Last week I discussed bringing a CrossFit-style course into fitness clubs, and received more feedback than I had in my four-plus years as the editor of Club Solutions Magazine. The vast majority of the comments, if I understood them correctly, pointed at not following certain “unstable” trends in fitness, and that CrossFit wasn’t fit for major demographics.
I’d like to keep this discussion going for at least another week. I believe it is true that CrossFit doesn’t appeal to the masses. However, how many other classes and programs have we seen over the past 10 years become huge draws for the industry, but potentially didn’t seem to appeal to the masses?
I believe the growth of dance exercise classes has been a testament to something growing inside a club that doesn’t necessarily appeal to the masses. In fact, I only know of one person inside my group of friends that participates in Zumba. I believe Zumba is one of the more necessary programs, much like Les Mills, for a club, but it doesn’t necessarily appeal to the masses — it appeals to a certain demographic.
My point in last week’s article wasn’t to say you should explore CrossFit in your club to appeal to everyone. Are there articles that state that CrossFit exercises may not be good for the body? Yes, but I’ve read articles stating that exercise in general may not be good for the body — I’m not going to buy into that, are you?
CrossFit, although may not appeal to the masses, I believe is part of a club’s responsibility to remain in-tune with new trends. For example, bootcamp classes became all the rage over the past four or five years, and clubs brought those methods into their facilities and created a new revenue stream. Additionally, small group training has started including bootcamp routines and high intensity interval training into sessions.
We hire trainers based on certain certifications that appeal to different demographics or exercise styles. What would be different about bringing a trainer into the club that had experience with CrossFit? No, not every member is going to want to participate. However, for those members that are into following trends, they will be able to follow a trend, with your trainer, inside your club.
Maybe I’m slightly off on my mindset, but I believe if you were looking to retain members, you’d give them opportunities to follow trends, as opposed to going elsewhere. Now, I don’t believe that following certain trends like CrossFit will work for all clubs, but if your demographic searches for those types of exercise routines, I believe you have to ask yourself what’s holding you back?
Let me know what your train of thought is on bringing CrossFit-style classes into your club. Why do you believe it’s not important to follow trends? If the trend continued to last for a certain amount of years, would you then decide to bring it into your club? Comment below, or send me e-mails. I want to know what your thoughts are on this topic. Lets keep the discussion going.
Tyler Montgomery is the editor of Club Solutions Magazine. Contact him at tyler@clubsolutionsmagazine.com.
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Rachel Zabonick-Chonko is the editor-in-chief of Club Solutions Magazine. She can be reached at rachel@peakemedia.com.
