Like a lot of the people I profile in The Citizen, Jamar Blackshear and I go way back. I saw him grow up in Southwest Philadelphia. In those days, 30 years ago, Jamar was a fan of my chicken wings and lasagna. Today, he’s known for his personal training business Halal Fitness and has gone viral for his burpee videos. But his story is deeper than that.

“I was brought up right,” he tells me. “My family spoiled me: ponies, arcade machines in my house, everything.” He went away to college at Virginia Tech, dropped out, started a cleaning service and got into fitness. “Around 2008, I got up to 238, 240 pounds,” says Blackshear. Then, he started running three miles a day and going to the gym in Queen Village. At first, he ate a lot of SaladWorks. Then, a trainer told him to eat only protein and vegetables. In a matter of months, he went down to 168 pounds, then, after consulting with nutritionist Randy Williams, got back to a healthier 178.

It was right about then, when he was arrested for and convicted of conspiracy to distribute crack cocaine. It was his first charge. His sentence was long — 120 months. When he went in, his wife was pregnant with their now-13-year-old daughter. His sister and brother died while he was away. He missed his daughter’s birth. The upside was, he had time to think and plan.

“When I was in jail,” he says, “I was sitting there like, What can I do? What do I want to do? What can I do that I love doing and get paid for?” Training.

With help from his wife, Blackshear studied, tested and passed his ISSA (personal trainer) certification. He made a five-year plan for himself and his business that would go on to impress his parole officer. Once released to a halfway house, he was certified in CPR.

He also got into weights. But in jail, “They can take the weights away from you.” What they couldn’t take away: Burpees. “You don’t need that much room for burpees,” he says, “You can just zone out, and push up.” [Editor’s note: A burpee combines a jump, a squat, a plank and a push-up. It is not easy.]

Also while in jail, he studied Islam, its practices and rules. “I learned how to read Arabic. I learned grammar, so I could translate,” he says. He prayed five times a day — which he still does. He also decided to name his business Halal Fitness. And, in 2021, four months after he was released, Halal Fitness LLC was born. “Halal means permissible, lawful, good,” he says.

Training in the gym led to posting online. An Instagram reel of Blackshear doing burpees got him 35,000 followers. Another of him just talking about burpees got 15,000 more. Now, his tag line is “Just do burpees.” And, to be honest, the exercise is as close as one move comes to a complete workout.

“I could be having a bad day. Could argue with the wife. The kids could be getting on my nerves. I just go somewhere and do burpees. My heart rate goes up and my mind just goes somewhere else — and I feel so much better,” he says.

In 2025, he’s planning to hire a woman trainer for his female clientele, wants to develop a fitness app and continue with branding and merchandise sales. He’s going to join me speaking to youth at the Youth Study Center as part of his pro bono service. Life is good. He tells me, “You see a cop over there, and you put your seatbelt on. Well, my seatbelt is on already. It’s a good feeling — just everyday, living.”

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Jamar Blackshear of Halal Fitness