What’s Your Purpose?

Mike Z. Robinson knew he wanted to be a personal trainer when he was 16 years old. From that point, he made it his mission to consume the knowledge he would need to become the kind of professional he dreamed of being. Eventually, in 2010, he opened MZR Fitness in San Luis Obispo, California, where his quest for learning continues to be a cornerstone of his success.

“I wouldn’t be where I am now if I didn’t constantly make every possible effort to educate and challenge myself to become, not only a better fitness professional, but also a better person,” says Robinson.

His efforts have paid off—he was recently named 2015 IDEA Personal Trainer of the Year. And he credits attending educational fitness events—like the IDEA Personal Trainer Institute—with helping him build a solid business and achieve his varied successes.

“IDEA Personal Trainer Institute provides cutting-edge information for fitness pros of all levels [so they can] find the X factors in maximizing the client experience and also growing their career and businesses!” says Robinson.

Do you want to be the best you can be? Join Robinson and hundreds of other passionate personal trainers at the 2016 IDEA Personal Trainer Institute, February 25–28 in Alexandria, Virginia, and April 14–17 in Seattle.

Learn From the Best

Whether your aim is to learn the ins and outs of building a noteworthy online presence, attract a bigger clientele or upgrade your program design skills, this premier fitness event will meet your needs. You’ll have the opportunity to learn trade secrets from more than 45 of the industry’s top minds.

For example, Nick Clayton, MS, MBA, personal training program manager for NSCA, will explain how the 4 P’s—product, price, promotion and place—can ignite a small-group training program. He will provide you with a step-by-step process for generating as much revenue per hour as possible.

Do you have your sights set on developing an online business? Vito La Fata, founder of Fitness Profit Systems, will share how he crafted a business strategy that allowed him to create, leverage and build online courses—and bring in major cash. “This session is all about learning how to make money whether you show up to the office or not,” he explains.

A top struggle facing fitness business owners is time—there doesn’t seem to be enough of it.

“Fitness professionals are doubly impacted due to the nature of their work . . . training clients hour after hour, being away from computers for much of the day, trying to fit their own workouts in, etc.,” says Shannon Fable, director of exercise programming for the Anytime Fitness franchise, and 2013 IDEA Fitness Instructor of the Year.
Fable will explain how she has learned to prioritize and manage her time so that she can accomplish the many tasks she faces on a daily basis. She will show you a “fail-proof system to capture, process and organize your to-do list, tame your email inbox, and streamline your communication to increase productivity in every area of your life.”

Conference Highlights

The IDEA Personal Trainer Institute is an experience that helps attendees learn how to stay ahead of trends; advance their skill sets; get better, faster results with clients; make more money; and become inspiring leaders.

Here are few of this year’s fitness conference highlights:

• Over 100 sessions, with up to 11 in every time block. Choose from in-depth hands-on workshops, groundbreaking lectures and challenging workouts. Sessions are selected and designed to help personal trainers, fitness professionals, owners and managers position themselves on the leading edge in the fast-paced personal training field.
• The chance to earn up to 29 CECs in one weekend.
• Small-sized sessions offering personalized attention. Learn new strategies you can use immediately when you get home. With sessions lasting 2–3 hours, you will have time for more in-depth learning.
• Three preconference workshops to boost your brand and market value. Come early to expand your career with intensive advanced training.
• Networking Happy Hour. Enjoy yourself as you trade stories and ideas with the world’s leading trainers.
• The Sponsor Marketplace. Check out the top trends and equipment, and take advantage of special discounted prices.
• Opening Session: “Set Your Career on Fire!” Listen and learn as Trina Gray, owner of the Bay Athletic Club in Alpena, Michigan, moderates a panel discussion featuring industry leaders Shannon Fable, Brent Gallagher, MSS, Brett Klika and Ashley Selman. These successful veterans will offer tips on opening a new facility, developing a successful team, writing a book and more. They’ll share insider secrets, mistakes they’ve made and predictions for the future.

Top-Notch Content

The biggest opportunities in personal training are all covered on the extensive education curriculum, which is geared to help trainers gain more skills, clients and profits.
Check out some of the sessions you’ll find on this year’s fitness conference program:

• Straight Tech Talk for Fit Pros
• Explode Your Sales to Record Levels
• Create Lasting Client Relationships
• Optimizing Multiple Streams of Revenue
• Marketing to Attract All the Clients You’ll Ever Need
• The Six Pillars of the Millionaire Mindset
• Set Clients Up for Success From Day One
• Building Your Dream Facility
• Execute an Impactful Social Media Strategy to Grow Your Business

For a full list of sessions, visit www.ideafit.com/fitness-conferences/idea-personal-trainer-institute-east or www.ideafit.com/fitness-conferences/idea-personal-trainer-institute-west.

Photograph by Len Spoden.