WTF Gym Talk

With the recent announcement of Urban MVMNT license model, I felt it was imperative to have my two main co-designers of the brand on the podcast to discuss how we look at operations, programming, marketing, HR + team development, and more. On this episode we have Sarah Isaac (just call her Isaac), my senior ride-or-die to discuss how we view operations within Urban MVMNT at a high level.  Interested in opening up an Urban MVMNT location in your city?  Let us know - remember, we are only offering ONE license PER CITY....so move your ass!  https://www.urbanmvmnt.com/licensing

Brie Hollingsworth is an accredited human within the fitness industry. She was a customer turned instructor at Flywheel (prior to bankruptcy, was one of the largest indoor cycling brands in the world) and quickly ascended to the highest tier possible - Master Instructor and Director of Talent Development.   After achieving what most trainers in the fitness industry aim for - making a salary + benefits, $150 per class taught, seniority and local fitness celebrity status  - she decided she wanted to create something new...she realized she had a unique belief in fitness that needed to be scratched.  This is that story, which ultimately leads to her creation of BaseMethod and I greatly appreciate Brie's willingness to share it. @brie_hollingsworth

In a world where everywhere fuckface-marketing-guru wants to sell you a system or PDF full of ways for you to run your business, I'm here to tell you that it won't work long term. Hell, it probably won't work short term. The only way for your business to grow and thrive is to be able to come up with specific solutions to specific problems.  Not some generalized, spray-and-pray strategy. And that's what today's podcast is all about. 

In this episode I break down one of the three unique workout style we offer at Urban MVMNT - SPRINTS. I talk about the origins of this workout, how we think about the dose response + client experience and more. Remember - Urban MVMNT is now accepting applications for our license model here.

Most people know Kelly Starrett, founder of the The Ready State, for his amazing work in the world of mobility and bringing that entire frontier to the mainstream fitness consumer. ⁠ ⁠ However, my admiration of this individual is centered around the catalyst that really give his empire it's genesis...he committed to 365 daily, unique pieces of content and uploaded to YouTube.⁠ ⁠ He was educational + entertaining.⁠ ⁠ The videos were shit quality, but profound with knowledge on improving human movement.⁠ ⁠ Being a pioneer in fitness-based content creation game allowed him to build an empire with @sfcf, from humble beginning to a successful brick + mortar microgym.⁠ ⁠ However, COVID changed all that.⁠ ⁠ Kelly and I jam on all this in today's episode.  I hope you enjoy the interview. ⁠ Follow The Ready State on IG @thereadystate 

Matt Simpson is an accomplished trainer out of the UK who has garnished the spotlight in primetime documentaries and most recently by the masses of social media after he made a misguided post for his current gym employer.  Matt and I jam on the delicate nature of social media and humans these days, where we get deep into the psychoanalysis of what causes the rage we see on in the comments section far too often.  I'm beyond impressed with how Matt handled this situation and hope you enjoy our jam sesh. @mattsimpt

On this episode, I sit down with Emily Lasko who has lived multiple careers in the fitness industry during her short tenure. She worked her way through the Orangetheory corporate ladder to become a leading Studio Manager, learning the in's & out's of a polished franchise business. Then she would take a marketing & brand developing role with her home gym, CrossFit Grandview, to help them launch their online fitness service. And now her career has taken her to an emerging market, the rise of high-end fitness facilities within residential communities & apartments. Emily is legit AF and I think she's got a ton of experience and insider tips that could help you - Enjoy! You can reach Emily at @coachlasko and www.coachlasko.com

This is a big day for me. I evolved from a successful CrossFit affiliate back in 2017 and created something unique in the market place. Microgym owners have come from all over the world to see how we were taking advantage of the 'white space' in the market and filling a huge gap in between the Orangetheory Fitness models and CrossFit.  Well, we were well underway into our franchise journey with COVID-palooza hit.  So now, we have to pivot. What would have cost you $250,000 previously as a franchisee is now available for a fraction of the cost as a licensee. Head over to our licensing page to learn more and apply.

In this limited series segment of the podcast, I interview former gym owners who have transitioned from owning brick & mortar gyms, to now becoming online digital marketing gurus. You know the ads - the ones where a guy is standing on stage with a golden plaque, with gimmicky ad copy that brags about their ability to give your gym "superpower" and "fill your gym with 349 leads by lunch!". Well, I wanted to know what caused that transition? If you were so successful as a gym owner, why move onto the digital business coach world? What makes your guru skillset any different form the hundreds of other guys in our newsfeed? So please, take these conversations with an open-mind and I just want to give props to guys who accepted my invitation to be on the show and answer the hard questions. 

In the next several months, you'll be hearing a lot of content from me that goes beyond the scope I typically discuss - fitness programming & design. Don't worry, the business content isn't going anywhere - but I'm looking to get the conversation started for a better way for barbell-biased gyms to train their clients, run a group fitness class with high operational capacity and even higher profitability.  Please let me know your thoughts and thank you for listening.