Trainer Success
Billy Blanks: A Celebration of Creativity and Character
Billy Blanks was born with an anomaly in his hip joints that left him clumsy and subject to taunts. He found strengthโboth physically and of characterโin karate, and he went on to a successful career as a martial arts champion, bodyguard and movie star. That in itself is a pretty amazing story. But in Blanksโ case, thatโs just the preface . . .
The Synergy of Togetherness
Weโve all had to pivot these last 2 yearsโand not just while leading clients through multiple planes of motion). Weโve also learned that virtual training can add valuable dimensions toโฆ
Developing a Unique Selling Proposition
Marketing
By Nicki Anderson
Developing a Unique Selling Proposition
Why having a USP will give you an edge over your competition. When I speak to personal fitness trainers about marketing strategies, I often ask, โWhat makes you and your business unique?โ Sadly, most trainers reply that what sets them apart is the fact that they really care about their clients. While that sentiment is most admiraโฆ
Wink of an Eye
Technology
By Joe Dysart
Wink of an Eye
Add video to your website with the latest do-it-yourself software. Used to be, creating Web video was a laborious process requiring deep technical knowledge, great patience, a flair for tweaking, and hoursโif not daysโof production time. Consequently, many personal trainers shied away from adding video to their sites, concluding that while the medium reprโฆ
Liability and Damages for Fitness-Based Lawsuits
Legal & Risk Management
By Sean Riley, MS, JD
Liability and Damages for Fitness-Based Lawsuits
Understanding the categories of legal damages awarded to plaintiffs. Over the past several issues, we have examined the risks involved in failing to prioritize legal responsibilities in your fitness career and discussed how to actively manage those risks in your daily operations. Now it is time to take โฆ
Emptying Your (Head) Trash
Sales
By C. Noelle Brownson, with Gary Harvey
Emptying Your (Head) Trash
How self-limiting beliefs prevent us all from achieving our lifeโs goalsโespecially when it comes to making those sales. โThere just arenโt enough hours in the day to exercise and eat well!โ โMy injuries prevent me from working out now that I am older.โ โI tried exercising once, and it didnโt do any good.โ Do any of these sโฆ
Personal Training (data from the 2005 IDEA Programs & Equipment Survey)
IDEA Survey
By Patricia Ryan, MS
Personal Training
When it comes to the number of trainers you have and the quantity of sessions they conduct, how does your facility stack up to others? Since 88% of the businesses included in the 2005 IDEA Fitness Programs & Equipment Survey offer personal training, itโs no surprise that trainers appear in virtually all facilities. Personal training businesses haโฆ
Face-to-Face Time: Meetings With a Purpose
Training for Growth
By Sherri McMillan, MSc, and Alex McMillan
Face-to-Face Time:
Guarantee your next meeting is a success with these helpful strategies. Why do most people dread attending meetings? Itโs largely because meetings can be poorly organized and not thought out well. Many people perceive them to be time wasters that detract from getting more important work done. However, carefully planโฆ
Keeping the Fires Burning & the Systems Churning
Synergistic Systems
By Kay L. Cross, MEd
Keeping the Fires Burning & the Systems Churning
Follow these tips to maintain the synergy and momentum youโve created for your clients and yourself. Creating synergistic systemsโcleaning out, organizing, thoughtfully managing your work hours, planning, tracking, implementing and adjustingโrequires time to think, plan and do. This has been a busy butโฆ
The [Buyer-Seller] Dance Goes On
Sales
By C. Noelle Brownson, with Gary Harvey
For example, explain, โI like to think that my coaching services are available to people with a variety of budgets. I find that clients who are motivated and comfortable in the gym need a coaching session only once every week or two and then they can complete the rest of the workouts on their own, checking in with me for a new program at least once eveโฆ
Proactive and Purposeful Client Management
Synergistic Systems
By Kay L. Cross, MEd
Proactive and Purposeful Client Management
Develop systems to track, organize and manage clients and their data. For those of you reading these columns in order, you may feel overwhelmed at this point, thinking to yourself, โI have so many systems I need to create. How can I possibly get started?โ Remember the feeling you had in school of never being โfiniโฆ
The Importance of Protective Legal Documentation
Legal & Risk Management
By Sean Riley, MS, JD
The Importance of Protective Legal Documentation
Donโt leave home without it! Personal training is a business. All businesses, especially thoseโlike fitnessโ that carry inherent risks of injury, must protect themselves from lawsuits. At some point, most people who work out will experience some sort of exercise-related injury. Without legal protectioโฆ
Speed Demons
Technology
By Joe Dysart
Speed Demons
Get back in the Webโs fast lane with the latest utilities.
QuickCleanTM, by McAfee (www.mcafee.com/us/) ($24.95)
One of the most prominent PC software makers, McAfee has been making products like QuickClean for years, with outstanding results. This little gem essentially goes on โspace patrolโ inside your PC, eliminating every performance-slowing file it canโฆ
Wanted: Experienced Business/Life Manager
Synergistic Systems
By Kay L. Cross, MEd
Wanted: Experienced Business/Life Manager
Becoming a great self-manager takes practice and consistent discipline. How much fun did you have last month? Did you throw away what you didnโt need, and get organized and motivated for a year of synergy? Now that the cleaning out and filing are behind you, weโre on to the next stepโ the search for a great busineโฆ
Get Centralized and Automated
Training for Growth
By Sherri McMillan, MSc, and Alex McMillan
Get Centralized and Automated
Streamline your operations and hit revenue goals. As consultants who travel around the world, we see many personal training businesses or departments that struggle with the same issues: I no personal training director or a director who trains 30โฆ
The Legalities of Emergency Care
Legal & Risk Management
By Sean Riley, MS, JD
The Legalities of Emergency Care
Understand your risks and responsibilities. As a personal trainer, you work with a variety of populations, from seniors to athletes. This diversity perpetuates a number of legal issues, particularly with regard to emergency care. With the senior population, you must be able to identify the symptoms of, and remedies forโฆ
Respecting Your Boundaries
Legal & Risk Management
By Sean Riley, MS, JD
Respecting Your Boundaries
Always remember, your job is to design exercise programsโ not to treat, diagnose or prescribe. Study after study has demonstrated that regular physical activity is important to good health. In an attempt to promote clientsโ well-being, personal fitness trainers (PFTs) may find themselves involved in activities that can blurโฆ
You Donโt Say . . .
Technology
By Joe Dysart
You Donโt Say . . .
With todayโs voice recognition software, you can stick the keyboard where it belongs. Are your hands more comfortable pumping iron than fiddling with a computer keyboard? If so, you may want to consider using your voice as the primary way to navigate on your personal computer. For about $200, you can upgrade your PC and other devices with cutting-edge โฆ
Operation Organization
Synergistic Systems
By Kay L. Cross, MEd
Operation Organization
Donโt wait for spring to make a clean sweep of your working environment! If someone peered into your car, file cabinets, kitchen pantry, laundry room or closet, what would they assume about you? Would they guess that you are always in a hurry, loaded down with too much stuff and barely holding your act together in the public eye? Or โฆ
IDEA Data Show Business Is Booming
Trainer Survey
By Patricia Ryan, MS
IDEA Data Show Business Is Booming
New data reveal the expansion of training into new skills and new opportunities.
PERSONAL TRAINING GROWS INTO SMALL GROUPS
% of respondents offering program
Total of All Respondents Health Clubs and YMCAs PFTs in Client Homes PFT Gyms
n (number) personal training (one-to-one) personal training (2 clients share) personal traiโฆ