A woman who worked for celebrity-loved fitness guru Tracy Anderson for almost a decade has claimed that the trainer made fun of her clients’ bodies behind their backs and ‘bullied’ employees.
Tracy, 50, has spent more than 20 years fostering her reputation as the go-to fitness guru amongst the Hollywood elite, with Gwyneth Paltrow, Jennifer Lopez, and Madonna previously praising her famed Tracy Anderson Method.
Tracy owns eight studios across the globe in locations like London, Madrid, New York City, Los Angeles, and Palm Beach.
But in 2023, her workout empire and gleaming reputation were tainted after a slew of her ex-employees spoke to Business Insider about what it was like to work for the trainer, telling a bombshell tale of legal threats, paranoia, and grueling long hours.
Now, one of the workout company’s former longtime staffers has opened up about her experience exclusively to DailyMail.com, and she branded Tracy as ‘toxic, narcissistic, and psychotic’ person.
The former trainer, 34, who will be referred to as the pseudonym Emily throughout the story as she asked to keep her identity private, explained that she started working with Tracy in 2015, and was a dedicated employee for almost a decade.
But Emily said she spent years enduring ‘bullying’ and ’emotional distress’ while employed for Tracy.
She claimed that when she first got the job, Tracy made a slew of ‘false promises’ and enticed her by talking about ‘a ton of growth opportunities.’
A woman who worked for Tracy Anderson (seen) for almost a decade has claimed that the trainer made fun of her clients’ bodies behind their backs and ‘bullied’ employees
Tracy, 50, has spent more than 20 years fostering her reputation as the go-to fitness guru amongst the Hollywood elite. She’s seen with Gwyneth Paltrow
Her famed Tracy Anderson Method has earned a legion of fans, including stars like Gwyneth, Jennifer Lopez, and Madonna. Tracy is seen teaching a class in 2013
She also recalled being dazzled by the glamorous perks that came with the job, like getting to travel the globe and training a slew of stars.
But looking back now, she said she feels like she was ‘brainwashed’ and ‘manipulated’ by the mogul.
And over the years, Emily said she began to see a side of Tracy that was completely different from the person that her 1.1 million followers and celebrity clientele saw.
‘Tracy made comments about my body that were unprofessional and very triggering for me as someone who has body image issues,’ Emily alleged.
‘I feel like the toxic work culture started from the top. She’s just a toxic, narcissistic, psychotic person.
‘When she’s teaching a class she acts like she’s a star. She barks at people to do this, do that. It’s very diva.’
Emily alleged that there was one time that Tracy told her she ‘looked pregnant’ in an Instagram video.
‘One time, we filmed a few clips for social media and the social media woman posted it but then they took it off a few minutes after posting it,’ she shared.
Now, one of the workout company’s former staffers has opened up about her experience, and she branded Tracy (seen with Madonna) as ‘toxic, narcissistic, and psychotic’
The former trainer, 34, who asked to keep her identity private, said she spent years enduring ‘bullying’ and ’emotional distress’ while employed for Tracy (seen with JLo)
She claimed that when she first got the job, Tracy (seen) made a slew of ‘false promises’ and enticed her by talking about ‘a ton of growth opportunities’
‘Tracy told me the next day, she was like, “Oh my God I had to have them take that video down of you because you looked pregnant.”
‘She’ll say things like that. She treats people like they’re scum and like they owe her everything.’
Emily claimed that Tracy would also ‘talk crap about’ other trainers to her, and comment on her clients’ bodies behind their backs.
‘She would talk crap about the New York trainers in front of us. And most of us were so incredibly uncomfortable,’ she claimed.
‘I felt like I was in a movie, the way she was acting was so inappropriate and childish.
‘I’ve been around her while she was talking smack about her own clients, talking about their bodies. It was just awful.’
DailyMail.com has reached out to Tracy, who declined to comment.
Tracy’s method involves danced-based workouts in a room heated to 95 degrees with 75 percent humidity.
But looking back now, she said she feels like she was ‘brainwashed’ and ‘manipulated’ by the mogul, who is seen here with Gwyneth
And over the years, the woman said she began to see a side of Tracy that was completely different from what her 1.1 million followers and celebrity clientele saw. Tracy is seen in 2019
‘Tracy made comments about my body that were unprofessional and very triggering for me as someone who has body image issues,’ the woman alleged. Tracy is seen in 2016
But Emily also said that the temperature would often get much higher during classes, and claimed that the trainers were forced to do ‘multiple’ classes a day in the heat, which she branded as ‘unsafe.’
‘Sometimes the temperature [would get really high],’ she shared. ‘When I walked into that room I got a heat rash immediately and I started to feel really nauseous. There were a lot of moments like that.
‘Letting the heat get that high is super, super dangerous. I said something to management several times. At times it would get very scary with the heat in there.’
After years of working for Tracy, Emily said she was suddenly let go with no warning after being called into a meeting that was initially described as a ‘check in.’
‘It was so unexpected. And the reasoning behind it was absolutely garbage,’ she said.
‘They said, “Tracy got a few texts from a few different clients who claimed that one day after class you said you hated this place. Since Tracy wants to create a more positive environment we’re gonna have to let you go.”
‘I was just thinking, “What? When did I say that?” I would never say it in front of clients. I am not that stupid.
‘I do recall saying it in the training room in front of a trainer. And this trainer is dating Tracy’s son and is completely brainwashed.
‘The trainer room is [supposed to be] a place where we can vent, like, a safe space where we can say those things and it’s not gonna leave the room.
She claimed that Tracy would also ‘talk crap about’ other trainers to her, and comment on her clients’ bodies behind their backs. Tracy is pictured in 2015
After years of working for Tracy (seen recently), the woman said she was suddenly let go with no warning after being called into a meeting that was initially described as a ‘check in’
‘I never thought twice about it, I said it under my breath it was just a moment of frustration.’
In the end, she said she believes she was let go because of her age.
‘I’ve seen Tracy get rid of people when she thinks they’re “washed up and old.” I just turned 34, in her world that’s old,’ Emily alleged.
‘I was trying to do less physical work and I wanted more opportunity in the company to do other work so I could still make money and support myself and not kill my body every day.’
She added that Tracy wasn’t even present on the call when she was let go, despite working together for nearly 10 years, which she felt was ‘disrespectful.’
‘There were a lot of good moments and good times. I got a lot of travel opportunities. [And I fell] in love with the method. It felt so good on my body,’ she concluded. ‘It’s changed my body in a positive way.
‘When I started, Tracy was the pinnacle of fitness to an extent. The job was high profile, and it was so cool. It felt very big and meaningful to me.
‘The connection that I made with a lot of the clients… I really developed a lot of close relationships with clients and that made it super, super fun sometimes.
‘But Tracy should not be allowed to have dedicated, hard working employees who dedicate their life to [her].
‘I lived, ate, and breathed this method and this job. She should not be able to employ people [like that].’