This episode is going to cause you to question a lot about our industry, and how you’re offering the experience of exercise in your business. Because when it comes to inclusion, there is so much that we don’t think of that is causing a massive population of people to feel unwelcome and defeated by what you’re offering, rather than the way you hope they feel- inspired and excited to come back again. And I guarantee most of it is flying under your radar.   Things like… how you program your workouts, how you coach your workouts… whether or not offering pre-choreographed classes are the right ..read more

Our guest in this episode is a business operations consultant and attorney for fitness, wellness, and creative professionals. She’s passionate about providing her clients with her playbook and systems to teach them how to build the business they want and deserve, without the constant anxiety, overwhelm, exhaustion, or frustration. Through the conversation, we tackle a ton of valuable topics like: 1. Knowing the right way to grow by finding the right relationships with complimentary businesses.  2. Learning from what others do well, and what others don’t do well, and applying that to your ..read more

If you’re a regular listener of the show, you know we talk a lot about leveraging your uniqueness to scale your business- whether that be your unique origin story, your core values, your beliefs, or your unique skills. The reason is because #1, there is no one else like you in the world, and you can immediately set yourself apart from competitors this way, and #2, your clients aren’t buying your workouts- they’re making a buying decision based on how you make them feel- and that comes from what you share about your beliefs and values, and how you believe your unique approach can change their l ..read more

We've partnered with ACE for a few recent episodes to bring you the best info on how to future-proof your business. In this truly heart-driven conversation our guest speaks about why turning a mirror on yourself and consistently self-assessing is the key to career longevity. This involves taking a hard look at your interests, your skills, the types of people you want to serve, and what superpowers you have (because your uniqueness is always going to be the thing that brings you the most success- if you lean into it). What comes next is a process of marrying this self-assessment, and what YOU w ..read more

Do you have an area of expertise in fitness? Have you ever considered writing continuing education content, or producing your own training program? Maybe you've mastered one skill that you want to share.   If you're wondering what the steps are to producing something that could be accredited by an organization like ACE, then press play on this episode, where Shay continues her conversation with Chris Gagliardi, the Scientific Education Content Manager with ACE.   LINKS: https://www.acefitness.org/ https://www.acefitness.org/about-ace/ace-mover-method/   https://athleticgreens.co ..read more

Being a good trainer is really about relationship building, but to built strong, meaningful, heartfelt, and impactful relationships (as we all should strive to!) it means we have to play a number of roles really well at the same time.   We have to be a coach, an educator, a motivator, but also a DJ, an MC, and more!   Aside from the difficulty of being able to do all of those things well, it can also be difficult to know WHEN to play each role by reading, watching, and listening to our clients.   And that’s what this conversation is about in the first half of this epic two-episo ..read more

This episode is a continuation of the conversation Shay had with Staci Alden in our previous episode. If you haven't listened to it, they really break down what it means to be a group fitness manager, and demystify this very important role at any fitness facility.   This week Staci talks about going beyond the numbers and the six things to look for when reviewing instructor performance that can't be found in data points, but are still trackable!   Follow Staci: https://www.youtube.com/c/StaciAlden https://stacialden.com/   Get a year's supply of Vitamin D and 5 travel packs of A ..read more

In this episode, we are diving into the role of the group fitness manager, which in almost 300 episodes is a topic that we haven’t really touched on before... and yet it was one of the most vital - albeit mysterious - roles of any club or studio.   We know that if you are a studio owner, you may be performing this role yourself. OR if you’re looking to hire someone to fill this position, where do you even begin? As you’ll quickly learn in this episode, there is no roadmap or playbook for a group fitness manager and the  job can be dense and intense.   But it’s also really dynami ..read more

We believe that nearly every person in the world knows that exercise, moving their body is good for them, but most people still don’t do it. We also don’t believe that it’s due to a lack of motivation. We believe it’s because they don’t feel seen.   The decision to purchase fitness classes is so different from the decision to purchase anything else. It’s an emotional decision that causes someone to bring the reality of who they are, or who they believe themselves to be into the light and look at it. Oftentimes that’s really scary and uncomfortable. It often means coming into contact with ..read more

This episode features a fitness business owner and long-time FCM podcast listener who reached out to us through our website, expressing gratitude for pod and asked if he could be a guest on our show. It’s not often that we get a request like this, and we had a couple of spots open on our recording schedule, so of course, we said “Why Not.” Shay took the discovery call and thought that since we are coming up on our 200th episode this would be the perfect time to celebrate a listener who’s clearly taken inspiration from the show and consistently followed through with Action Steps to help his bus ..read more