Health For All! Celebrate World Health Day

April 7th is World Health Day and a wonderful opportunity for fitness leaders to tackle health challenges by making our services even more accessible! Let’s celebrate the World Health Organization’s 75th birthday with this year’s theme, HEALTH FOR ALL!  What can you do as a health and fitness leader to make health more accessible? I’d love to hear your ideas! Here are a few to help get us started. Bring a friend for free Host a special event and have your clients bring their loves ones for free. Focus on accessibility by making the program/exercises SUPER simple. Make it about simply

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They Told Me $500 Was Cheap for a Class

Have you experienced the “oh geez” feeling after being told by a potential client that your rates are too low? It happened to me a couple of weeks ago. I pride myself on pricing my services based on my confidence in my value, and I coach my career clients to do the same. Imagine my surprise when I quoted a corporate virtual Chair Yoga at $500 and my client replied, “wow, that’s cheap!”.  My first reaction after getting off the phone was happy that I landed the gig, then “wait…what??.  After some reflection, I came to three realizations I’m happy to

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Inactivity Costs $5.2 Billion to the Canadian Healthcare System

Fitness professionals deserve to feel proud of our impact on the health of our communities. We also need to consider if changes in our programming could make our services so much more accessible.  The data now available is awe-inspiring: physical activity provided Canada $23.4 billion in health savings. We need to take a moment to acknowledge how our industry’s services directly impact preventative health care, in particular, non-communicable diseases in both physical and mental heath.  Feel free to geek out on the data compiled by the Fitness Industry Council of Canada (FIC) and share this document! FIC aims to work with

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What is a Mental Health Gym?

Less daylight, big credit card bills arriving, increased workload thanks to January fitness goals, etc. No wonder heading back to work after the December holiday season has us feeling stressed out! Close to 80% of workers in North America feel stress on the job, and nearly half say they need help in learning how to manage stress.   Are mental health workouts the answer? Mental health gyms or mental fitness studios have been popping up to meet the demand for mental health support. Check out this article to read about what services they offer and what qualifications their professionals have.  We

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Their Hourly Rate Will Never Match Your Value

Should you work for a gym or studio where the hourly rate proposed or even the top of their wage band will never match your value? Maybe, but only if you’re taking a fresh look at compensation and think beyond the hourly rate.  It might be the gym you’ve worked at for a while or a new facility that’s looking for staff; if you feel connected to their brand, culture, and member experience it might be worth discussing future earnings that get you closer to the compensation you deserve.  NEGOTIATION TIP #2 Take a fresh look at compensation: Consider other means

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Great Holiday Gifts For Fitness Pros: Part 2

To my fellow fit pros: feel free to share this blog and list with your loved ones  Two themes will be omnipresent in 2023. Last week, I shared my ideas for growth gifts. Now, let’s talk about recovery. As we spread cheer this holiday season, let’s spoil ourselves and our colleagues while creating a wonderfully successful 2023!  Recovery As the biggest trend in wellness and many fitness clubs setting up recovery studios in their facilities, we owe it to ourselves to focus on self-care and invest in recovery.  Here are some “Santa’s List” suggestions for recovery Gift certificates for “Nordic spas”

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Great Holiday Gifts for Fitness Pros: Part 1

To my fellow fit pros: feel free to share this blog and list with your loved ones There are two themes that will be omnipresent in 2023 now that we’ve adapted and relaunched our services toward sustainable careers and businesses. What are they? Keep reading to find out… As fitness professionals, we are dedicated to our clients, but sometimes neglect our own health and wellness needs.  Let’s reward the resilience, adaptability, and compassion we’ve provided consistently this year with some growth and recovery.  As we spread cheer this holiday season, let’s spoil ourselves and our colleagues while setting up a wonderfully

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They Don’t Pay Enough But You Still Want to Work There?!

The labor crisis and inflation rates, combined with the fact that many fitness professionals are re-evaluating their worth, have created a chasm between the rates of pay offered by gyms and what you want to make. How can we get closer to a salary you and your employer can agree on?  It might be the gym you’ve worked at for a while or a new facility that’s looking for staff; if you feel connected to their brand, culture, and member experience, it might be worth discussing future earnings that get you closer to the rate of pay you deserve.  Fitness job

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Global Report on Physical Activity: Are We Hitting Targets? 

