WATCH: Business and Branding From the Mill
In 2009, Dave took on the treadmill, the mortal enemy of powerlifters, as he answered questions about business and branding. This feat is not for the weak of heart or constitution, so abandon hope, all ye who enter here…
Don’t Let The Things You Love Destroy You
The things that gym owners and coaches love to do are destroying them. Find what you love to do without it taking too much of a toll on your health, both mental and physical. #BeThe1ToAsk others if they need help.
From a Side Hustle to a Full-Time Job: Building Your Online Coaching Bus...
A lot of people think online training is easy to do, easy money, and something anyone can do and be successful at doing. They’re all wrong. It takes a lot more work than that. If you’re thinking about dropping your 9-5 gig for an online training job, take these points into consideration first.
The Biggest Pitfalls of Powerlifting
Think about all of the things you would never miss a training session for, and then think of all of the things you missed with your family due to those sessions. Those memories you missed out on are only a fraction of the pitfalls you’ll face in powerlifting.
Competing in the College Classroom
I wrote an article about planning to achieve athletic success, and the classroom path is no difference. By following the same (or similar) principles, students can achieve academic success as well. If you want to avoid a terrible GPA, please read onward.
WATCH: Matt Rhodes' Problems with Sports Coaches
Strength coaches have a lot of problems to deal with. Some of those problems come from the strength coaches themselves, but don’t even get him started on the sports coaches… too late, though. We got him talking about them.
Make Your Time More Valuable
Your key asset, the one thing that you can leverage to build a successful company and the real measuring stick isn’t money; it’s time. You open a business to earn a higher return on your time, not to buy yourself a job.
What You Will Gain From a Strength and Conditioning Internship
You’ll learn a lot from your strength and conditioning internship — but there are some things you might glean over. Keep these points in mind, and you’ll get even more out of your internship than you thought possible.
My Biggest Mistakes as a Strength and Conditioning Coach
These are just a few of my mistakes, and I’ve made many more than the ones listed here. Remember, mistakes are just lessons, so if you haven’t made any mistakes, you haven’t learned any lessons.
Collegiate vs. Private Sector Strength and Conditioning with Brian Bott
What are the pros and cons of being a strength coach at the collegiate level or in the private sector? The similarities? The differences? Coach Brian Bott, former University of Wisconsin strength coach-turned-founder of Sports AdvantEDGE, tells all in an interview.
Don't Be Afraid to Try
A self-made millionaire once told me that we all have great ideas; it’s just that 99% of people don’t act on them. Those words came to mind this summer when I took the largest step I’ve ever taken out of my comfort zone…
What I've Learned From the Mistakes I've Made as A Trainer
It’s great you can point out each origin and insertion of every muscle, but your client doesn’t care. Your end goal is to get your client results and to make them feel better about themselves — not getting them to the point where they’re limping out of your gym.
How to Communicate Clearly to Potential Clients
Ever heard the saying, “If you can’t explain something simply, you probably don’t understand it?” If you’re going to bring in clients, you need to make your pitch short, sweet, and simple.
6 Keys to Starting A High School Strength and Conditioning Program
When starting a high school strength and conditioning program, be sure to implement rules early on and communicate clearly… and those are only a handful of things to get your program off the ground running.
Listen and Learn: How I'm Developing My Staff
When you sit and yammer at people, like most of us do in our leadership developments, we aren’t developing leaders… We’re gaining followers. Be quiet and listen to others’ ideas and examples and learn from them, just as they’ll learn from you.
WATCH: Matt Rhodes Gives Advice to Young Coaches
A few pro tips from Coach Matt Rhodes: Not everything you learn in a book can be applied to strength and conditioning. Open your mind to new ideas and influences, and learn how your mentor wants things down.
8 Levels of Delegation for Successful Management
Your employees are like your clients in the gym. They want to build their skills and strengths and hopefully, are able to do it on their own. If you’re unable to manage your management, you are doing your employees and yourself a major disservice.
A Career Development Plan for GAs and Interns
Although this article is directed at those supervising GAs and interns, if you’re a student reading this article, you can use these strategies to help to plan your own professional development as well.
The Travels of a Strength and Conditioning Coach — Jonathan Leitch'...
I quit my personal trainer job to become a strength and conditioning coach. I lived in my car, slept on a couch, and I even had a raccoon living in my apartment wall at one point. But all of these struggles and sacrifices were worth it.
