Cultivate connections and build relationships within your professional field. There are enough clients and work to go around for all of us. Consider how collaborating with other professionals in your area or the periphery of your field may make you better at what you do. We are better when working together, and I believe our clients are better off. 

As a Fitness professional working in the collegiate realm, this has been of the utmost importance to me and my career. Collaborating on a team to produce the best product has been a great learning experience. And let’s face it, when we work together, it expounds upon the individual ideas and makes them grander. We also get the opportunity to hear other points of view and fresh ideas.

Being able to draw on the knowledge of others is an immeasurable way to learn and grow in your area of expertise. The benefits of mentoring and being mentored by others are also invaluable. Think back to who has mentored you in your profession. How has that experience shaped your practice today? How can you pour into others to share your knowledge?

As a personal trainer, I try to build relationships with other professionals in my area. There will come a time in your career when a client presents with an issue outside your scope of practice. Having a list of reliable professionals, you can refer for your client is wonderful. This often yields better results for the client than searching the internet for a provider. And yes, I even have relationships with other trainers. Not every trainer is suitable for every person. Here is a list of the health professionals I have built relationships within my area.

• Chiropractors
• Acupuncturist 
• Counselors/therapist
• Group instructors
• Massage therapist
• Orthopedic surgeons
• Personal trainers
• Physical therapist
• Registered Dieticians

It has been one of my greatest privileges to work alongside a Physical therapist (PT) to graduate a client from PT to Personal training. I have learned so much about injuries and rehab and have built trusted relationships that I can refer my clients to, AND I have been referred to by those professionals as well. 

An important caveat; work within your scope of practice. If the opportunity arrives to work with another health professional, obtain the proper RFI or Request For Information. This document says that the client/patient has permitted the two professionals to share information on that person. Abiding by all HIPA laws and regulations, use this information to help bring the client/patient to better whole health. 

I know that what I offer as a personal trainer is not the only thing my clients need in their life for whole-body health. Sometimes possibly combining massage with our workouts is what brings their bodies to better health. Another example is counseling. It may be that the stress in life is making it more difficult for my client to reach their full potential; talk therapy may make the physical workout more productive. 

If we keep in mind, as health professionals, that we are working toward the whole-body health of our clients/patients, this style of practice is not complex. If we are honest, it is the same for us. Complete whole-body health has many different facets.  

Cultivate, Build, and Grow! 

Shannon Briggs is a multi-passionate fitness professional and educator. She brings 30-plus years of experience to a long, fulfilling career in the fitness industry. In the past 13 years at the University of Texas at Austin, Shannon has led continuing education workshops in multiple group fitness formats and topics specific to personal training; she also has written the curriculum and manuals for numerous workshops accredited by the American Council on Exercise (ACE). Shannon is currently a monthly contributor to Campus Rec Magazine for Fitness and Wellness.

To minimize injuries and subsequent negligence claims/lawsuits, exercise professionals need to be aware of their many legal duties and risk management responsibilities. When faced with a negligence lawsuit, courts will determine the standard of care (or duty) of an exercise professional. If the court finds that the exercise professional breached a duty and the breach of duty caused harm to the plaintiff (injured party), the exercise professional (and the professional’s employer) may be found negligent and, thus, liable for the plaintiff’s harm and will need to pay monetary damages. The damages can be in the millions of dollars. For example, the jury awarded the plaintiff $14,500,000 in Vaid v. Equinox (1).

Factors Courts Consider When Determining the Standard of Care

Legal scholar, the late Betty van der Smissen, stated: “if one accepts responsibility for giving leadership to an activity or providing a service, one’s performance is measured against the standard of care of a qualified professional for that situation” (2, p. 40).

A “qualified” professional possesses proper credentials and is competent. A competent exercise professional knows how (has the knowledge and practical skills) to design and deliver a “safe” and “effective” exercise program.

As described by van der Smissen,“for that situation” is determined by reference to the following three factors:

• The Nature of the Activity
• The Type of Participants
• The Environmental Conditions

Nature of the activity

The professional must be aware of the skills and abilities the participant needs to participate “safely” in the activity, e.g., the exercise professional must possess adequate knowledge and skills to lead “reasonably safe” exercise programs.

Example: Exercise professionals that lead exercise programs that are considered “advanced” that can increase the risk of injury (e.g., Olympic lifting, high intensity programs) need to have advanced knowledge and skills necessary to safely lead these types of programs, i.e., they need to be fully informed of precautions that must be taken.

