The First Of Their Name: Chapter Five

Aamina Khan/ QD Fitness

Let’s talk about our bodies. Yes…the same ones we so love to hate. The same ones we try to fit in every mold, and get frustrated when its not to our liking. What if I were to tell you that there is one woman who is actively trying to change that notion? That she is trying, to the best of her abilities (which are quite far reaching by the way!) to challenge the mindset regarding fitness? Would you like to know more about this inspirational lady? Presenting, the motivated Aamina Khan who, in her own words, is…“a passion driven who loves growth in all aspects. I love change, I love overcoming hard things, I love the feeling of finding your strength after feeling defeated or incapable. I really thrive off of these things because I’ve had a lot of hurdles in my life and these feelings really empower me to give my best and be my strongest.”

Aamina lives by the motto: “Turn your pain into power and gain your strength through your struggle.”

Let’s dive in to witness what drives this woman to be who she is.

About Amina: 

My name is Aamina and I am a certified personal trainer and fitness nutrition specialist. I am a Born and bred Chicagoian and homeschooling mom of 3 with too many hobbies. I currently live in Salt Lake City, Utah. If I’m not coaching or working out, you can find me making muscle recovery bath bombs, soaps, painting or lesson planning for homeschool/ programming for clients. My fitness journey is vast ; I have done home workouts, CrossFit, powerlifting, circuit training, HIIT, ETC! I have personally gone through bulking and cutting and maintaining weight and helped clients with their goals in relation to food and weight loss or gain. I am currently going through postpartum fitness and look forward to learning more about helping women during this phase. I am motivated by the reality that  women will often resort to very unhealthy methods to ‘become fit’ and my goal is to help change unhealthy habits for healthier and practical ways to be your best self while enjoying cultural food and still enjoying life. With my clients, we don’t diet or cut out whole food groups.. Rather, we focus on having a better relationship with food and working towards our goals from a place of love not hate and shaming our bodies. 

Motivation behind the endeavor:

My love of fitness and all things related began in my home growing up. My 6 siblings had always been strong, fast runners, high jumpers and motivated to be as strong as they could be. My older sister is also a personal trainer back home in chicago (@hijabi_gainster). I pursued strength training while in high school. Naturally, with marriage and babies I’ve had breaks in my journey. It wasn’t until 2016 that I experienced a tremendous loss in my life and started to utilize my training as therapy. Realizing how positively fitness affects mental health I began wanting to extend my services to sisters in the community. I know that as a mother, wife, daughter, sister , life can feel overwhelming and as women we often just bandage our stress, refusing to take out time for ourselves. I’m a firm believer in the saying ‘You can’t pour from an empty cup’. In order to give our best, we have to feel and be our best selves. After all, our bodies are an Amanah. In taking care of them for the sake of Allah, we show true appreciation for all that we are capable of. . 

Story behind the name:

We come from a tradition of resilient women and that is what led me to choose the name Queens on Deen. I believe we should continue the tradition of being strong women! While I don’t only coach Muslim women, I definitely wanted to speak to our community and show that weights are not only for men! 

Challenges faced:

The gym can oftentimes be a mixed environment which can be challenging for Muslim women. I have had opportunities to coach at co-ed facilities but I know that the majority of my clientele wouldn’t be so comfortable there. I had faced finding gyms that I could rent out after hours so that we could have privacy in our group classes has been quite an issue. Alhamdulillah over time I have built a sweet garage gym which is the current home for QD Fitness; it provides all the equipment for training and privacy. 

Role of communities towards entrepreneurs: 

Our community needs to be open to the possibilities of a healthy lifestyle, which includes fitness. More often than not I hear things like:

“I don’t want to be bulky” or 

“I want to be toned” or 

“How do I achieve this goal faster?” or 

 “There’s no way I could track desi/Arab/Mexican food …” etc. 

We need to be ready to let go of common misconceptions and support Muslim fitness coaches to guide us through this journey. Another way that I have not felt supported is when I am often asked for deals. At the end of the day, while I would love to offer my services for free so that we can all make gains, the fact remains that I am providing a service which requires my knowledge and time.  

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Vision ahead:

If Allah wills 

I would LOVE to have a larger facility of my own one day where Muslimahs can workout in a safe and comfortable environment. I personally love the comradery that comes with coaching group classes. With a bigger gym I would be able to get back to group coaching In Sha Allah. Ideally I would love to have a separate entrance and a whole section for men as well. As Muslims we prefer environments that limit fitnah and I would love to play a hand in offering that to both men and women. 

Advice to budding entrepreneurs:

My advice would be that if you are passionate about something then you should pray about it then go for it. 

I am a firm believer in always learning and growing. As a coach, I still have coaches I look up to and learn from. I’m always studying some fitness related material; be it a book or an article & always learning about ways to better form and programming. If you’re passionate about something you’re going to embody it and what you offer will speak for itself. If it’s something you want to do, do it exactly as you want to. Don’t worry about how others are doing what they do. 

At the end of the day, rizq comes from Allah and if something is meant for you it’ll all work out. Be confident and go! BISMILLAH

Contact info

I’m working on a website But can currently be reached on:

Instagram: @aamanonymrs

or email me: qdfitness100@gmail.com for online programming, nutrition coaching or in-person coaching.