Courtesy of Precor.

Precor® has announced the appointment of Derek Burke as EMEA regional commercial director. Burke’s appointment follows the imminent retirement of current president Paul Byrne, and Rob Barker’s subsequent appointment as Precor’s new president.

Burke joined the fitness industry in 2003, working as sales and marketing manager with one of Precor’s distribution partners, the KAAS group in the Middle East, and since 2006 has worked directly for Precor. He moves from his current position as sales director for Precor’s highly successful EMEA Export business, which he has held since 2009, to take up the responsibilities of EMEA regional commercial director.

During his time at Precor, Burke has been instrumental in leading the extraordinary growth of Precor’s EMEA Export business — which covers areas including the Nordics, Russia, the Middle East and Africa — managing and developing a growing, multi-disciplined team, across multiple territories.

Burke’s new role is based at parent group Amer Sports UK offices, although Burke will spend considerable time travelling to other key Precor and Amer offices within EMEA markets, as part of his remit to further develop the business.

“These are extremely exciting times for Precor, where significant investment in research and development in recent years has led to heightened levels of growth and customer satisfaction,” said Burke. “I’m extremely honored to now lead the strategic direction of the EMEA business.”

Barker, the new President of Precor, said: “Precor has a long and established track record of team development and succession planning. Derek’s skills and experience will be a tremendous asset to driving the business forward in this region.”

Now, obviously, leading a great training session with correct biomechanics, appropriate feedback and a progressive program design is essential. But, sometimes the little things are the deciding factors that make the winning session extraordinary.

For example, during the initial meeting with a client, a trainer should not only gather the client’s goals, their motivations for being there, but also the things that make that client happy. Happy in their mind may be as little as having a cold bottle of water and a towel, having a daily motivational quote, or warming up on their favorite treadmill facing the best TV.

What makes a person happy will differ from client to client, but a good trainer knows how to discover that one thing that makes a client smile from ear to ear! That’s only one part of servicing a client beyond their expectations! Stay tuned for Part Two.

Vic Spatola is the director of personal training for Greenwood Athletic and Tennis Club in Greenwood Village, Colorado, a suburb of Denver. Spatola offers consulting on personal training business development. For more information, contact him at vics@greenwoodatc.com.

Photos courtesy of Shara Tochia.

In London, UK, a concept called a “fitness rave” is taking the London fitness scene by storm. Put on by a company called Fitness Freak, a recent Fitness Freak RAVE in Southeast London drew well over 600 participants between two, one-hour sessions.

Fitness RAVES are exactly as its name implies. Instead of getting high off of drugs, participants become high off of the endorphins released during intense exercise.

According to Shara Tochia, the founder of Fitness Freak and the creator of the Fitness Freak RAVE, fitness raves are not only fun, but great exercise. Tochia described the recent event in Southeast London: “The high energy, mass-fun class lasted 60 minutes and was hosted in the atmospheric Vaults under Waterloo station. With multiple teachers on stage, the crowd got [its] groove on and burnt up to 500 calories in the process.”

If done properly, fitness raves can be great exposure for the clubs that host them. According to Tochia, the Fitness Freak RAVE received a ton of media attention. “We were very fortunate to have a great team working on the event and had such an amazing response from press and sponsors,” she said.

In order to host the event, Tochia said it took a great deal of planning. “From choosing the right venue, lighting, music, choreographing the routine, crowd management — the list goes on,” she said.

Though hard work, it may be worth your time as a club to consider hosting such an event in your local area. Consider the great exposure and number of leads you could gather if your event drew over 600 participants!

For more information or questions on fitness raves, visit www.fitness-freak.com or e-mail info@fitness-freak.com.

Rachel Zabonick is the assistant editor for Club Solutions Magazine. She can be reached at rachel@clubsolutionsmagazine.com. Reach out to her about exciting events or programs your club has implemented, or to share the amazing accomplishments of a member.

