand the science behind the human body.

Pears is the first-ever winner of ISSA’s How I ISSA contest, and his story reflects what happens when education, consistency, and purpose intersect.

A Turning Point

As a young athlete, Pears was constantly in motion. “Imagine a young kid flying through the soccer field, sprinting on intervals,” he recalled. That momentum came to an abrupt stop with a pop. Then a fall. Followed by a sudden understanding that his body wasn’t bulletproof. Diagnosed as an ACL injury, followed by surgery, a move to a new country, and the pressure of building a professional career in engineering, Pears went through a series of life transitions.

“For a moment my dream got scattered,” Pears said. “I thought, now what am I going to do?”

Like many people trying to get back into shape, he relied on generic workout plans and online advice. He worked out consistently, followed what he believed was a solid diet, and still felt stuck. “I was working out five days a week, using the same weights week after week and the same body was staring back at me in the mirror. This plateau, and frustration, is what makes people quit gyms altogether.” 

That frustration became the catalyst for change.

Choosing Education Over Guesswork

Rather than giving up, Pears decided to learn. “I thought, it’s a science. I have to educate myself. How does the human body work? How does nutrition work? Ultimately, I had two choices: give up or get educated. I chose science over surrender.”

In 2023, Pears decided to stop guessing and start learning. He enrolled in ISSA’s personal training certification, earning his credential as a Certified Personal Trainer while also completing nutrition coursework. What stood out immediately was how applicable the education felt. “Every single thing I learned through science-backed blueprints, I started applying to myself,” he said.

He didn’t invest in expensive fitness programs or fancy equipment, he invested in his education. “The single investment changed not just my body, but my entire life. Knowledge is the currency for change.”

The results showed up faster than he expected. “In five to six months, the struggle I had for many years was gone. My lifts were increasing. My endurance got better. Five kilometers used to feel hard, and now I can run ten and still feel fresh.”

For Pears, the education did more than change his workouts. It changed his confidence.

Turning Personal Results Into Purpose

As Pears shared his transformation online, people took notice. Friends who had known him for years started asking questions. “They said, you had a great transformation. What did you do?”

His answer was simple. “I educated myself. I earned my Certified Personal Trainer credential through ISSA, and now I’m here to support you.”

Pears went from 70kg to 90kg but that number only tells half the story. “Yes the scale changed but that’s not what I was chasing,” he explains. “I wanted to build an athletic, bulletproof body. Not only bigger but stronger, faster and more durable.” That is the real transformation he saw. 

Today, Pears still works full-time as a mechanical engineer. At the same time, he applies what he learned through his personal training certification to coach clients both in person and online. He supports busy professionals, many juggling demanding careers, family responsibilities, and declining health markers.

One story stands out. A close friend initially brushed off Pears’ advice to train consistently. Months later, blood work revealed high cholesterol. “He reached out and said, ‘You were right. Can you help me?’”

After three months of structured nutrition and training guidance, that client lost ten pounds and significantly improved his health. “That was just focusing on the foundations,” Pears explained.

A Global View of Fitness

Although based in Canada, Pears works extensively with clients in India, connecting virtually and tailoring programs to individual needs. His long-term vision is bigger than personal training.

“This is not about one person’s transformation,” he said. “It’s about global impact.”

His approach is intentional. Rather than keeping clients dependent on him long term, Pears focuses on education. “The goal is not to take more clients and earn money. The goal is not to create dependent clients but educated clients.” To Pears, fitness isn’t a side hustle, it’s a survival optimization.

That philosophy mirrors his professional background and aligns closely with ISSA’s vision to expand access to healthy living worldwide.

More Than a Career Path

For Pears, fitness is not a departure from his engineering career, it is an extension of it. In January 2026, Pears was buried under a tight project deadline at work with a packed schedule leaving almost no breathing room. Back-to-back meetings, deliverables piling up, zero downtime. Most people in that situation reach for coffee and skip everything else. Pears trained two clients virtually, prepped meals for three days, and still had energy to run. “That's not superhuman,” he says. That’s what proper nutrition and training does. It multiplies your capacity. When your body is fueled right, even the busiest weeks become manageable.”

His journey as a Certified Personal Trainer is still unfolding. Pears is building a supplement brand focused on quality and transparency, developing fitness resources for at-home training, and continuing his education with ISSA. He is currently working toward Master Trainer status.

Why Pears’ Story Matters

Pears didn't wait for the 'perfect time' to start his fitness education. He was juggling a full-time professional engineering career, recovering from injury, and battling frustration. He started anyway.

Today, he's transforming bodies across two continents, not through magic programs or secret supplements, but through science-backed education that anyone can access. Your move doesn't have to be as big as Pears'. It just has to be intentional.

As Pears puts it, “There's no such thing as 'good genetics' or 'bad metabolism.' There's educated training and uneducated guessing. I spent years guessing. It took me six months to educate myself with ISSA and everything changed.”

Ready to stop guessing and start knowing? Your transformation starts with education.

His success is not rooted in shortcuts or trends. It is rooted in education, consistency, and a willingness to learn.

For anyone considering a future in fitness, Pears’ experience offers a clear message: you do not need to abandon your current life to begin. You need the right knowledge, a commitment to apply it, and the belief that your experience can help others.

That belief is exactly what ISSA exists to support.

Tami Nealy is the VP of Communications at the International Sports Sciences Association (ISSA), a global leader in online fitness certification. She oversees brand positioning, media relations, and strategic content across ISSA’s portfolio of health and wellness education brands. With more than 20 years of experience in public relations and brand storytelling, Tami specializes in translating industry trends into clear, actionable insights that support aspiring and ISSA-certified personal trainers, health coaches, and nutrition professionals in building successful wellness careers. She is also an adjunct professor at Grand Canyon University where she teaches in the College of Business.