As a gym owner or manager, you're in charge of hiring personal trainers and checking credentials. You probably already know that a trainer must hold a certification from one of the recognized, accredited fitness organizations in order to be qualified to train individual clients. However, not everyone knows that the entry level personal training certification does not qualify a trainer to teach group fitness classes or give clients detailed nutrition plans. If you're in charge of checking backgrounds and choosing the best candidate among a pool of potential fitness trainers, it's important you're clear on what exactly the various levels [...]
Read more...
The CrossFit program uses some unusual movements that you might not be used to seeing in your gym. One such movement is known as a "thruster". You might still hear non-CrossFitters calling this movement a thruster, but the name was made official by CrossFit in 2001 and has stuck ever since. Unless you're familiar with the CrossFit library of exercises, this particular movement might catch you by surprise. If you see someone on your gym floor doing a fluid combination of a front squat and a push press, you've just come across a thruster in the wild. In fact, outside [...]
Read more...
Previously in the Exercise Series, we have covered major weightlifting movements such as the deadlift and bench press. Today, we'll be looking in detail at a lesser-known exercise known as the kettlebell swing. This is another highly effective and beneficial exercise that requires excellent form to avoid injuries. As a gym owner, you can learn the essentials of this exercise to make sure you're providing your clientele a safe and encouraging environment in which to do their kettlebell swings. Benefits Major proponents of kettlebells are often amazed at how little the average exerciser knows about kettlebell workouts in general. Kettlebells [...]
Read more...
The vast majority of people who join a gym and start a workout plan have some sort of goal in mind. It could be to lose weight, to put on muscle, to get in better cardio shape, to lower blood pressure and improve health markers, or any number of other worthy pursuits. Exercise is obviously an important component of each of those goal plans, but it's only part of the full picture. If you want your gym members to be able to reap the full benefits of a healthy lifestyle, it's always a great idea to keep a trainer on [...]
Read more...
Perhaps the most iconic and famous weightlifting move known to beginners and advanced lifters alike, the bench press is another compound movement you will assuredly see members performing in your gym. As with each other movement in the exercise series, knowing the proper form and equipment your gym patrons will need in order to stay safe and healthy puts you ahead of the game in terms of being able to provide a quality experience for your members. Benefits The bench press is known for sculpting fit and strong upper bodies. Chiseled pectoral muscles and bigger arms are the main draws [...]
Read more...
Overhead presses are one of the six most popular weightlifting exercises that your gym members will likely want to perform during workouts. As such, it's important that you, as a gym owner, understand what proper form looks like and what equipment your patrons will need to stay safe. Benefits The overhead press movement works the arms, shoulders, upper back, and core muscles. Though you may feel like you're doing a solely upper body exercise, you are using the muscles in your back and abdomen to stabilize the heavy weight overhead, which makes the overhead press an excellent choice of exercise [...]
Read more...
In the first exercise series post covering the squat, we discussed a number of reasons you, as a gym owner, should know the major exercises your gym members will be doing. Enforcing higher safety standards, knowing red flags to look out for when you're on the gym floor, and understanding what equipment your gym members will need are all essential things you can handle when you know the basics of each exercise. Today's post will cover another major movement: the deadlift. Benefits of the deadlift A compound movement that uses several major joints and large muscle groups, the deadlift is [...]
Read more...
As a gym owner, you might not feel the need to concern yourself with the actual exercises your clients are performing. After all, if your business is running smoothly and you have properly delegated responsibilities to your trainers and staff, then why would you need to get involved with the fitness side of things? The answer to this question is multifaceted, but it essentially boils down to two reasons:- In order to provide the best service to your members, you must understand what they want from your gym.- In order to keep your members safe and happy, you must understand [...]
Read more...
We all know that daily exercise is important for staying fit. However, there are plenty of excuses that keep many people away from daily workout routines when they are at home or work. One of the best ways to ensure regular workout is being enrolled into a fitness academy where the trainers will make sure you do not skip your fitness regime. This also shows that developing a career as a fitness trainer has a lot of prospect. You can not just get a good financial return, but you will also be able to maintain your health in good state. [...]
Read more...
Gym equipment is the biggest class of capital assets (and possibly of hassles too) you'll have to deal with when you're starting your own gym. Whether you run a small gym or a national franchise location, there are some things that must be addressed with enough quality to make your investment worthwhile. Once you have the equipment in place you need to ensure that it stays in working order for as long as you need it. Gym equipment is the bread and butter of your enterprise. It may be more or less important, depending on the type of gym you [...]
Read more...
Measuring Stimulation There was a lot of information that I left out of the Moscow Subway article because it was getting too long. For example, there was an interesting article on The Daily Beast Blog about how short bursts of vigorous exercise has a more stimulating effect than a cup of coffee. An intense burst of exercise such as dropping for pushups for thirty seconds has been shown to be more effective at generating the kind of focus and mental stamina of which coffee drinkers can only dream. That's all according to the study cited in the Daily Beast article. [...]
Read more...
When it comes to signup time most gym membership prospects want easy choices. Then, of course, there are the more knowledgeable new clients, who know what they want and love to think they got a little something extra in the deal. As the gym owner or manager, you can play your cards close to your chest and make them all happy. This strategy sells more memberships and everybody wins. I'm a huge advocate of making things simple for gym members. When people apply for a fitness club membership they're often looking to you to guide them to the right membership [...]
Read more...
Sudden cardiac arrest is considered to be among the leading causes of death in the Unites States alone, with more than 350,000 deaths every year. According to a new report "[s]udden cardiac arrest survival greater at fitness facilities," people who experience sudden cardiac arrest at "traditional" exercise facility's (like health clubs) have greater chances of survival rate than any other alternative exercise type of venue, simply because of the equipment and resources were more readily available to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) method and use automated external defibrillators (AEDs) in order to gain back the normal heart rate of the victim. [...]
Read more...
Everyone desires to be fit and healthy. But unhealthy eating habits and lack of exercise can make staying fit a few pounds away. Children, too, need to be made aware of the importance of staying fit. Excessive consumption of processed food, sodas loaded with sugar, fast food, fried food, and so on is not only making them unhealthy. The Z Generation faces even greater likelihood of stagnation. Children are more likely to experience less physical activity from a much younger age because of the accessibility of technology. There is no doubt that the Z Generation is at a higher risk [...]
Read more...
I am aware that I am listing 4 accessories and not a more normal "top" number of either 3 or 5 or even 10. I did that for a reason and not to be an overachiever if you think there should only be 3 listed or lazy if you believe that 5 listed accessories would have been a better well rounded number for this article. In a sense, I do agree that 5 sounds better, so I am going to ask you at the end of this article to add in the comment section what the 5th most important gym [...]
Read more...