Type of participants

The professional must be aware of individual factors of the participant, e.g., medical conditions that impose increased risks and know how to minimize those risks.

Example:  Exercise professionals that design/deliver exercise programs for individuals with medical conditions (e.g., pregnancy, diabetes, back problems) need to possess credentials and competence in clinical exercise by completing clinical academic coursework/education as well as obtaining clinical certifications and experience (3). From a legal liability perspective, it is essential that exercise professionals fully understand any additional or unique risks the medical conditions(s) might impose and how to minimize those risks.  In Bartlett v. Push to Walk (4), the court stated:

Programs like Push to Walk “May impose particular duties that an ordinary health club would not have…What would constitute…negligence would differ    between an ordinary health club and a facility like Push to Walk” (p. 7).

Environmental conditions

The professional must be aware of any conditions that may increase risks, e.g., weather conditions such as heat/humidity, floor surfaces, exercise equipment, and know how to minimize those risks.

Example: Exercise professionals need to have the necessary knowledge and skills to properly implement important safety precautions to help prevent heat injuries. Knowing and implementing precautions to minimize risks associated with slippery floor surfaces and improper maintenance of equipment is also important.

Case Example: Levy v. Town Sports International, Inc. (5)  

A personal trainer had a client, Levy with known osteoporosis, perform a series of jump repetitions on a BOSU ball. After a few reps, she lost her balance and fell fracturing her wrist that required surgery to have a plate and screws inserted into her wrist. She filed a negligence lawsuit against the defendant facility.* The facility filed a motion for summary judgment (request to dismiss the case). Trial court granted the defendant’s motion, and the plaintiff appealed. Upon the appeal, the appellate court reversed the trial court’s ruling. The court stated that the trainer, knowing Levy had osteoporosis, unreasonably increased the risk of harm to her by having her perform an advanced exercise. The appellate court considered the nature of the activity (jumping repetitions on a BOSU ball) and the type of participant (client with osteoporosis) and determined that the exercise professional did not meet the standard of care for that situation.

*In a negligence lawsuit, in addition to the exercise professional, the fitness facility is also named as a defendant through a legal principle called respondeat superior, in which the employer can be vicariously liable for the negligent acts of its employees.

Conclusion

Meeting the standard of care when prescribing exercise for individuals with medical conditions begins by exercise professionals obtaining the necessary credentials and competence. It was obvious that the trainer in the Levy case did not have the necessary knowledge and skills to prescribe a safe and effective program for a client with osteoporosis. The trainer failed to take important precautions to minimize the risk of a fall.

Join Joann for her webinar on this topic, Exercise Prescriptions: Linking Safety and Business Success

Information provided in this article comes from: Law For Fitness Managers and Exercise — the only comprehensive resource for fitness managers and exercise professional who want to: PROTECT THEMESELVES, THEIR BUSINESS, AND THEIR CLIENTS! For education programs that accompany the text, go to: Educational Courses (fitnesslawacademy.com)

JoAnn M. Eickhoff-Shemek, Ph.D., FACSM, FAWHP, professor emeritus, Exercise Science at the University of South Florida and president of the Fitness Law Academy, LLC, is an internationally known author and speaker. For more than 35 years, her teaching and research have focused on fitness safety, legal liability, and risk management issues. Dr. Eickhoff-Shemek is the lead author of a comprehensive legal/risk management text, Law for Fitness Managers and Exercise Professionals, and is the co-author of another textbook, Rule the Rule of Workplace Wellness Programs, published in 2020 and 2021, respectively.

References

1. Vaid v. Equinox, CV136019426, 2016 LEXIS 828 (Conn. Super. Ct., 2016).
2. Van der Smissen van der Smissen B. Elements of Negligence. In: Cotten DJ, Wolohan JT, eds. Law for Recreation and Sport Managers, 4th Ed. Dubuque, IA: Kendall/Hunt Publishing Company,
3. Warburton DER, Bredin SSD, Charlesworth SA, et al. Evidence-Based Risk Recommendations for Best Practices in the Training of Qualified Exercise Professionals Working with Clinical Populations. Applied Physiology Nutrition and Metabolism 36, S232-S265, 2011.
4. Bartlett v. Push to Walk, 2018 WL 1726262 (2018 U.S. Dist. Ct., D. N.J.).
5. Levy v. Town Sports International, Inc., 101 A.D.3d 519 (2012 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 8543).

