Patricia Ryan, MS
Article Archive
Since 88% of the businesses included in the 2005 IDEA Fitness Programs & Equipment Survey offer personal training, it’s no surprise that trainers appear in virtually all facilities. Personal training businesses have the highest volume of sessions, running neck and neck with health clubs.
A few trainers conduct most of the sessions, particularly in personal training busin…
IDEA Survey
By Patricia Ryan, MS
Personal Training
When it comes to the number of trainers you have and the quantity of sessions they conduct, how does your facility stack up to others? Since 88% of the businesses included in the 2005 IDEA Fitness Programs & Equipment Survey offer personal training, it’s no surprise that trainers appear in virtually all facilities. Personal training businesses ha…
Trainer Survey
By Patricia Ryan, MS
IDEA Data Show Business Is Booming
New data reveal the expansion of training into new skills and new opportunities.
PERSONAL TRAINING GROWS INTO SMALL GROUPS
% of respondents offering program
Total of All Respondents Health Clubs and YMCAs PFTs in Client Homes PFT Gyms
n (number) personal training (one-to-one) personal training (2 clients share) personal trai…
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As fitness businesses hire qualified staff to handle current customers and new exercisers, the good news is that 81% of fitness staff stay with the same business for 1 yea…
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How many staff positions do fitness businesses need to operate successfully? Among those surveyed in the IDEA Fitness Industry Salary Survey 2004, the emphasis is on teaching staff. Personal trainers (78%) and Pilates or yoga teachers (64%) are the job titles respondents report most often, followed by group fitness instructors (58%).
The businesses represent a cross
section of fitness businesses and appear to be smaller facilities. They include
Public-health officials and the press talk about good health and weight loss, but dedicated fitness professionals are doing the work of inspiring people to exercise. Using creative ideas, good science and great personal rapport, the fitness community is purposefully working behind the headlines to change lives.
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One way to reduce the amount of start-up capital required for your new business is to lease your equipment rather than buying it. Many equipment manufacturing firms have leasing programs. You can often purchase the equipment at the end of the lease term for its market value or less.
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SEPTEMBER 2004, VOLUME 1, NUMBER 2
Trainer Survey
By Patricia Ryan
Trends in Personal Training
New survey shows trainers are confident and profession is growing.
About the Respondents
IDEA PFT members who gave us permission to use their e-mail addresses were sent three e-mail invitations to link to a Web-based survey in April 2004. The 157 trainers who responded represent 36% owners, 13% perso…
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Personal training continues to grow, despite the political and economic turmoil of the past few years. Responding to the 2004 IDEA Programs & Equipment Survey, IDEA personal
fitness trainer (PFT) members reported positive directions in their profession.
Highlights of this first-time survey showed trainers are experiencing
Fee-for-service models are preferred by 57% of IDEA members who responded to the 2003 IDEA Fitness Programs & Equipment Survey. Even those who use a membership dues model are charging for some programs.
These were the options offered on the questionnaire:
annual membership dues access all programs offered
annual membership dues plus separate fee for some classes or programs
pay for individual session/class or “package” of sessions or classes
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The IDEA mission to Inspire the World to FitnessTM begins with each of you. Your expertise in integrating equipment and fitness activities is the key to attracting and retaining exercisers.
The more people are attracted to—and retained by—your programs and facilities, the more people will exercise. Their participation helps build your business, which enables you to provide more programs and equipment. That is a circle of fitness worth completing for everyone.
As you read earlier this year in IDEA Health & Fitness Source, wages/ salaries for most fitness staff increased over the past 2 years. A similar comparison for revenues and expenses
indicates that for the fitness business as a whole, and group fitness in particular, revenues have gone down since the year 2000—but so have expenses. On the other hand, both revenues and expenses have increased for the personal training side of the business.
Personal training is a popular activity because it helps clients achieve their goals. Although a new membership package may include several personal training sessions, over time the client pays extra for personal training. Often, businesses split the fee with the trainer.
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It’s no secret that the success of a fitness business relies on the people who work in it. A business with modern equipment, a desirable location and plenty of parking still needs creative and attentive staff who can keep people exercising. The good news is that, even though the overall U.S. economy has been lagging,…
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At the heart of fitness are the programs and leadership that inspire people to exercise. With powerful programs, you can change people’s lives while doing what you love.
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Strategically developing your fitness business is like planning a garden. A gardener has many elements to consider—location, climate, space—and the elements can go together different ways. There are as many “right” ways to put together fitness programs and equipment as there are garden styles. And like a gardener, you have the opportunity to change things around every year.
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Managers and staff in the fitness industry are very resourceful. The quality and quantity of activities they produce show a flair for innovating an apparently unending blend of exercise formats and equipment. This capability is captured in the results of the 2001 IDEA Fitness Programs and Equipment Survey. IDEA members reported on their clients, programs, equipment and work environments, and painted a landscape of tried-and-true activities integrated with new options.
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