Run a Profitable Gym

Gym owners have faced unprecedented levels of stress over the last several weeks and months. But let's be real—as an entrepreneur, you're always stressed. Always checking your email, overthinking things and running yourself ragged.But what you're actually doing is strengthening your amygdala, the part of the brain responsible for the fight-or-flight response. And to keep it from getting out of control, you need to de-train it. Here, Chris Cooper shares proven strategies for reducing stress, rewiring the brain and finding focus.Links:Two-Brain Radio Episode 48: What to Do When It All Goes WrongJoin the Gym Owners United group on FacebookFree ToolsBook a Free CallContact:chris@twobrainbusiness.comTimeline:1:50 – Getting to know the amygdala.7:54 – Schedule screen-free time AND email time.11:33 – Do LSD (long, slow-duration exercise).14:40 – Immerse yourself.16:42 – Keep a mental scoreboard.18:49 – Subtract things from your life instead of adding more.21:29 – Set up a personal board of directors.27:39 – Break problems down into solvable parts.28:58 – Remember: The mistakes you make now will help others in the future.30:37 – Meditate.33:08 – You are not your business.34:41 – There is no ground.

Bob Jennings started CrossFit at 40 years old. Six years later, he became a CrossFit Games athlete, taking 9th in the 45-49-year-old division at the 2019 CrossFit Games.He joined Sean Woodland to talk about what it's like to compete at a later stage in life, how just missing out on a trip to Madison in 2018 motivated him moving forward and why the masters community is so tightly knit.He also shared how the Legends Masters Competition came to be and how he and his co-founders hope to make it the premier competition for masters athletes worldwide.Links:Legends Masters CompetitionJoin the Gym Owners United group on FacebookFree ToolsBook a Free CallContact:Instagram: @thebobjennings; @legendsmasterscompTimeline:1:17 – Sports and fitness before CrossFit.4:21 – Pursuing competition in his forties.9:58 – Missing the 2018 Games by just a few spots.13:45 – Building confidence at Wodapalooza.15:12 – Shutting the brain off during competition.18:12 – On making the Games—and almost declining the invitation.20:58 – His first Games appearance.24:49 – Cancelation on the horizon for 2020.27:49 – The birth and growth of the Legends Competition.36:38 – How to maximize training as a masters athlete.38:18 – Why the masters community is so close.

When Rob Connors closed his gym due to COVID-19 this spring, he shut the doors for good—the physical doors, that is. Signum Fitness and Nutrition has been 100 percent digital since May, and Rob has no plans to go back to bricks and mortar.Rob Connors is a Certified Two-Brain Mentor specializing in personal training and online personal training. When considering the jump to digital, he asked himself two questions: "What's best for me and my family?" and "What's best for my seed clients?"The answer? A higher level of service delivered to a smaller number of niche clients. Rob joined Mike Warkentin of Two-Brain Media to talk about how and why he made the leap and what you need to do if you want to grow an online training business.Links:Signum Fitness and NutritionSignum GolfOnline Trainer Brad Overstreet on How to Deal With the New Fitness WorldJoin the Gym Owners United group on FacebookFree ToolsBook a Free CallContact:rob.connors@twobrainbusiness.comTimeline:1:26 – Why go 100 percent digital?6:42 – Client retention during the transition. 10:14 – The critical step you need to take before you go online.12:50 – Selling to a niche market.17:20 – Pricing: What not to do. 19:09 – Speaking your clients’ language.21:24 – Advertising: Start with affinity marketing.28:29 – Scaling up: How to hire online trainers.31:56 – Building relationships when coaching digitally.38:03 – The three questions Rob asks every new online client.