Personal Trainers, do you SPOIL your clients?

Do you keep your clients reliant on YOU?

I used to think this was a good practice. I even thought of it as Full-Service Personal Training. But in hindsight, I wasn’t teaching my clients to be responsible for their health and fitness.

I enjoy serving my clients, bringing their dumbbells to them, taking their dumbbells, and re-stacking them. I let my clients get comfortable on the bench before giving them the bells or bar to press. I move Bosu balls and re-adjust TRX straps for my clients constantly. I have spent many hours wiping down equipment for my clients before and after use. I have adjusted weight machine bench heights, placed pins in plates, safety hooks on barbells, and the list goes on and on and on.

I thought this action was being kind and a good service provider. I am willing to bet many of you have also done this with your clients.

Flash forward 30 years in the industry. I am about to have hand surgery on my dominant hand. It is a minor surgery, but surgery non the less, and I will not be able to serve my clients in this same way while I am healing.

I have spent the last month teaching my clients how to load and de-load dumbbells safely from a bench press and how to set each weight machine for their height. Many of my clients didn’t even know how much weight they had been lifting; they just did what I said and trusted me to hand them the proper equipment.

I have spent time explaining the lengths of the TRX straps for different exercises and shown them how to adjust the straps by themselves.

This has been a big lesson for me. Doing everything for our clients only creates a client with a considerable amount of dependency on you, the trainer. This, in turn, produces less self-efficacy outside of your sessions, resulting in less progress towards their fitness and health goals.

As Professional Fitness Trainers, our ultimate goal is for our clients to be healthy. We may not always be there for them. What if you move or they move? What if you have surgery or an accident? Make sure your clients can care for their fitness with knowledge and safety.

Don’t get into the habit of full-service training. If you already have been doing it as I was, begin the de-programming process for your clients. That is the best long-term way to serve them and their health goals.

I know what some of you are thinking – if they can do it all independently, they won’t need us anymore. However, I’m afraid I must disagree. Your job is to program well and continually challenge your clients appropriately for their fitness level and health goals. If you continue to do that while educating them on the how and why of what you are doing, the sky is the limit for their success and yours! Happy Training!

Shannon Briggs is a multi-passionate fitness professional and educator. She brings 30-plus years of experience to a long, fulfilling career in the fitness industry. In the past 13 years at the University of Texas at Austin, Shannon has led continuing education workshops in multiple group fitness formats and topics specific to personal training; she also has written the curriculum and manuals for numerous workshops accredited by the American Council on Exercise (ACE). Shannon is currently a monthly contributor to Campus Rec Magazine for Fitness and Wellness.

Marketing is tough, there’s no question about that. Even all the amazing tools of keywords, Google and Facebook algorithms marketing is still like trying to hit a moving target. What worked once, may not work again. Many don’t do marketing because of the costs of acquiring a new client are viewed as too steep.

Is there a way to market effectively, without spending loads of money, and have the leads be highly qualified and likely to buy from you? Yes.

You need to not only build, but to boost your referral network. A referral network is simply people, companies, practices that you can refer your clients to and visa versa. Building an active referral network is a relatively cheap form of marketing that pays huge dividends because even though these leads are from businesses, and other professionals they are essentially still word of mouth referrals. The only difference is that the lead/new client can be traced back to a specific person/company. After all, I think we all know that word of mouth is king when it comes to marketing and advertising. I’m also sure we all wish we didn’t have to work so hard to get more clients/patients.

Wouldn’t it be nice if we could have a steady stream of referrals coming through your door?

Referrals are some of the best leads you can get because they come in already knowing about you, and you have a built-in credibility because of the referring person’s relationship with that lead. If the lead knows, and trusts the person who did the referring, all you need to do is not mess it up and chances are very high that lead will turn into a client. The trust can’t get much higher than if your referrals come from a medical professional.

There are probably more tips and tricks to boost your referrals from your network. Here are the principles I’ve personally used to over double the amount of referrals coming into our facility. Because these are principles or steps, they can be replicated, regardless of whether or not you have the same business model or niche as I do.

Identify

First, you need to identify who you need to talk to. When it comes to professional referrals I would start with your existing clients and who do they see, or visit. Find out the names of the companies, doctors, practices, etc. where they go.