The World Health Organization released its inaugural Global status report on physical activity to chart the progress across the world in efforts to achieve their global target of a 15% relative reduction in the prevalence of physical inactivity by 2030. Unfortunately, the report shows that there is much more work to be done and that in some cases, countries have fallen behind.  As citizens we should all be concerned because “A consequence of this “inaction” is that already stretched health systems are burdened with preventable disease today and even more so in the future, and communities fail to benefit from the wider

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Stop Using This Word with Your Clients

It’s used commonly by some group fitness instructors and small group coaches, but it now seems to have made its way into all forms of cueing and coaching as well as posts on social media:  I can appreciate the fact that we’re using it to convey simplicity, but I invite you to remove the following expressions from your cueing and coaching: “Just use your obliques to power up this exercise.”  “To use your breath more mindfully, just inhale for a count of 3 and exhale for a count of 6.” “Just place your feet wider and you’ll gain speed.”   Two

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 Mind-Blowing Data About Fitness

Are you sitting down fitfam? A data-driven report attributes $23.4 billion as the total value of health savings generated by sport and physical activity in Canada in 2019, preventing over 2.2 million cases across a range of health conditions. $6.19 billion of that is attributed directly to the activity undertaken in health and fitness clubs. That’s BILLION, with a B! That’s YOUR contribution to the health-care system in Canada. The Fitness Industry Council of Canada is making this report available to us all and utilizing its data in government lobbying efforts. You can read more and download your copy of the

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3 Ways to Build Personal Trainer Careers That Last 

We have a personal trainer attrition problem in fitness. Most trainers leave the industry within less than 2 years. Too many certifications don’t prepare trainers for the real day-to-day work involved with being a successful trainer. It goes well beyond movement mechanics. Congrats if you’ve last longer than 2 years! It means you understood what longevity in a fitness career involves: The understanding that we must constantly sell the benefits of an active lifestyle. I get worried when I speak with graduating students from fitness certification, diploma, and degree programs and most of them tell me they really want to work

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The Results Are In: Inactivity is Costly and Exercise Means Big Savings

The proof we needed yet knew all along! Our health and fitness industry and services were “proven to have a profound economic and social impact” on countries worldwide. The Fitness Industry Council of Canada is sharing the results of a global report on the costs related to inactivity. As Vice President of FIC, I’m incredibly proud to provide the findings to you! We will continue to lobby federal and provincial governments with more substantiated proof of our impact on policies. To see how in Canada, a per capita investment of $2000 in activity would deliver a return on investment within only

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Major Labor Shortage in Fitness: What it Means for You

Never before has our industry seen such a significant shortage in labor; recruiting the right talent to fill positions is the biggest and most immediate challenge clubs and studios are facing as we head towards our “back to school” season.  What does this mean for qualified fitness leaders?  You hold more power than ever before related to the workplace culture you choose, the clients you want to serve, your compensation, and the success of your career.  Here are ten questions to ensure you’re setting yourself up from a position of confidence in choosing an employer:  Your Potential Compensation This goes well

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4 Ways to Make More Money as a Group Fitness Instructor

Enough with the nickel and diming of group fitness! We were making $25/class when I first started 25 years ago so I’m tired of seeing posts with fellow instructors asking for “going rates” and watching comment after comment with abysmal wages. This is only going to change if we ALL WORK TOGETHER at shifting the value of what we offer by getting confident as employees and entrepreneurs. The industry isn’t going to take group fitness seriously unless we get serious about the qualifications, capabilities, and worth related to group fitness. There is lots of work to do, here’s a start: STOP

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The Summer that Sets You Up for Staying Power

Real talk: the fitness industry must have a solid Fall season, or we will see even more closures. And let’s not kid ourselves; when gyms close and fitness professionals leave the industry, we ALL lose. It doesn’t mean the competition gets eliminated, it means the public loses trust in us as a whole. A thriving industry leads to confidence, and an improvement in our reputation.  In other words, the success of one means the success of us all. So what are you doing this summer while many clients are focused on leisure, travel, and soaking in the sun? Here are ways to

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What Sought-After Fitness Pros Know

Are you hoping for longevity in your career? Being the “hot new instructor” or “trainer with huge influence and reach” is an excellent springboard. Still, I’ve unfortunately seen thousands of outstanding fitness professionals leave the industry because they didn’t have staying power. It can be tempting to jump onto social media trends that highlight what other trainers and instructors are doing wrong, criticizing others in an attempt to lift ourselves. It’s an illusion of leverage and sadly only seeds confusion in the general public.   WHAT THE PUBLIC HEARS Potential clients looking to choose a health and fitness professional see us

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Want fitness to be seen as essential?

