9 Qualities of a Successful Gym Owner
If you see owning a gym as just a revenue stream, I guarantee you will fail. It takes way more than equipment in a room with electricity.
Year One at The Bear Cave
There is no beginning and end, no start or finish, just a boundless chasm of opportunity here. Oh, and the door still sticks.
Life as a Gym Owner: What I Learned in Year Two
From everything we could tell, year two was going to be a great year of advancement, and what we had hoped to be a start to an end of our full-time jobs. But then, life happened: COVID-19, cancer, closure, and more.
December's GPP for Your Business
How can you bulk up your gym’s profits during the holiday season? These 5 steps will help your gym get those financial gains.
The 7 Pillars of Leadership
It took time and a whole lot of failures for me to learn these core principles of leading others. But they are what helped me grow my business to over 160 members and a team of four others working alongside me… which brings me to these 7 lessons of leadership.
November's GPP for Your Business
You write programs for your athletes, but have you programmed anything for your business? Think about GPP for your clients and then create a GPP program for your gym.
How to Build Careers for Other Coaches
I thought the problem was just economics: that coaches could only make an hourly wage, but owners make profits. But that wasn’t the real problem. The real problem was that I could have made more, but I didn’t know how. And my boss didn’t know how, either.
6 Business Lessons No One Talks About
You’ve heard a lot of business advice from everyone. But what about the things you haven’t heard?
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.
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.
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.
Safe Sport Act Update: Keep Your Gym Up to Code
Gym owners: Here's a quick reminder that the Safe Sport Act will extend to your businesses starting December 1st, 2020. Not sure about the requirements? Listen to this Two-Brain Business podcast episode for a refresher course.
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.
My Dream Gym
I decided to make some notes about the main things I would have in a gym if I owned one and didn’t care as much about making money as I did about just having a badass gym to train in. I think every meathead has done this at one time or another.
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 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.
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.
Intimidation and the Fitness Industry
In this article, I will offer definitions and a technical approach to the terms involved in this problem. With this, hopefully, I may help you understand the forms intimidation can take and turn your dream gym into a nightmare.
4 Rules of Training Professional Athletes (with Off-Season Program Sample)
Four years ago I got a phone call about training a local kid who had just been cut by the Atlanta Falcons and wanted to make his move back to the NFL. Here are my four rules of training professional athletes and what I did with Roosevelt Nix.
WATCH: Steve Pulcinella Visits the S5 Compound
After a long, miserable drive to Ohio, we stuck a camera in Steve’s face and forced him to talk about his life. The results are about what you’d expect.
7 Interviews with Lifters and Coaches I Respect
I made a list of people with informed opinions, from opposite ends of the country, with a wide variety of backgrounds. Their answers to these five questions demonstrate what is alike and what is different about their perspectives on training.
Heavy Metal Fitness: Tim Ingram's Strength Haven Grows Again
When we first shared his story in 2014, Tim Ingram had just opened his first training facility. Now he’s back with another story of growth — and an even bigger gym.
WATCH: elitefts Fitness Professional Summit — Don't Be A Big Fish i...
The fitness industry is a multi-billion dollar industry. It’s the war you want to be in.
Intrapreneurship
For a good staff member, a salary can just get in the way of a great career. Coaches need an unending opportunity with some limitations, and this is where you come in.
Three Phases of Purchasing Gym Equipment for New Gym Owners
Every gym has its own unique qualities at the start, but for those of you who want to start a strength or athletic training facility, use this guide for the best approach to equipment purchases.
Introducing New elitefts Columnist Matt Mills
"I competed in my first powerlifting meet after reading an article on elitefts that gave me the motivation I needed to be better."
Home and the Home Gym — The Heart Follows the Iron
In this article, we reach the end of our journey. You will read about how original home gym owners made different choices and changed their lives as they followed the iron.
Our Gym, Our Destiny
Through minor challenges and major setbacks, Elite Custom Fitness has thrived since 2012. Now it’s time to find a new five-year goal.
How To Price Personal Training
Unsure where to set prices for 1:1 or small group training? Here’s an in-depth look at the industry’s current rates and how to best incentivize your trainers while bringing more clients—and money—to your gym.
An Introduction to Affinity Marketing — F Your Funnel
If you want your gym to be successful and your clientele base to grow, you need to take that traditional sales funnel and flip it upside down.
The Three Best and Worst Parts of Owning a Gym
Over five years of owning a facility, through the survival stage and growth phase, I’ve learned a lot. Good and bad, owning a gym is a…
Three Financing Options for Your Gym Business
You may decide to use one or all three of these options to best set up your facility for profitability. What’s your plan?
How to Build The Perfect Home Gym
I’ve simplified this process into four phases: essentials, accessories, specialty bars, and everything else.
Turning Passion Into Business: Running A Private Powerlifting Gym
RiverCity Barbell started as most gyms do: in a garage. We defined our business and used these tactics to make our training facility what it is today.
WATCH: Better Attention, Better Results at Relentless Performance
This gym in Vero Beach, Florida offers the attention of multiple highly-educated trainers with years of personal experience.
Showman Year One
Owner of Showtime Strength & Performance, Nick Showman reflects his first year of gym ownership.
Matt Foley Toughens Up Youth Athletes
At Elite Sports and Fitness, athletes are elevated from average to elite.