Another way to boost your network is to identify which clients or situations you will most likely come across in your business/practice that you’ll need to refer out to someone else. If you’ve got someone, that’s great. A good goal to shoot for is at least 3 vetted sources for each referring need. For example, if you need to refer to a rheumatologist, you should strive to get 3 different rheumatologists that you’ve talked to, met, and feel like they would take good care of your patients/clients.

Connect

The second step is to connect with these people/companies. It’s easiest to connect with other professionals with whom you share a client/patient. A great phrase to use if it is a medical provider is that you want to ‘collaborate on care’. Keep in mind you shouldn’t disclose the name of your client/patient without a HIPPA release/disclosure. But you can say that you share a patient with xyz and would like to collaborate on care. Once you start having a dialogue you can get your HIPPA release – that’s not the focus here though. The primary objective is to make a connection and talk.

You can email, call, or drop by their office/facility. You may have to do all of them, and more than once. Remember the squeaky wheel gets the oil.

If after repeated efforts to connect you still haven’t made a connect. Drop it and move to someone else. Not every doctor, therapist, facility will be willing to talk or connect. That’s ok. You want to find ones that care as much about your clients/patients as you do.

Tracking

This is a really important step. I hope it goes without saying that you need to track your results you get with your patients/clients. Objective and subjective measures are important. This is a primary reason we do assessments, right? Get usable data. As you retest, what do you do with that information. You need a place where you can find, see, and have visible the progress your people are making.

We use a software that we can customize all our specific tests/measures. Each time we enter a value it lets us know the percentage improvement from baseline to current, or from the previous measurement to the current. Having hard numbers and percentages look awesome. We also make it a point of writing down all the ‘weekly wins’ our clients have. We write it up on a whiteboard. This lets our prospects that come in see our latest amazing results. It also reinforces a sense of community and connection among our members as they see their achievement and others’ up on the board. It also makes it SUPER easy to know who and what to highlight when it comes to the next step.

The other thing you must be able to track is where your leads, prospects, and clients come from or visit. Most CRM softwares have the ability to track a lead source. If you don’t have one, you can use a simple excel spreadsheet.

Communicate Frequently

Step four is to now communicate frequently with your network. What should you say? Show them the results you are getting with you clients, and specifically the people they’ve referred over to you.

Highlight their progress, and why that’s important to them and to the client. You can let them know what’s going on with your business (new products, recent media coverage, awards, new hours, etc.).

We started sending out a monthly newsletter just to our referral network. I’ve found it keeps us top of mind and tip of tongue. The newsletter is great because there may be people in your network who don’t refer many people to you, but seeing your successes will help them feel like they can, and seeing a specific client story may jog their memory about a specific person they see who they can refer to you.

I also directly email the referral source with an update monthly on all the people they’ve sent or whom we see conjunctively.

Both of these options are designed to build your credibility that they can trust you, and you know what you are talking about. It also opens the door for more communication. I would recommend trying to always make the newsletter and email feel conversational by asking a question. It could be as simple as asking, “is there anything we can do to help you?”. Or if you are communicating directly with one person/facility, ask them about a situation (no personal details) that you’ve just seen or have a question about. Give them your thoughts and ask for theirs.

Think of communication with your referral network like a bridge. The first contact is like a piece of rope spanning a river. With each contact you strengthen that bridge. Soon it becomes a log that can be used to walk across the river. That’s good, it’s a solid way to cross, but only one person can cross at a time. We want to help you get multiple referrals at the same time, or at least more frequently. That comes with more communication and contacts. You want to convert this metaphorical bridge from a log into the Brooklyn bridge. It all happens with the trust and results you communicate frequently to your network.

Repeat

This will be the biggest step that gets glossed over and forgotten. Consistency is key. It’s key in fitness and it’s key with your network. You can’t reach out just once, or send just 2 newsletters. You’ve got to do it consistently. Once your network knows that this is a consistent habit for you, it’s just one more reason to trust you because you are consistent and you follow-up.

The more you repeat the first four steps, the more referrals you will get. It might take a month or three, but you will see an increase in your referrals and an increase in your network as those other companies don’t just talk about you to their patients/clients, but they start talking about you to their network. And before you know it, you are changing the world. Get after it!

Ryan Carver is the owner of Leverage Fitness Solutions where they specialize in helping older adults defy the status quo around aging. Ryan has been training the older adult since 2006. Ryan has published numerous articles on senior fitness and serves on multiple professional boards. He and his wife have 4 kids.