The fitness industry has a reputation problem. We realized that governments and health authorities don’t value our profession in relation to preventative health. It’s heartbreaking and incredibly disappointing. We have a lot of public relations and lobbying work to do to build our reputation, and we can start here: Want fitness to be seen as essential? Speak less about the bodies we sculpt. Speak more about the lives we save. In many provinces, states, and countries gyms were amongst the first business to close during the pandemic and the last to reopen. Through my work as VP of the Fitness Industry

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A Message to Recently Unemployed Instructors

A message to fitness instructors who are recently unemployed. You’re allowed to be heartbroken, please take time to heal. Then, when you’re ready, get curious and creative about what lies ahead for the fitness industry. Please trust me – NEVER BEFORE HAVE THERE BEEN MORE OPPORTUNITIES FOR QUALIFIED AND DEDICATED FITNESS PROS! I’m inundated each week with “if you know someone great” messages from owners and leaders.  These may look different than what you’ve been used to, especially if you were teaching pre-formatted classes. So that means change, which is uncomfortable. But helping people move past their comfort zones to better

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The Parts of Our Job You Probably Hate

We likely chose our fitness careers because we love connecting with people, helping them reach their health goals, creating fun experiences they crave coming back to. All the behind-the-scenes documenting, administration, and operations? Not so much.  What’s required to successfully manage our clients and classes has evolved over time and the requirements are now more entrepreneurial than ever. This means we’re likely tracking well beyond who simply showed up that day or the number of sessions a client has banked. Becoming the phenomenal health and fitness advocate our careers deserve we need to improve our skills beyond sets and reps and

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Some Clients Are Coming Back to the Gym, But Which Ones?

The concept of “meeting our clients where they’re at” has expanded tenfold in its meaning since 2020.  The most successful fitness leaders are now providing opportunities to move using a combination of at home, either virtual or in-person, outdoors, and in a gym or studio.  What many of us have been wondering is if and when the majority of our former gym members and clients would be returning to the bricks and mortar facilities we loved. The answer so far: it depends. As frustrating as that can seem I’m happy to share insights on what we’re seeing in key markets.  Canada:

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Did Someone Say Podcast?!

You asked for it and I’m thrilled to meet your needs! In Bed with the Fitness Industry is now a podcast on Spotify, Google, and Apple Podcasts! We’ve rolled out of Bed so you can take us anywhere and listen to the phenomenal insights provided by our incredible guests.  The first NEW episode with Jessica Maurer is already available as she shares her insights on building a sustainable career as a fitness leader!  Helping you thrive as a fitness professional is what I’m dedicated to, therefore all of “season 1” is also available now. The generous guests we featured are Ann

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It’s High Time for a Fresh Look at Compensation in Fitness

Let’s get real fitfam; we have a relationship problem. Business owners and managers are struggling more than ever in finding the right staff and fitness pros aren’t working WITH them to build the compensation they want.  As the cupid of the fitness industry, I absolutely see both sides and am here to help! Let’s not waste a crisis and use the current employment climate to break away from traditional compensation models.  Fitness pros keep telling me they hate being seen as staff who just come in to teach their class or train their client, and then leave. They are paid as

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I Know My “Why”, What’s Next?

You’ve done the work to identify your “why”. You’ve read the books, been on the webinars, spent time reflecting. You’re now clear on you’re the reason you’ve dedicated your fitness career to serving others. Great! Now, what do you do with that information?  It becomes the filter you use to make decisions moving forward: the places you chose to work, the classes and clients you take on, the partners you collaborate with, the projects you invest your time and energy into.  Here are your next 2 steps:   Make a list of your non-negotiables. These should include: The types of company

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In the Job You Like or the Career You Love?