It's On Us to Become Better Strength Coaches
I’m here to remind everyone that we all have a part to play in making our field better and safer for our athletes. It’s on us to ensure our athletes, schools, and overall profession are all the best they can be. Start by implementing these 5 simple steps in your program.
LISTEN: Table Talk Podcast #20 with Alwyn Cosgrove
Alwyn Cosgrove made quite the splash at the SSTSS 2019 event, so it’s only natural we’d have him sit down with Dave… plus, we have a couple of other guests joining Dave and Alwyn. Any guesses? Their last name starts with ant and ends in O…
Start Here: Your 3 Core Offerings
From a revenue standpoint, you should consider packages to be your gold standard. Combining nutrition coaching with exercise coaching (either personal or group training) will get a client to their goals faster but should bring you more value for your time.
Here's How You Can Land a Collegiate Scholarship for Powerlifting
Move over college football, college powerlifting is coming for you! OK, fine, powerlifting might not be as popular as college football, but it does provide prospective students with another way to knock down the full price of college tuition: scholarships.
Learning the Language of a Prospect
We tend to go into things with fitness coach or trainer eyes. We need to start seeing through the clients’ eyes and thinking like they do. We need to relate to them. Once you do that, you can take them on a journey.
Comfort Zones are Death Zones
As I start up my new job, I wanted to give younger strength and conditioning coaches some advice: Don’t be afraid to spread your wings and fly out of your comfort zone. Be bold and be brave. It will pay off at some point.
Disruptive Innovation and Blue Ocean Strategies
Don’t compete for fish in chum-filled waters. Instead, go where no one else has ever gone before. Be the next Takeru Kobayashi. Be the next CrossFit. Be the next elitefts. Become whatever it is you want and change the game.
Top Three: A Hierarchy for Sustainable Success
For some, training is just a hobby; but for others, training is much more than that. It’s what keeps me going, and it’s very close to the top of my list of priorities. But sometimes, we need to remember those other priorities, too. Here’s a reminder of what they are.
Focus on Success
Two people see the same situation; one person sees the opportunity, and one person sees the obstacle. In order to overcome the obstacle, it takes a different perspective — a positive one.
A Fair Assessment of the CSCCa and NSCA
Not sure if you should attend the NSCA Coaches’ Conference or the CSCCa National Conference? Which exam to take? Take a look at some of the pros and cons of each organization and figure out which is best for you.
Grad Assistants: Read This Before Applying Anywhere
Out of all the applications I have received from prospective graduate assistants, I kid you not, 40 percent of them went into the junk file right off the bat. Here’s how your future application can stay out of junk folders.
You Can Learn Anything
I don’t know why my tae-kwon-do instructor did this after I told him I couldn’t afford lessons, but he said, “You’ll be back, and you’ll teach the kids’ class.” He gave me an opportunity to become a coach, which changed the direction of my life.
Outlast the Fitness Industry Copycat, Critic, and Cutter
The only way to REALLY keep your clients away from the snake oil is to teach them about it, but you’ve got to do a couple of things before you have their trust and attention…
Add 100 Pounds To Your Squat — 5 Seminar Takeaways
It took more than 20 years of surveys for us to define what is optimal. These are some of those key items and teaching points we’ve picked up from those surveys, such as training group size considerations and training the squat from the bottom up.
How to Coach Based on Personality Type
Knowing your clients’ personalities and using that knowledge for communication and programming can make you a better, more effective coach. Here’s how you can do that using the DISC personality model.
Under the Baa-r: Lessons Learned in Herding, From Me to Ewe
In a week, my girlfriend and I went from the APF Women’s Pro-Am in Cincinnati to taking our dog an Intro to Herding Class in Nova, Ohio. I didn’t know what I was getting into, but I learned a lot about dogs, sports, and life in general.
Important Business Considerations for Gym Owners
All questions and no answers here. That’s good, though — it’ll make you aware of issues that may need to be addressed in your gym business and figure out how to fix these issues before they become an issue.
Are You Ready for the Inevitable?
After resigning from my last position, I thought it was an opportune time to reflect on the situation and hopefully, a time for me to assist you in the process of finding your next gig. Best of luck in your job hunt!
Scale Up Your Personal Training Business With 2:1 Sessions
One of the simplest ways for a personal trainer to make more money is to train two clients at once. It’s also the fastest way to scale your income without adding additional time to your schedule. Welcome to the world of 2:1 training.