Big data is here to stay within the healthcare profession.  More and more engineers and data programmers are being hired to sift through the myriad of data that consumes the field.  Of concern to executives at the top are certain attributes of healthcare that may need “fixing”.  The aspects of this report are to highlight what are perceived as the biggest concerns in healthcare, and how the wellness industry – if they can stay on track – can supersede all of these types of issues as they transition to the data analytics side of their health offerings.  

#1 – In network utilization.  

This is a very big concern for hospital systems and physician network groups, as patients have a tendency to switch providers if they think they will get better service, better medicine, or better prices.  One of the reasons is that most patient contracts don’t require patients to stay in a network – which puts the responsibility of good care, competitive prices, and follow ups squarely on the doctors.   If patients are unhappy with their doctor or practice for any reason, they can leave.  Now that these organizations are getting bigger and more complex – it’s easier to see why patients may become disgruntled, and try to find a better solution in a private practice, or smaller group or hospital practice. 

From the wellness side – it’s not uncommon for health club members to stay at their club or studio for years.  Prices don’t change that much, and most members have a very personal relationship with their instructors and club owners.  They have group classes, personal exercise programs, child care, plenty of free parking, and clean facilities that provide some of the latest in technology every few years.  So – should healthcare systems look to health clubs to see why people stay in clubs longer?  Perhaps they should be partnering with these health clubs for specific programs for their patients.

#2 – Customer satisfaction.  

This is a priority in most businesses.  Hospitals and physician practices are no exception.  However, most people still associate going to the doctors with being sick.  So there is already an inherent negative connotation to the doctor’s office.  Therefore physicians need more than a lab coat and a prescription to make sure patients are getting what they need.  They need a team-orientated approach that can help with the issue NOW, and use the team to follow up with the patient to make sure the situation and health concerns are taken care of over time.

Again – the health and fitness industry is concerned about customer satisfaction.  With cut-rate gym memberships, and a new club coming into communities almost every month, clubs and owners need to offer clean facilities, professional trainers and instructors, and technologically advanced equipment that doesn’t break down and that is easy for members to take advantage of.  The issue between the two programs – is that although some exercise programs push the body and may be painful – it’s a good pain and the rewards of long term participation should be better health and less risk of using the healthcare system over time.  It’s the old adage of “pay me now, or pay me later” axiom, and more people are willing to put their trust in health clubs – and the risk of injury or illness or death is extremely low compared to even trips to the doctor’s office. 

#3 – Looking at the mounting data to convene the best possible approach to patient care.  

Again – this is a huge concern in healthcare – that doctors can’t read the thousands of new studies that come out in their field each month, so they rely more and more on their clinical experience (which may be a good thing), but they will stick to the tried and true methods they have always been using, and may not prescribe the most effective type of treatment for their patients.  Big data in many instances can do two things – one is look over millions of studies in a particular field, and two – through machine learning, hone in on what may be the best type of treatment plan for a particular patient, based on their age, severity of disease, family history, weight, and other factors.  This is a powerful tool to help doctors prescribe and treat better.

However, it’s still the same paradigm.  They are looking over medical studies, many of which may not be in the best interest of the patient.  One of the most cited studies in medicine came in 2005 when Stanford epidemiologist John Ionnidis reported that the majority of medical research finding are false, because they have inherent bias from their authors, their findings are not statistically significant, they were published by industry officials, and are not relevant, and conclusions may not match the actual results of these very papers.  Ionnidis opened the floodgates for many professionals who have gone after medical research and institutions for publishing false studies.  It is estimated that almost 40% of medical research studies are false, in that their findings do not hold relevance regarding the enhancement of patient care.

In contrast, sports medicine has been methodological in its research for a century – from the basis of treadmill cardiac and performance testing in the 1930s, to the onset of physical activity studies in the 1950s and 60s, to cardiac rehab and exercise safety studies in the 1980s, to the onset of exercise for special population groups in the 1990s.  There are very few reports on sports medicine research fraud, and the foundation of this research usually shows some level of benefit to those who participate.  In almost all cases, no harm is done to subjects while performing these studies.  This has now transitioned into many successful clinical health club programs for persons with cancer (Sunflower Wellness, Cancer Well-fit, Fast Trac Cancer Program), spinal cord injury (Claremont Club), multiple sclerosis, diabetes, hypertension, weight management, bariatric recovery, and medical fitness in general. 

#4 – Cost savings. 