I read a post by Cory Muscara that stopped me in my tracks last week. “Not being willing to let go of a life we like is often the reason we don’t have a life that we love.” Does that resonate with your current job in the fitness industry? I know the reason I stayed at a few jobs was because I “liked” it: the work, the people, the salary. The push to move away from those jobs just wasn’t enough and I didn’t have anything much better lined up. So, I stayed, sometimes longer than I should have for my

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Put Yours Hands Together For…

Congratulations Louise Vigneault for winning canfitpro’s prestigious Participant’s Choice PRO TRAINER Award! Please join us in celebrating our phenomenal PRO TRAINER team member Louise who was selected by canfitpro thanks to her incredible mentoring and support of each and every student that comes through her certification courses. Here is just one example of feedback we’ve received from a former participant in her course: “Louise is a fantastic teacher having the knowledge, the methods, the talent to connect to people, and the patience to help her students overcome all the obstacles.  Louise is honest, friendly, and very pleasant. I know she will

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Oops! My bio is SO outdated ☹

Have you walked by your headshot at your gym or studio and noticed you changed your hairstyle 4 times since then? Does your LinkedIn bio still have you working at your old job? Not keeping up with all the in-person and digital places where we identify ourselves can lead to some serious confusion as to who we truly are and the fantastic services we now offer.  It can be a bit embarrassing. How do you consistently communicate the best of yourself to ALL potential employers and clients?   You need to attract more of the right career opportunities and build your

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It’s Not Too Late, But Time is Ticking!

Do you have everything in place to get the most out of your fitness career this Fall? Here are my top 3 tips to use in the next 3 weeks of August to set yourself up for 3 phenomenal months of Autumn!  The last 6 months have been a whirlwind of adaptation and resilience and all indications are that Fall 2021 will be thriving in health and fitness. If you’re like me, you not only kept serving your clients and participants as well as staying agile to respond to new opportunities that came your way. The stage is set to thrive

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Straight Up Freebie!

We are only 10 days away from canfitpro’s Online Global Conference and Tradeshow and I am thrilled to have 2 FREE REGISTRATIONS to give away!! As your fitness industry coach and cupid I’m making this easy-peasy; let’s prepare ourselves for a phenomenal Fall career by dedicating some time on learning in August. Enter to win!! Name 1 thing you’re doing this summer to build your fitness career on any of my social posts (Facebook or Instagram) or below in the comments. I’ll draw 2 winners of the FREE REGISTRATION this Friday August 6th at 9am EDT. https://youtu.be/DnzUvW0GkCQhttps://youtu.be/CyuY-J-b348 I look forward to

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person holding black ceramic teapot

5 Steps to Save a Stagnant Offering

“If you are not embarrassed by the first version of your product, you’ve launched too late.” – Reid Hoffman, the founder of LinkedIn The biting quote that kicks off the article from my colleague Jessica Maurer; she explains how we were motivated to change our own program and shares her five steps to help you do the same: Maybe that quote is extreme for your business. Perhaps embarrassed is not the right word, but you can sense something is wrong. The offering isn’t selling, you don’t have people in your classes, or it’s attracting the wrong clients.  What can you do

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Three Skills to Add to Your Repertoire

We are perfectly poised for long and rewarding careers, as long as we understand key opportunities. Are you ready to adapt to trends in the $1.5 trillion wellness market? Your current and potential clients are looking for programs and services that are at the fingertips of savvy fitness professionals.  Here are three key skills that will have you serving your clients’ needs in the years to come:  Skill #1: Moving Towards Better Sleep With most adults stating that they aren’t getting enough sleep, we owe it to provide guidance towards better sleep hygiene. Its impact on productivity, energy, food choices and

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KIPS FitPro Foundations Podcast

Recently, I was interviewed for KIPS FitPro Foundations Podcast; I am so excited to share with you my tidbits of truth about post-COVID opportunities, knowing and understanding your worth, and how to develop skills to move you forward in the fitness industry.  Take a listen here or in the video below. Do you agree with my thoughts on if the fitness industry is essential? Nathalie Lacombe is a coach and cupid of Canada’s fitness industry. Blending 25 years of international experience with degrees in psychology and exercise science, Nathalie passionately supports thriving careers for fitness leaders. Drawing from her vast knowledge