When was the last time you turned a potential client away? Rob Connors, owner of Signum Fitness and Nutrition, does it on the regular—and he says his business is better for it. Instead of trying to market to the masses, Rob "niched down" to focus on clients whose goals align with the gym's mission. He also created content strategically to improve his business' Google ranking. The result? More seed clients and a stronger business.Listen to his conversation with Chris Cooper to learn how he niched down and why you might want to, also.Links:Signum Fitness and NutritionCOVID-19 ResourcesJoin the Gym Owners United group on FacebookFree ToolsBook a Free CallContact:chris@twobrainbusiness.comTimeline:1:02 – “When you market to everyone, you market to no one.”5:50 – Speaking the audience’s language.7:59 – Establishing authority and building good SEO with content.12:08 – Building an audience for his gym.14:32 – Turing potential clients away.

EDITOR'S NOTE: This episode was recorded before the early June events regarding CrossFit Inc. and the statements made by Greg Glassman.Austin Malleolo is a CrossFit OG.He competed at the CrossFit Games for the first time as an individual in 2010 and took 6th place overall. He made four more appearances as an individual before switching to the team competition in 2017.Austin has also been a fixture on the CrossFit Seminar Staff. Here, he talks with Sean Woodland about how his career as a personal trainer led him to CrossFit, the time he got stranded in China and what possessed him to deadlift 600 lb. and run the Boston Marathon—on the same day.Links:The HAM PlanCOVID-19 ResourcesJoin the Gym Owners United group on FacebookFree ToolsBook a Free CallTimeline:1:19 – On training and coaching during COVID.5:32 – Growing up on the “B” team.6:29 – The first personal trainer to show up for work in a suit.10:40 – Austin’s first Fran.15:24 – Cinch bags and cut-off tees: the 2010 CrossFit Games.19:09 – Joining the Seminar Staff.21:15 – Seminar Staff memories: stranded in China and food poisoning in Korea.23:52 – Competing in the North East.28:58 – Memories of Camp Pendleton.31:38 – On going team.35:40 – The Boston Marathon and the 600-lb. Deadlift.39:20 – The HAM Plan.41:54 – What makes good programming good.43:47 – The perspective-altering effect of parenthood.

Every gym owner worth his or her salt knows you can't out-train a bad diet. So why are you expecting your clients to? A nutrition program will help clients get better results while increasing average revenue per member and member retention. But starting such a program can be confusing—where do you get the expertise? Who should run it? What should you charge for it? Lindsey VanSchoyck is Two-Brain's nutrition business expert, and she's here to unpack all that and more. She spoke with Mike Warkentin about how to launch a nutrition program, how to find the right people to staff it, what to charge, what resources you'll need and how to add revenue with corporate nutrition programs.Links:Precision NutritionWorking Against GravityFree ToolsCOVID-19 ResourcesJoin the Gym Owners United group on FacebookBook a Free CallContact:lindsey.vanschoyck@twobrainbusiness.comTimeline:4:46 – How to start a nutrition program at your gym.6:43 – Do you need a nutrition certification?9:59 – Check your state laws.11:32 – How to set prices for nutrition coaching.16:02 – Assigning clients to staff.19:33 – How much to pay nutrition coaches.21:48 – How to find great nutrition coaches.26:41 – Why you need a nutrition playbook and what should be in it.28:11 – How to find corporate nutrition clients.31:31 – The metrics corporate clients want to see.32:54 – Pricing corporate nutrition programs.35:34 – Converting corporate client employees into ongoing nutrition clients.38:04 – Selling = helping.

Gym owners, you're getting blasted from all sides right now.COVID-19 shuttered your doors. Your clients looked to you for a response to the killing of George Floyd. And just when things seemed like they couldn't get any more complicated, CrossFit Founder and CEO Greg Glassman sent hundreds of affiliate owners packing with his reprehensible comments on Twitter.You feel the weight of a thousand decisions on your shoulders. But you can't take them all on at once. Here's how to focus in the chaos and determine the right next step.Links: Derek Sivers' "Anything You Want"Deaffiliating? Here's What You Need to KnowThe True Costs of Changing Your BrandCOVID-19 ResourcesJoin the Gym Owners United group on FacebookBook a Free CallContact:chris@twobrainbusiness.comTimeline:1:32 – Dealing with the stress of uncertainty.3:40 – To increase your bandwidth, you need to cut some things out.4:43 – When quitting is the right idea.6:04 – The five filters.12:29 – The hierarchy of information.15:08 – Taking action with the right mentor.18:28 – How to avoid the rabbit holes.

