MedFit Classroom (through the MedFit Education Foundation) continues to expand education and specializations for Fitness professionals. However, simply earning a certification does not mean clients will flock to you, or that doctors/therapists will refer their post-medical/rehabilitation patients to you. Most trainers today working with these types of clients did not look for these clients and fewer were referred to them by a medical professional.

However, many trainers fall in love working with these clients, whether they are a stroke survivor, had a knee replacement, or other physical complications. So, how do you find and attract new clients in this growing niche? 

Researching Medical Fitness

I interviewed Brian White, an MBA student at the University of Colorado, a transitioning military veteran, and an expert in messaging and analysis of popular media. After studying the post-medical rehabilitation and personal training industry, Brian had several takeaways focusing on education — of both the medical community and the fitness community, standards, and networking.

Brian observed that in a survey of physicians, only “17% of the respondents have a formal alliance for stimulating activity with an exercise provider.” (Leemrijse, 2015)  In other words, few physicians have a professional relationship with a personal trainer who they would then refer patients to, after completing physical therapy.  Additionally, the main reason for low collaboration was that they did not know any qualified fitness professionals and so could not inform their patients of exercise options, outside of the medical system.

The global problem of standards

Further, lack of collaboration between medical providers and fitness professionals was not only a problem of ignorance but also a lack of trust for an industry that has few standards. According to Brian’s research, there is a general lack of credibility “of the medical fitness professionals within the healthcare community” and a need for “better prepare[d] medical fitness professionals for practical application, further education, [and] potential elevating to graduate-level coursework [which] should be implemented to support prevalent chronic conditions.” (White, 2021)

Anyone can use the term personal trainer, legally — whether certified or not. A 2017 fitlegally.com article exposed how in the USA, regulation of the industry is state-by-state and no federal statute concerning who can be a personal trainer, what their education must be, or how they may practice. In Australia, only validly certified personal trainers can get mandated insurance. Brazil demands a bachelor’s minimum education. (Rabe, 2017)

The point is this: medical fitness professionals must be educated on the fitness needs of their clients.  Courses provided by MedFit help ensure that personal trainers have the specialized knowledge to make a world of difference for a client such as a stroke survivor, after physical therapy. Beyond that, medical professionals, as well as potential clients, must have a dependable source of knowledgeable, experienced fitness professionals who can be trusted to address the needs of the client.  Long term, legislation along with education from organizations like MedFit could help to build awareness, validation, and could help to provide a pool of knowledgeable and trustworthy fitness professionals.

MedFit Education Foundation standing in the breach

In the meantime, professional organizations can bridge the gap for personal trainers. MedFit’s board of directors has stacked their medical and education advisory boards with highly qualified experts. Thus, fitness professionals can be confident they are receiving courses with quality content and validation from recognized medical and fitness professionals.  

Furthermore, MedFit is advocating for fitness professionals by actively networking with the medical community and sharing with them information about the organization’s courses and the caliber of professionals taking their courses. MedFit is effectively building the post-medical fitness market.

Building medical fitness

Strategy #1
Besides online marketing, Brian has advice on how to build your own medical fitness network and allow clients to find you.  

Reaching out to introduce yourself to medical/rehabilitation providers is tried and true. You might ask if you could drop a packet off describing your services. You could ask if they would let you put your brochures in their waiting room or add your cards to their business cardholder. A simple one-page flyer about the specific disorder you are educated to help with (i.e. MedFit’s Stroke Recovery Fitness Specialist), will help them have confidence in you and be a ready resource at their fingertips. Speaking directly to a Physical Therapist is likely to be even more successful. 

If you choose the cold outreach method be prepared to face a lot of rejection. 

Strategy #2
Patient support groups and organizations also offer wonderful contacts. In Colorado, for example, there is a Stroke Advisory Board and dozens of support groups that can be found online (https://www.strokecolorado.org/co-stroke-support-group-list). These lists represent opportunities to speak directly with stroke survivors and allied health professionals, who have direct contact with both providers and clients.

Strategy #3
The personal trainer turned marketing guru, Joe Lemon, advises learning about content-based networking. This technique is creating mutual content with people who can influence your market, like potential referring doctors and therapists. This is proving to be one of the most effective strategies for personal trainers to build trust and community with medical professionals. In fact, this can help the private fitness professional boost awareness for their business and drive down client acquisition costs. By collaborating on content, build strategic partnerships with a win-win mindset and allows personal trainers to demonstrate their level of fitness expertise and commitment to their craft.  (Lemon, 2021)

Keep in mind, your network cannot grow unless someone acts—take action and do not overthink it.  

In conclusion, working with special populations like stroke survivors or joint replacement clients is extremely rewarding and very necessary.  Work is still needed to bring awareness to the availability of quality, safe, and effective training provided by educated professionals.  But the payoff for both fitness specialists and clients is great and with MedFit support and education, the possibilities are exciting.  Together, we can change the face of post-medical fitness.

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

Leemrijse, C. d. (2015). Collaboration of general practitioners and exercise providers in promotion of physical activity, a written survey among general practitioners. BMC Family Practice, 16(1), p1-9.