Successful business owners and leaders set very clear expectations for their teams. I’m not speaking to their strategy or business plan. Instead, I’m referring to the expectation of who they are as a company and the experience they want their customers to have. These expectations are set from day one and are followed up with immediately and frequently.

Don’t replace your backbone with a wish bone!

Day one of this process starts during the interview. You know how you want your club to be marketed and sold, so before you make the decision to add that new team member, give them your expectations. In the interview, ask them to give specific examples from their past where they have delivered the experience you are looking for. If they can’t answer your question, don’t go with your gut. Often when we are short-staffed, our gut may mislead us, and we can’t take that chance! Setting the right tone for your new members and ensuring that they take advantage of all that you offer is critical to both new member acquisition and retention. Sales teams are the backbone of this, so don’t take chances and wish that you are hiring the right team member. You only get one chance to make a first impression, so hire right!

Be the same person every day.

Bill Parcels details 11 Quarterback Commandments to being a successful quarterback in the NFL. Commandment #6 is “Be the same guy every day.” Expectations should be the behaviors that make up what you stand for and differentiates your club from the rest. Your team will understand the expectations through your personal behaviors, the recognition of those delivering them, and even more important, removing those from your team that don’t. Your actions speak so loudly that they won’t be able to hear what you are saying. Gaining your team’s trust will allow you to move more quickly!

The harder you work, the harder it is to surrender.

When messages are consistent and clear, your team doesn’t hesitate. This leads to having daily, weekly and monthly routines that they can trust and deliver. When your team knows what to expect, they are able to put all of their energy into good old-fashioned hard work! They also can trust that when they start to fall behind, they will immediately be coached and challenged to get caught up.

This doesn’t mean you have to always be predictable. Surprise them when they are doing well. Know your people and know what they like. A surprise lunch or tickets for their family to attend a local attraction are just a few examples and go a long way.

Ryan Junk is the director of sales for UFC Gym. He can be reached at ryan@ufcgym.com.

I started attending a small group program in April that bridges boot camp training with CrossFit. There is a little cardio, strength and endurance training. I haven’t yet worn a heart rate monitor in the class, but my friend that also attends the classes said he has burned up to near 1,000 calories in a one-hour class.

For me, this class has given me a few things. It has provided me with new ideas for exercise routines on my own. It’s proven to me that I can do more than I ever thought possible. It’s helped burn a lot of calories and build muscle simultaneously, while I used to religiously separate my cardio from strength training. Additionally, it has proven to me that Burpees were designed as a torture device.

It’s truly my belief that small group training will be the future of the fitness industry. I truly love going into the gym and getting in a quick run when the weather isn’t suitable outside. However, there is nothing greater at the moment than hitting up a small group program for about an hour a few days a week.

Not only do I get social interaction outside of Club Solutions, but it also gets my heart going and helps me fight the fat from my mild addiction to coffee creamer. The trainers do a great job at remembering everyone’s name, working with people individually to help them execute exercises properly, and motivate us through the 30-45 seconds per exercise.

For a couple of examples, a few weeks ago, I felt like I was going strong in a Wednesday class. Evidently, after about a month of classes I wasn’t truly pushing myself hard enough — at least not according to AJ, one of the trainers. The trainer stepped in next to me and started working out with me, pushing me to limits I didn’t think were possible. I watched him do the same with other members throughout the class. Actually, at one point he asked if he was bothering me. Heck no, he wasn’t bothering me! He was pushing me to results! I appreciated every bit of that workout. Those types of situations make me come back the next day, or the day after, once I’ve recuperated.

At a more recent class, I slightly injured my left shoulder. It wasn’t serious or anything, but I probably just pushed it too hard. I had to attend a class the very next day due to a busy schedule, and didn’t give my shoulder enough time to rest. Going into the class, I used my shoulder until I couldn’t any longer, at which point a trainer asked if it was hurting. When I quickly explained that I had worn it out the day before, she quickly gave me a modifier that helped me through the rest of the set. It was that one modifier that helped me realize how invested the trainers were in each of our workouts.

