Run a Profitable Gym

We all know sleep is important, and if you're a fitness trainer, you've probably told your clients to get more of it. But beyond that, most trainers draw a blank. They might toss a sleep hygiene article at clients and tell them to get a sleep tracker. But how helpful are those things really? And how important is it to coach sleep when you've got big fish like exercise and nutrition to fry? Nick Lambe founded The Online Sleep Coach to address those questions and teach trainers what they need to know about sleep, how to teach it to their clients, and how to build systems around sleep coaching. Links:The Sleep Coach Course@theonlinesleepcoachGym Owners UnitedTimeline:3:36 – Coaching sleep: The void in the fitness industry.4:59 – Where does sleep rank in the hierarchy? 9:46 – Why coaches don’t talk about sleep enough.13:07 – The oversimplification problem.16:41 – How to implement sleep into a coaching practice. 21:46 – Getting clients to buy in.25:25 – Sleep trackers: Yea or nay? 35:29 – Helping trainers systematize sleep coaching.

You wouldn't go to the doctor and expect to have to choose your own medication and dosage, right? So why are you leaving the same decision in the hands of your fitness clients? Goal reviews are a key element of the prescriptive model of sales, but they're about more than selling. It's your responsibility as a professional coach to check in with your clients, find out what their goals are, and tell them exactly what they need to do to reach them—regardless of whether that means an upsell or not. Two-Brain gyms do goal reviews with their clients three times per year. Here's what they look like and why they're critical for success—for both your clients and your business.Links:Gym Owners UnitedTimeline:00:14 – The prescriptive model. 4:18 – A client’s first 90 days. 5:05 – The first goal review. 6:57 – It’s not about upselling; it’s about providing the solution. 8:01 – The Two-Brain goal-review process.9:23 – The power of celebrating your clients. 

If you're stuck on how to grow your gym, you may be tempted to look at the more successful gym down the street and do what they're doing. Charge what they're charging. Advertise like they're advertising. But the perspective you actually need is that of an outsider—even one as far outside the box as to be outside the fitness industry altogether. There are six key strategies you can use to grow your business, says Chris Cooper, and for each of those strategies, Coop has a recommendation for a great book packed with objective advice from an outside perspective.Links:Profit First for MicrogymsThe E-Myth RevisitedGood to GreatRich Dad, Poor DadNever Lose a Customer AgainHow to Win Friends and Influence PeopleState of the IndustryGym Owners UnitedTimeline:1:05 – CrossFit: founded with an outsider’s perspective. 4:47 – Your method isn’t your business model. 5:51 – “Profit First for Microgyms”6:29 – “The E-Myth Revisited” 7:07 – “Good to Great”7:34 – “Rich Dad, Poor Dad”8:49 – “Never Lose a Customer Again”10:05 – “How to Win Friends and Influence People”10:51 – “State of the Industry”

It's the end of the month, and you've got a little nugget left over. Awesome! You can get that air bike you've been salivating over for so long! But is that really the best use for the extra cash? In this episode of Two-Brain Radio, Chris Cooper explains the difference between expenses and investments and how to spend money in ways that will actually give you a measurable return.Links:Gym Owners UnitedTimeline:1:52 – Expenses vs. investments. 4:47 – Drawing a clear path from money spent to ROI.

Dane McCarthy owns West Village Athletic in New York City. He signed up for mentorship with Two-Brain Business only looking for some casual tidbits and content suggestions.What he got was a mentor dedicated to helping him overhaul his business—and 80 new clients in the first 30 days.Here's how.Links:West Village AthleticsGym Owners UnitedTimeline:1:18 – Starting RampUp out of sheer anger.3:34 – Revamping the intake process.4:56 – The power of the sales binder.6:17 – What’s the deal with squads?9:51 – Seeking mentorship.11:14 – When he knew it was working.13:03 – Conquering the fear of the rate increase.15:56 – Making it in Manhattan.18:13 – Getting staff on board with changes.19:36 – Creating a staff playbook.23:37 – Looking to the future: Making more money with more services.28:14 – The cost of mentorship: Is it worth it? 

"Your business will not rise to the level of your marketing. It will fall to the level of your systems." — Chris Cooper No matter how cutting-edge your marketing funnels may be, your business will fall to the level of your systems. There are six systems that you need for your business to thrive — and here's exactly what they look like. Links:Gym Owners UnitedTimeline:2:07 – You need a self-payment system. 3:46 – You need a marketing and sales system.6:36 – Earning more per client.8:38 – Retention.11:49 – Ascending yourself.13:28 – Improving ROI.14:46 – The five audits.

Mike Turnquist has done it all. He's sold million-dollar homes. He's lost more than 100 lb. He's opened a CrossFit gym—and has another one ready to go with an appetite for a third.Before Mike opened his second location, he tripled his monthly revenue at the first. Now, he's ready to launch Gym No. 2 with systems, staff, and even some members ready to go from Day 1. Here's how.Links:Start a GymProfit First for MicrogymsGym Owners UnitedTimeline:3:12 – Helping build a gym—and then buying it.7:38 – Tripling revenue with the Profit First model.8:38 – Eyes on another and biding his time.12:06 – Starting with a blank slate.13:09 – Dividing staff and time between two gyms.15:14 – A jumpstart on membership with the Founders Club.19:59 – From selling million-dollar mansions to hundred-dollar gym memberships.21:46 – The magic of onboarding.24:23 – The power of systems.26:19 – What you need most before opening a second gym.

If you follow Two-Brain Business on social media, YouTube, TwoBrainBusiness.com or even this very podcast, you may have noticed a pattern: We want to make gym owners millionaires. But why? Have we lost sight of what really matters—saving and changing lives through fitness? Absolutely not. It's because of that very mission—your mission—that we want you to make more money. We want your gym to survive for the long haul and support you and your family well into your golden years when you might not want to coach that 4:30-a.m. class or mop the floors at 9 every night. Financial freedom is not greed. It's an opportunity. Links:Gym Owners UnitedTimeline:00:16 – Coop gets you—because he is you. 2:35 – Why Two-Brain Business talks so much about money. 3:40 – How much money you need to make to live the life you want. 5:31 – Why we want you to make more than you need. 7:25 – The mistake gym owners make with their money—and what to do instead. 9:46 – It’s about your future. 

Retention is the core of your business: Keeping clients longer means you're not constantly at the mercy of the marketing flywheel. So what keeps clients around? It's not great programming or coaching. It's not great community. It's not even great results. All those things are necessary, but they're not sufficient to keep clients for the long haul. Here's what is.Links:Gym Owners UnitedTimeline:1:05 – The biggest retention myths.3:23 – Getting to the 50-yard line with the prescriptive model.4:45 – One-on-one onboarding to the 70-yard line.5:56 – The power of the triad.7:33 – How referrals keep both parties longer.9:10 – The final five yards: the finishing touches.9:59 – Consistency over time.

You opened your own gym to get away from red tape and bureaucracy, not to make more rules. So why would you set up a bunch of freedom-limiting systems for your staff? Because systems actually give you more freedom: freedom from decision fatigue, freedom to scale your business, and freedom to focus on the things that really matter. Here's Coop on how building systems for things as minor as the music you play in your gym has the power to make or break your business.Links:Gym Owners UnitedTimeline:1:09 – Systems matter—even if they’re just about the music in your gym.5:12 – Systems prevent decision fatigue.7:13 – Systems scale your business.