Lemon, J. (2021, April 5). https://anchor.fm/sales. (G. Higgins, Interviewer)

Rabe, A. (2017, September 5). Do fitness professionals legally need to be certified? (US, Australia, Canada, UK & Brazil). Retrieved from Fit Legally: https://fitlegally.com/2332-2/

White, B. (2021, 4 2). “Untitled”. Monument, CO, USA: Brian White.

Clients and Patients come to us because they want something to change about their life. That change could be the removal of physical pain, dealing with emotional distress, changing their nutrition in order to lose weight, or decrease the effect of diagnosed disease on their overall quality of life.

Interestingly, one’s desire to change doesn’t always lead to change. Change is abstract in that the new state of being that is desired doesn’t exist yet. Change is about the future. One’s future is connected to the present, which is the result of the past. Newton’s Laws of Motion give us a reference for thinking about change. In general, a thing will stay the same unless a force or energy acts on that thing. Therefore, change requires energy – and often sacrifice. Change can seem overwhelming and there may be fear of what might happen when change occurs. Old habits are hard to break. Even bad ones.

How can a practitioner from any discipline assist their client or patient to move from wanting to change to actually changing?

Motivational Interviewing (MI) is a communication strategy with tactical aspects designed to help the practitioner encourage the adoption of change behaviors. Change is about learning – learning not just a new way of thinking, but a new way of behaving.

Here is the most current definition:

“MI is a collaborative, goal-oriented style of communication with particular attention to the language of change. It is designed to strengthen personal motivation for and commitment to a specific goal by eliciting and exploring the person’s own reasons for change within an atmosphere of acceptance and compassion.”  (Miller & Rollnick, 2013, p. 29).

What is the language of change?

Language (n.) – the principal method of human communication, consisting of words used in a structured and conventional way and conveyed by speech, writing, or gesture. (Oxford Language Dictionary)

Change (n.) – the act, process, or result of making different. (Merriam-Webster Dictionary)

Using the language of change can be as simple as speaking the synonyms for the word change within the questions and statements constructed in a conversation with your client or patient: alteration, difference, modification, redoing, refashioning, remaking, remodeling, revamping, review, revise, revision, reworking, variation

The definition of language includes the use of gestures as a part of the communication process.

Physical gestures reflect ideas that the speaker has about the problem, often ideas that are not found in that speaker’s talk.

“Gesture is an act of the body, and the body has been claimed to play a central role in cognition.” (e.g., Barsalou, 1999, Glenberg, 1997, Wilson, 2002, Zwaan, 1999).

So what part of our physical body can be used to create and display physical gestures?

The face, the eyes, the hands, the trunk, just about any part of your body can be employed.

What physical gestures would be useful to employ when conducting a motivational interview?

Find Out More…

Learn more about Motivational Interviewing! Join Greg Mack for his webinar, Motivational Interviewing to Drive Sustainable Behavior Change. Register Now »

Greg Mack is a gold-certified ACE Medical Exercise Specialist and an ACE Certified Personal Trainer. He is the founder and CEO of the corporation Fitness Opportunities. Inc. dba as Physicians Fitness and Exercise Professional Education. He is also a founding partner in the Muscle System Consortia. Greg has operated out of chiropractic clinics, outpatient physical therapy clinics, a community hospital, large gyms and health clubs, as well operating private studios. His experience in working in such diverse venues enhanced his awareness of the wide gulf that exists between the medical community and fitness facilities, particularly for those individuals trying to recover from, and manage, a diagnosed disease. 

You and your business are probably spending too much time competing in the “red ocean”.

You need to get out of the red ocean and head to safer waters.

I know what you are thinking… What is a red ocean vs. a blue ocean?

This concept comes from the book, Blue Ocean Strategy, and it is important to understand for career growth.

“Red oceans represent all the industries in existence today. This is the known market space.”

This is the market for generally healthy, “fit” clients.

“As the market space gets crowded, prospects for profits and growth are reduced. Products become commodities, and cutthroat competition turns the red ocean bloody.”

Sound familiar in your journey to find clients?

“Blue oceans, in contrast, are defined by untapped market space, demand creation, and the opportunity for highly profitable growth.”

“In blue oceans, competition is irrelevant because the rules of the game are waiting to be set.”

So what does this mean for you?

The red ocean in health and fitness is going after the 15% of the population who is generally healthy and looking for fitness solutions to get fit or lose some weight.

This 15% of the population is looking for great glutes and great abs and benefit from any basic fitness program…

…AND EVERY SINGLE FITNESS BUSINESS IS MARKETING TO THEM.

Hence, it’s the red ocean.

So, What’s the Blue Ocean?

The blue ocean, on the other hand, consists of the millions of people with existing conditions like arthritis, Parkinson’s, or Multiple Sclerosis, for whom the great glutes and abs programs aren’t appropriate

This group is not currently being bombarded with marketing messages about fitness.

These people are in need of fitness services delivered by a specialized professional (which you can become) who understands their condition AND knows how to make programs specific to their needs.

It’s time to start swimming in the blue ocean and get away the “cutthroat competition that turns the red ocean bloody.”

Learn more about the “blue ocean” by watching this free presentation from MedFit Classroom, The New Blue Ocean: Capitalizing on the Opportune Space Between Fitness and Medicine.  Industry veteran Phil Kaplan discusses this important topic and how you’ll benefit from targeting this untapped market.

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