 One of the biggest attributes of big data and population health is to drive policymakers and physicians to deliver the highest quality care at the most competitive prices.  In many opinions, this is a misnomer of sorts, and medicine is continually advancing technology, which is very expensive, and works through a third party reimbursement system — which is many times more expensive than if they offered the service or procedure or product at market value.  Many hospitals are undergoing facelifts (no pun intended) and look more like five-star hotels than medical centers.  All of these amenities cost the patient and insurance pool more money.  This is why healthcare costs usually rise at more than twice the rate of inflation, and have some of the highest costs of any industrialized business model.

As far as health and fitness, the rate of price changes for the average health club has held steady at just below inflation for years.  The prices for café food, personal training, specialty exercise, or apparel has also held steady.  Even with the rush of new technologies for equipment and personal monitoring devices (such as FitBit), prices have remained constant. 

Big data in the health and fitness setting should be concentrated on health outcomes.  There are many software programs in the industry now that look at finances, front desk management, club administration, and human resources.  They do their functions well.

If big data is going to continue to look at all aspects of healthcare, and continue to miss the boat regarding improved patient health and well-being, then no amount of data can help repair the continual dysfunction that exists between an over-burdened and (in many opinions) under caring system, and the continued increase in poor health in the US.  Prescribing more pain meds, vaccines, or antibiotics will not help improve health – and in many cases is making health worse. 

The health and fitness profession is on the mark moving into the realm of special populations at every level.  As the amount of population health and data analytics becomes a more ingrained part of wellness, we will see at many levels how these types of interventions improve health, reduce costs, and vastly improve patient satisfaction and retention to their favorite health club, exercise program, or personal trainer. 

Eric Durak is President of MedHealthFit – a health care education and consulting company in Santa Barbara, CA. A 25 year veteran of the health and fitness industry, he has worked in health clubs, medical research, continuing education, and business development. Among his programs include The Cancer Fit-CARE Program, Exercise Medicine, The Insurance Reimbursement Guide, and Wellness @ Home Series for home care wellness.

References

https://www.optum.com/content/dam/optum3/optum/en/resources/gated/Optum_NYUPN_Topic_Spotlight.pdf

Ionnidis, JPA.  Why most published research findings are false.  2005.  PLoS Medicine.  Aug. 30. Doi: 10.1371/journal.pmed.0020124

In the United States, 11.2 million people were diagnosed with obesity and/or diabetes over the last year.^(1,5) These are primary risk factors leading to stroke and total joint replacements, adding another 8 million people per year.^(6,7) This means that the fitness professional in the post-medical and post-rehabilitation space has more potential clients than they could hope to serve. The question is how to reach them and build a business around these problems.

Personal Trainer and marketer Joe Lemon has some advice.  Two primary problems for trainers trying to innovate this post medical/rehabilitation space are trust and visibility. Both these problems are interrelated and so deserve to be tackled for this space to become profitable.

In the United States, less than 50% of physicians suggest patients go to a gym. Even less (20%) recommend a personal trainer.⁽⁴⁾ But the question is, why? First, we found a general ignorance of what personal trainers can do for their clients and, secondarily, if personal training was a safe, effective modality. This is partially due to a lack of standardization in personal training education and regulation across the USA. In addition, until recently, there has been a lack of specific training for fitness professionals in the medical fitness space that can be understood and trusted.

Even for those exceptional personal trainers who do provide the training to address specific clients’ post-medical/rehabilitation needs, there is a gap between their skills and clinicians’ knowledge that they exist. Joe has practical advice to close that gap and create a bridge to clinicians.

First, identify who these clinicians are. Sports medicine, orthopedic surgeons, neurologists, bariatric doctors and primary care physicians are all viable referral sources. Network and get to know someone who can make personal introductions for you directly to the doctor or their assistant or office manager, who is often the gatekeeper of the practice. Once you get the opportunity to talk to them, give them tangible, always take a pamphlet explaining your qualifications, education, and process. Providing them with hard copy printouts from the MedFit websites (medfitnetwork.org and medfitclassroom.org) are the most accessible sources of information you could use. And always, leave them with the material they can give their patients that link directly back to you in the form of business cards and pamphlets/brochures.

Lastly, get out and talk about what you do. Remember, communication is 7% what you say where 38% how you speak it, and 55% your body language.⁽³⁾ Getting in front of people these days is easier now than ever. Schedule talks at gyms and coffeehouses, video it, and post it online. The more you talk passionately about what you love doing, the better. Connect with your potential client recruit them to be your spokesperson to their physician for you.