In the July issue of Club Solutions Magazine, we’ve talked to some of the top clubs in the country that have implemented SGT programs already. If you don’t have SGT in your club right now, start planning. Get your personal trainers and group instructors involved in SGT programs. If you start working through the programs but get lost, make sure you read the SGT article, “Small Group Big Profit,” in our July 2013 issue.

Tyler Montgomery is the editor of Club Solutions Magazine. Contact him at tyler@clubsolutionsmagazine.com.

Courtesy of American Kettlebell Alliance.

On September 7, 2013, Reebok Sports Club/NY will host the 2013 USA Kettlebell Sport Nationals. Members will be invited to watch the event, which will feature the sport’s top athletes from around the world.

“We are honored to have been chosen as the host for such an exciting and prestigious event in the fitness world,” said Tonya Jacobs, the regional director of operations at Sports Club/LA and Reebok Sports Club/NY, in a press release. “We are confident that the 2013 USA National Kettlebell Sport Championship will find the best athletes to represent the USA on the international arena.”

Kettlebell Sport, also known as Girevoy Sport, is the traditional Russian sport of kettlebell lifting, which has grown in popularity in recent years. Competitions require athletes to work under a sub maximal load, completing as many kettlebell lift repetitions as possible in a set time frame of ten minutes.

The event is organized and funded by the American Kettlebell Alliance, with sponsorship from Reebok, KettleGuard, Health Factory LLC and Wilton Sport and Fitness.

For additional information on Kettlebell Sport and the 2013 USA Kettlebell Sport Nationals, visit www.aka-sport.org or www.sportsclubla.com.

To further that goal and expand upon its robust programming, Healthworks turned to TRX® Team Camps, a comprehensive, small group, boot camp style training solution that helps clubs drive revenue and attract and retain members. Club Solutions spoke with Tara Wislocki, the director of marketing for Healthworks, to get details on how TRX TEAM Camps has helped Healthworks.

CS: Give a brief background on why your club chose to implement TRX TEAM Camps. How did you come to the conclusion that TRX would solve your challenges?

TW: We decided to implement TRX TEAM Camps at Healthworks because TRX TEAM has great programming, structure and TRX is a program our members were excited to experience. TRX TEAM programming has helped create a consistent quality of programming and experience for our members across all our clubs, which can be hard to manage and monitor with other programs.

CS: Describe how you have implemented TRX TEAM Camps in your club and what were/are you looking to accomplish?

TW: TRX came and did a 3-day onsite training to train our trainers in TRX Team. After that, we launched [the program] in our clubs through our own marketing. We already have a fairly large small group training program, so we were able to add in TRX to our current marketing for our other programs.

We implemented TRX TEAM Camps at all our locations by offering TRX “pre-season” sessions throughout the month for new and existing members to try. Pre-season sessions are 50-minute workouts that give members a sample of what they would experience in the 6-week program. It is a full workout that introduces them to the TRX training and shows them what a great workout they can get out of the program. The pre-season workouts have created a feeding system for our 6-week TRX TEAM programs that we launch on a schedule throughout the entire year.

CS: How has TRX TEAM Camps helped you and your business?

TW: TRX TEAM has helped keep our small group programming fresh and exciting for our members. Small group training has grown over the past year, and it has leveled off in 2013. [Members] are drawn to the challenging workout TRX gives them.

CS: What are the greatest benefits from working with and using TRX TEAM Camps?

TW: The TRX brand is well known, which helped us easily launch the program and get buy-in from our staff. Consistency with our programming and experience for the member were two of the most important things TRX TEAM Camps helped us accomplish.

For more information about TRX® TEAM and how it can benefit your club, visit http://www.trxtraining.com/products/trx-premier-team-camps.