EDITOR'S NOTE: This episode was recorded before the early June events regarding CrossFit Inc. and the statements made by Greg Glassman. Known for his bushy brown beard, hairy physique and that one time he got naked at the CrossFit Games, Lucas Parker is one of the biggest fan favorites of the CrossFit Games.After making his Games debut in 2011, Lucas returned for five straight years, earning a career-best finish of 14th in 2015.He shared with Sean Woodland how he developed his love for movement, why he grew his signature beard, the memorable moment when he gave Kristan Clever quite a view during the Camp Pendleton event and what he's learned after all his years of competition.Links:COVID-19 ResourcesJoin the Gym Owners United group on FacebookFree ToolsBook a Free CallContact:Instagram: @toquelucTimeline:2:09 – Falling in love with movement as a kid.5:49 – Lessons learned from coaches and mentors.9:43 – Finding CrossFit via actor Jason Statham (who doesn’t do CrossFit).12:40 – Becoming a competitor.14:44 – Learning to roll with the punches in his Games debut.16:36 – Why the beard?18:05 – Going “full Lucas” at Camp Pendleton.22:44 – Dealing with setbacks in 2013 and 2014.25:34 – Handing the reins to a coach.28:45 – Withdrawing from Regionals in 2017 and taking a year off.32:20 – Returning to a completely altered CrossFit Games season in 2019.36:54 – Becoming “more of a sponge and less of a hammer.”38:14 – Why he trains alone.40:55 – Lessons learned along the CrossFit journey—and what he still wants to learn.

Marketing has always been challenging. Throw in a pandemic, months of closure and murky, varied reopening plans, and it's no wonder gym owners are unsure what to do.Colm O'Reilly is the owner of CrossFit Ireland, a certified Two-Brain mentor and the Two-Brain Marketing team lead. He joined Mike Warkentin to discuss Facebook ads in the post-COVID era: what works, what doesn't and how to decide what to spend on digital ads.Links:The 7 Best Gym Management Software Platforms: Our 2020 ReviewCOVID-19 ResourcesJoin the Gym Owners United group on FacebookBook a Free CallTimeline:4:07 – Is there a magic bullet?6:38 – Why you shouldn’t go for the quick cash grab.11:59 – What to spend on Facebook ads right now.16:40 – Why lead nurture is more important than ever.19:13 – Developing leads post-COVID: Don’t fear the phone.21:41 – The future of Facebook advertising post-COVID.26:27 – When to boost your ad spend.28:12 – What does a good ad look like?33:29 – How the Two-Brain Marketing course can help you get more leads.35:11 – What kinds of pictures work best in ads?36:54 – Lead magnets post-COVID.39:58 – The top metrics you should be tracking.

Have you ever wondered why you haven't been able to achieve your dreams despite how much you want to? Why you just don't do it, even though you know you have the potential?Michael Bernoff calls that your "average"—the force inside you that keeps you from challenging the status quo and actually taking the steps that would bring you success.Michael is the founder of the Human Communications Institute the author of "Average Sucks: Why You Don't Get What You Want (And What to Do About It)." He joined Chris Cooper to talk about how your average is holding you back and how to redefine it.Links:Michael Bernoff and "Average Sucks"COVID-19 ResourcesJoin the Gym Owners United group on FacebookBook a Free CallFree ToolsContact:Instagram: @michael_bernoffChris@twobrainbusiness.comTimeline:1:47 – Defining your average.4:50 – How your average controls you.6:18 – How to improve your average.10:35 – Playing the small game.12:32 – Changing the average with addition, not subtraction.14:13 – Upgrading your identity.17:25 – The comparison trap.23:34 – Dreams vs. wants.29:26 – The step between the average you have and the average you want.34:12 – What COVID-19 can teach you about your business.38:19 – Changing the psychology of expectations.