Your Business Can Survive Anything With This
Listen, Blockbuster, Sears, and Kodak went under because they failed to add this secret ingredient to their business models. Are you willing to risk all your business’ longevity? Read on to see how your business can stand the test of time.
Your Do and Don't Guide to the CSSCa Conference
For those new to the game and for seasoned vets alike who’ll be attending the CSSCa National Conference, here are some do’s and don’t’s that will make your annual trip a success — both in terms of enjoyment and employment.
Live and Coach Your Why
My why is to improve athletes through and of the human body and mind by giving them all a well-thought-out program to make them faster, stronger, and more resilient. What’s your why? And why?
These 10 Words Are All You Need to Get Your Clients Back
Rather than try to get new clients, why not try to win back your former clients? They just need a teeny, tiny bit of a nudge to come back through the door. Lucky for you, I have 10 words that’ll get these guys and gals back in your gym — and three easy-peasy alternatives, too.
The Leadership Parallels Between the Successful Coach and the Successful...
After eight years of competing in strength sports and seven years of supervising employees, I’ve found that these parts of my life share several similarities when it comes to success. I’ve learned what makes the best coaches and bosses stand out from the rest. These three keys will help you do just that.
The Practice Squad
I recently reconnected with an old client: Don Cherry, whom I first met as a 16-year-old football player. Over the last several years, I’ve been lucky to watch that kid I trained in the belly of the Beast become a college and NFL football player and most recently, one of the voices behind a great podcast.
Your Checklist for a Perfect Personal Training Session
Through my 22 years of coaching, I’ve found that all great personal trainers have things in common. While there’s no one single script we follow, it helps me to have a checklist. So I’m sharing a checklist I give to my staff when they start one-on-one training at my gym.
Positivity, Desire, and Magic
I had the pleasure of hearing Earvin “Magic” Johnson speak at a leadership conference I attended. Magic discussed his experiences in business and basketball and his pervasive passion for winning, regardless of the endeavor, much like elitefts’ approach.
Make It Sticky
What should you say on video, in your blog posts, or in your emails to clients? What if you’re helping them through a change? The most important thing is to say SOMETHING. So consider this list an example of “Good, better, best.”
You Own the Media
You can publish your own newspaper. You can record your own radio show. You can go live on camera any time you want. You don’t just own the means of production — the distribution is FREE! As a gym owner, why aren’t you using it?
How Do You Become a Superhero?
You don’t have to have powers to be a superhero… after all, not all heroes wear capes.
A Varsity House Gym Check-up for Strength Coaches
Running a business is a lot like training. There are steps and signs you deal with…. and if you don’t have a long-term plan, you’re not going to get anywhere. Take action today to create career longevity as a strength coach.
How to Keep Clients Longer
I’ve owned a gym for 13 years, and I’ve coached for 22. Throughout the years, I learned it’s easier to keep a client than to get a new one.
WATCH: Why Is Dave Tate So Angry?
Dave recognizes that his style can be gruff, fast-paced, and intense.
Pay Yourself First
Start by finding your replacement value: what are others in your industry paid to do the work you’re doing?
Small Business Survival Strategy
My goal is to simply get you started thinking more holistically about your business and executing your dream in a way that might prevent it from becoming a nightmare.
Grow Your Gym with the Thank Up Strategy
Word-of-mouth advertising, client testimonials, and organic growth are the best ways to grow your gym. But if you just wait for it to happen, you’ll starve to death. Take the process from passive to active by taking control of the conversation.
How to Manage Stress Before It Manages You
There are no magic pills, nutrition protocol, or training method that can address the root of the problem and reduce stress. You have to prioritize your life, what is important, what can wait, and what can be eliminated. And a lot of that has to do with your mindset.
Defining the Core Values of Garden Fresh Foods
I began defining the core values of Garden Fresh Foods, the company I run with several fantastic managers and my wife, Christina. The process proved challenging and eye-opening with a multitude of cross-over applications to my bodybuilding career.
Learn to Train X — What It Really Means to Live, Learn, and Pass On
In rant fashion, Dave Tate breaks down the components of the famous “Live, Learn, Pass On” philosophy that has shaped his personal journey, as well as the overarching mission of elitefts.
How Do You Re-Recruit Your Veteran Staff?
So, how do you re-recruit your veteran staff? The first step is to understand that it isn’t going to be easy. In fact, it is going to require that you swallow your pride and take responsibility not only for omissions and shortfalls on your part but on behalf of your organization.