Courtesy of Chelsea Piers.

On June 29, 2013, The Sports Center at Chelsea Piers in New York will open its “Mind Body Studio,” which will feature a summer schedule of various “mind body” classes, such as yoga and barre.

All classes will be open to members and non-members, though Sports Center members will be offered an enhanced membership option that provides unlimited access to the Mind Body Studio classes. A single session for both members and non-members will cost $30.

The Mindy Body Studio will feature bamboo flooring, earthy stone accents and a comfortable lounge area, plus locker and changing rooms. Additionally, Chelsea Piers has partnered with Rupa Mehta, the creator of the Nalini Method, which incorporates elements of yoga, Pilates, ballet, aerobics and resistance training, to bring the fun and challenging class to Chelsea Piers’ members.

“Sports Center health club members looking for a yoga or barre studio experience as part of their weekly fitness regimen will no longer need to leave the club,” said Greta Wagner, the general manager of the Sports Center health club, in a press release. “We will be the only health club in New York city that combines an expansive full-service health club with the boutique feel of the Mind Body Studio.”

Blaire Bouwman.

Sunny Pannu.

On June 13, 2013, Anytime Fitness was featured on “Be the Boss Canada,” a show which places two employees head-to-head for an once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Dave Mortensen and Chuck Runyon, the co-founders of Anytime Fitness, interviewed two Canadian Anytime Fitness employees, Blaire Bouwman and Sunny Pannu, for the position of Director of Canadian Support. However, what Blaire and Sunny didn’t know, was that the opportunity to own their very-own Anytime Fitness franchise was also up for grabs.

After facing a series of challenges, including shooting their own member experience video and hosting a marketing event, Pannu was chosen by Mortensen and Runyon as Anytime Fitness’ new Director of Canadian Support. There are currently 70 Anytime Fitness clubs operating in Canada.

Bouwman, although initially disappointed, was happily shocked to discover that at the age of 22, she was the winner of her own Anytime Fitness franchise.

“To some degree, the show was like a bucket-list experience,” said Chuck Runyon, the co-founder and CEO of Anytime Fitness. “We took two people and gave one person a promotion that doubled their pay, and gave another person their own franchise. The ability to do that was exceptional and a raw, emotional experience.”

Anytime Fitness was approached by Corus Entertainment’s W Network and the production team responsible for ‘Undercover Boss Canada’ to appear on the show. Anytime Fitness was asked to submit a pool of candidates it felt were ideal for ‘Be the Boss Canada,’ and the production team chose Bouwman and Pannu. “We had to give up editorial control as to who was chosen,” said Runyon.

According to Runyon, Pannu will begin training as the Director of Canadian Support at the end of this month, and Bouwman’s Anytime Fitness franchise is set to open its doors within the next 60 days.

By Rachel Zabonick

Courtesy of 24 Hour Fitness.

A recent member poll conducted by 24 Hour Fitness revealed that its members found both mental and physical health benefits from participating in group exercise classes.

More than 500 members completed the poll, which reported that physical benefits of Group X included increased energy, enhanced muscle tone and improved endurance. According to the poll, mental benefits detailed by members included a sense of accomplishment and improved sleeping habits.

According to 24 Fitness, most poll-takers (73 percent) saw these results in less than two months of Group X participation, and 38 percent reported noticing both mental and physical benefits in less than one month. In addition, the poll revealed that nearly half of respondents (49 percent) said they attend classes an average of two to three times per week.

“We are delighted our Group X class participants experience such a wide range of health benefits,” said Mary Pilney, the senior director of group exercise for 24 Hour Fitness. “We work to ensure that every group exercise class is inviting, motivating and delivers results. Our number-one goal is to keep our members engaged and physically active in a fun social environment. We hope the successes reported by our members will encourage others to explore the variety of our Group X classes and improve the quality of their own lives through fitness.”

By Rachel Zabonick