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Falling Into Summer

As we enjoy the longest day of the year in the northern hemisphere things are heating up in the fitness industry! Is your summer programming setting you up to thrive in your career in the Fall?  Some of us are jumping right into some new routines with our clients and classes while others, especially those who kept going the past 15 months, and taking some much-needed rest.  For me, I’ve adapted my planning from 2 seasons-ahead to 1 season-ahead in order to stay agile and be truly adaptable to faster-moving changes and needs of my clients and partners. I thought I’d

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Can I Take A Day Off Posting on Social Media

Are you feeling like you’re now spending half of your free time deciding what, how, and when to post on social media to grow your fitness career success? I hear ya!  Remember the old days when we just prepared our classes and training sessions and just showed up?! Now it seems like the minute you get good at Facebook; Instagram launches a new feature that you “have” to start using. (Those of you who follow me on Instagram may remember me begging for a teenager to come help me with Reels a few weeks ago lol).  It’s exhausting. How do you

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Is Stretching Good or Bad?

Depending on how long you’ve worked in the fitness industry, you’ve probably been through a few iterations of stretching versus flexibility versus mobility. We all want our clients and participants to benefit from pain-free movement and are drawn to theories, systems, and tools that can support it.  As a Yoga teacher, I constantly get asked which movement, or asana, helps “stretch” which muscle by my clients, and my answer is rarely as simple as they’d like it to be. My colleague Mai-Linh Dovan from Rehab-U wrote this comprehensive article that helped me reframe the concept, I hope it does the same

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An Invitation to Get Your Community Moving!

Do you have the desire to provide a motivational boost to your community? I have the perfect solution for you! National Physical Activity Day will be held on June 5th and I invite you to participate by offering an event.  While this is a Canadian event, I promise my fitfam around the world that you’ll be inspired and find great resources on these web site and apps!  It is my pleasure to be a part of it again this year along with you, my wonderful colleagues. This year’s National Physical Activity Day will also give you the opportunity to speak out

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Fitness Leaders Perfectly Positioned to #GetReal

Do you use exercise to numb the feelings and emotions you find challenging? Plenty of fitness professionals do; I’ve even heard some call it their “drug of choice” as if stating that the healthy behavior of exercise is perfectly acceptable as a means of avoiding mental and emotional challenges.  As the coaches who support our client’s physical, mental, and immune health I invite us to reflect on this year’s theme for Mental Health Week: Name it, don’t numb it. The Canadian Mental Health Association is inviting us to express and deal with our emotions, even the uncomfortable ones with their hashtag

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Imposter Syndrome Got You Down?

We’ve all been there! Feeling like a fraud when we’re trying to ask for a raise or increase our rates, or even post content on social media. We get stuck in “imposter syndrome” and it sucks.   It’s not only keeping you away from your dreams and goals, but also not getting you any closer to serving the people who need and deserve your help!  There are tons of fitness leaders, some with much less experience and fewer qualifications, posting oodles of content and making a lot of money.  How do YOU become confident and stay authentic?  You need to attract

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The Most Under-Rated Tool to Improve Mobility

An incredibly insightful article written by my friend and Certified Athletic Therapist Mai-Linh Dovan from Rehab-U, I just had to share! These days, everyone wants to sell you the latest, fanciest mobility tool.  It’s pretty cool to have the latest tools like vibrating foam rollers and balls, high tech massage guns, colorful cups and scraping tools. Many people still think mobility tools need to be purchased.  But tools aren’t necessarily objects.  A tool is anything used to carry out a particular function or provide a desired outcome.  So before spending money on an implement, best first make sure you are using

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Don’t Know What to Post on Social Media?

Are you spending hours trying to create the text and visuals for social media in the hopes of getting more clients for your classes, sessions, and services? Then getting discouraged by the few likes and comments?  It’s exhausting. How do you fix it?  You need to build your brand, as simply and quickly as possible.  The first step in knowing what to share and post is getting crystal clear on your “why” because people don’t buy a product or even service, they buy into what our brand promises to deliver. Ask yourself these three questions: What types of training or services

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