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Career Path for Group Fitness Instructors

Year-Long Career Success Workshop

2025 is YOUR year! IDEA is excited to bring you a year-long workshop centered on how to grow your business, whether you are employed by a club, own your own…

gyms open, people exercising
With Gyms Open, Are Clients Ready?

With many gyms open again—some after long closures—IDEA put three questions to five fitness pros from around the country: Are you now operating at full capacity? How are clients adapting as…

IDEA World 2020
Unleash Your Greatness and Build a Career That Inspires

Jack Welch, American businessman and former CEO of General Electric, once said, “Before you are a leader, success is all about growing yourself. When you become a leader, success is all about growing others.” This is the reason the IDEA World Convention exists—to bring together some of the brightest people in the fitness industry so they can grow into greatness and inspire that growth in clients, students, athletes, co-workers and staff.

Comprising more than 330 sessions led by top coaches, entrepreneurs, and fitness, nutrition and wellness professionals, IDEA World offers the full spectrum of education you are seeking for instant and ongoing career growth, regardless of your position in the industry.

How to Increase Confidence and Fitness Class Size

Group fitness instructors have a reputation for being fearless extroverts. And it does take self-confidence to stand in front of a group of people and lead them through an exercise routine—all while wearing a mic and managing a playlist. The truth is that we’re performing, but that doesn’t come naturally to everyone. Some of us need to fake it till we make it!

2019 IDEA® World Convention: Igniting Passion With Purpose!

Purpose, passion and people! The fitness industry is all about forging relationships that lift others up. Fitness professionals have energy to spare, and they are dedicated to mentoring new generations of pros, networking with peers, and motivating clients and participants every day.

5 Tips for Success as a Health Coach

Launch your coaching career with strategies from successful health coaches:

1. Identify With Your Clients

“You need to specialize and understand your prospective clients very deeply,” says Jeff Popoff, founder of the online business The Healthy Executive. “It really helps if you are authentically ÔÇÿone of their tribe.’ If you try to be everything to everyone, you will wind up being nothing to nobody.”

Why You Need a Client Avatar

Remember the days when all you had to do to usher in a rush of new clients was run a Facebook campaign or a Groupon offer? Those days are long gone. The market is becoming saturated, and fitness facilities are popping up on every corner, each wanting a piece of the pie. Also, consumers are becoming more educated about fitness; they’re more cautious about where they spend their hard-earned exercise dollars—and for good reason!

Not So Fast: Questions to Ask Before You Accept That Fitness Class

Too often, yoga and group fitness instructors are so eager to teach that they say yes to any class they can squeeze into their schedule. Tatiana Kolovou, MBA, owner of Ethos Cycling in Bloomington, Indiana, is among those who believe you shouldn’t undervalue your skills in order to do something you love. “There are many jobs that have strong purpose, and the individuals who do them have passion, and many of them make a lot of money,” Kolovou says.

The Importance of Your Location

Whether you are an owner of a brick and mortar fitness space or an independent fitness professional, your business’s location can be a major factor in your success. According to a study conducted by New York based marketing firm distillery, using the data from cell phone location tracking logs, the average gym-goer has a short 4 mile drive to their gym. The distance will vary by style of facility but the longest distance reported in the study was only 6 miles.

Changing Behavior Changes Lives

In North America—and around the world—people are suffering or dying from the ravages of chronic lifestyle diseases that are mostly preventable. It’s troubling to write those words as a flat statement of fact, especially in an era of such astonishing medical advancements paralleled with a daily firehose of new health research that further pressure-washes what we already know.

A colorful "lightbulb" depiction of a woman brainstorming ideas for her health coaching business.
Health Coaching: Starting Your Business

Are you excited about helping people to transform their lives through health coaching? You’ve educated yourself, earned certifications, gained practical experience and are ready to start your business. What’s next?