Dr. Grove Higgins is a chiropractor, rehabilitationist, soft tissue injury expert, researcher, anatomy instructor, biomechanist, human performance expert, speaker, and corporate health consultant. In 2015, Dr. Higgins cofounded Neuroathlete with Coach Patrick Marques (LTC, US Army Ret.) and Peter Hoversten. Neuroathlete’s goal is to more broadly deliver neurological training to a global audience.

References

1. (CDC), U. D. (2021). 2020, National Diabetes Statistics Report. 
2. Lemon, J. (2021). Business Development, Market Research, & Strategic Partnerships. (G. Higgins, Interviewer)
3. Michail, J. (2020, 8 24). Strong Nonverbal Skills Matter Now More Than Ever In The “New Normal”. Retrieved from Forbes: https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescoachescouncil/2020/08/24/strong-nonverbal-skills-matter-now-more-than-ever-in-this-new-normal
4. Pojednic, R., Bantham, A., Arnstein, F., Kennedy, M., & Phillips, E. (2018). Bridging the gap between clinicians and fitness professional: a challeng to implimenting exercise as medicine. BMJ Open Sport & Exercise Medicine, 1-5.
5. CDC f. (2021, 3 1). National Center for Health Statistics. Retrieved from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/hus/contents2019.htm#Table-021
6. Springer, B. D. (2021). Highlights of the 2020 American Joint Replacement Registry Annual Report. Arthroplasty Today, 9, 141-142.
7. Stroke. (2021, 5 25). Retrieved from Center for Disease Control and Prevention: https://www.cdc.gov/stroke/facts.htm

If you make either of these two big fitness marketing mistakes post-pandemic, it will cost you. You’re going to make them totally unintentionally. I mean of course, right? Why would anyone intentionally make a marketing mistake?

Beyond that, though you may think that yes, you’ve got these two bases covered and realize after reading this and listening to my podcast on the topic, no you don’t.

One way you know is you’re attracting the wrong kind of people.

Another way is you’re not getting any engagement on your social or your content marketing. 

If you confuse, you lose.

• What are you sharing in your social media posts?
• Do people understand what you do, why you do it?
• Are you establishing yourself as a go-to authority in the area where you want people to find you for programs, products, and services?

Analyze:

• The name of your social media profile
• The posts you create (one by one because that’s how they see them)
• The way you’ve positioned yourself

And then apply this to the following to avoid the two biggest fitness marketing mistakes

Big Fitness Marketing Mistake #1: No Specific Audience

The other day I reviewed a business website and social media platforms as part of a social media audit. It was hard to know who the ideal customer was and if I couldn’t tell as a fitness marketer looking for it, how could anyone?

Just because you’re focused on a certain age and gender (demographic), it doesn’t mean that everyone in that demographic wants the same thing.

First, there’s your niche. Are you about food, exercise, mindset, hormones, weight loss? What is your specific niche?

But that’s not even enough.

Here’s an example

Take women in menopause. Many are married, but an almost equal number are single. Are you talking about dating? About traveling alone? Or about family vacations? About drinking wines and trips to Napa? Some (I’m one) wouldn’t enjoy that at all because they rarely, and then barely, drink.

Some women have a conservative view of menopause, what’s happening and possible, while others are thinking about doing triathlons after retirement. Who are you talking to?

Women in perimenopause are more likely to have kids at home full-time jobs, and a unique set of problems, compared to women just post-menopause. There’s a subset of women in post-menopause who did have children later… so who are you talking to? Define it very specifically. And realize, they need to feel “like you.” If your images, videos and copy doesn’t resonate with who they are or want to be, you miss the opportunity to help women looking for you.

Find out the #2 biggest fitness marketing mistake and listen to Debra’s podcast on this topic… visit Debra’s blog, Fitness Marketing Mastery

Debra Atkinson is the #youstillgotitgirl who is flipping 50 and changing the way thousands of women think about their second half. She’s the host of the Flipping 50 TV Show and the Flipping 50 podcast. As a master personal trainer, strength and wellness coach with over 30 years fitness industry experience, she works with women who are pro-aging with vitality and energy. She serves on the MedFit Education Foundation Advisory Board, is an international fitness presenter, and author of hundreds of articles and multiple books. Visit her website, flippingfifty.com