Facilities: Page 658

Tis the Gift Certificate Season

Selling gift certificates is an easy way to make money and develop a new client base.Planning and marketingIt is quite possible that you missed the planning phase to sell gift certificates for spa services for the holiday season this year. However, it's not too late!Tracking and evaluating resultsA proper system for tracking gift certificates is critical. Central to your system should be how your staff members inventory and distribute the certificates. The piece of paper the certificate is printed on should hold the same value for your staff as a cashier's check. It's as good as money, and has to be treated with the same level of security. Each certificate should be numbered and kept under close control until it is released to a customer. Once the customer pays for the certificate, it should be easy to track the method of payment to that specific certificate and customer.Spa-services gift certificate sales should be a great source of revenue for your fitness center. Not only can you build a new customer base by attracting new users, but you will be providing a valuable service for your members. Happy Holidays!

Sponsored

Britten Inc. Steps Up to Help Brand the 2026 World Cup

Britten Inc.

Britten Inc. has evolved from banners hand-painted by its founder to a one-stop branding shop capable of tricking out the 2026 FIFA World Cup — a job that ultimately required overtime effort from all 240 employees working at the company’s manufacturing headquarters.

Mission Possible

A good mission statement says exactly where you are going, and its values describe behaviors that will get you there.To create or refine your mission statement, determine where you can play competitively by assessing your strengths and weaknesses. Get input from everywhere -- from smart people in every function of your facility. Mission statements should give clear direction to profitability, and, at the same time, inspire employees to feel part of something big and important. Missions can be bold in order to excite and motivate people. They balance the possible and impossible.ValuesInput for values can be even broader than for the mission statement. Everyone can have input through meetings, training sessions and the Internet. Make a first version of your values and be specific. Send it out to people all over your organization. Create an atmosphere where people feel it is their obligation to contribute. Wide participation will give you more insights and ideas and, in the end, there will also be more buy-in.Mission + valuesThe most common reasons for a disconnect between the mission statement and values are caused by little daily crises. A new fitness center opens down the street and offers lower membership dues, so you lower your prices. However, this undermines your mission of competing using great customer service. While this can be temporary or may even seem minor, if left unattended, it can hurt and even ruin your business. Finish the process of creating a great mission statement and values by making sure they always support each other.REFERENCE

Seasons and Fluid Needs

Your clients need good advice on fluid replacement in every season.Fluids R UsWe lose water every day through urination, bowel movements, sweating and breathing. Any factor that increases any of these losses increases fluid requirements. For example, exercise increases water loss through extra sweating and breathing. Blood loss, vomiting and diarrhea cause extra fluid losses, as well. People who use diuretics (water pills) to lose weight increase their risk of dehydration.Dehydration hurts performanceSince there is not enough blood for every system, the body tries to maintain blood volume to the muscles by constricting vessels in the skin. Blood flowing near the skin allows heat to escape from the body, which is helpful during vigorous exercise. A reduction in skin blood flow means less heat is lost and body temperature rises. To make matters worse, the body decreases sweat production when not enough water is available, so the body has even more difficulty getting rid of heat. You can see why dehydration can lead to heat illness.Exercise in the cold increases fluid needs, tooIn a cold environment (water or air), the body attempts to conserve its heat by reducing circulation to the skin. An increased core blood volume stimulates the kidneys to produce more urine to reduce blood volume. But as exercise progresses and clients warm up, their bodies now open circulation to the skin to get rid of heat. A higher blood volume is needed, so they must replenish those lost fluids.REFERENCESMcArdle, W.D., F.I. Katch and V.L. Katch. Sports & Exercise Nutrition. Lippincott, Williams and Wilkins: Philadelphia, Pa., 2005.

Group Cycling: Unique, Powerful and Profitable

Adding a cycling program to your fitness center can enhance your group exercise offerings and improve your bottom line.It can be easy to focus on the cost and hassle of establishing a top-notch group cycling program. After all, the group exercise rooms in your facility may already be overflowing. Why make such a big capital investment, and why set aside valuable space, when there doesn't seem to be a problem to fix? How could the return on investment for cycling compare with other activities in your fitness center? Read on to figure out if you should add group cycling to your facility.Worth the investmentGroup cycling attracts non-exercisers. Group cycling is an enticing way for non-exercisers to get into the habit. There are no tricky moves to learn or difficult equipment to master. Riders set their own resistance level, so no one can tell who is fit and who isn't. In short, group cycling is an easy-to-learn way for newcomers to slip into the exercise experience.Group cycling can be a profit center. When group cycling is done right, members will pay extra for each class.At one facility in Auckland, New Zealand, the group cycling room is consistently popular and often full. Of 6,000 to 7,000 group exercise visits every week, more than 10 percent are members who are paying a premium (several dollars on top of their membership) for cycling classes. That doesn't happen automatically, of course. There are many stories about expensive bikes sitting unused for lack of a good program.

Fitness From Every Angle

Nutriformance offers fitness, massage and nutrition therapy, as well as performance training for sports or personal training services.The fitness center, which has two additional facilities (one for personal training and one for sports training) provides something it calls "edutainment" to its clients. Huff explains that this "is providing a little education [to clients] ... and also making it fun at the same time."

Facility Maintenance and OSHA Compliance

Create a safer work environment for your staff by implementing OSHA guidelines and maintaining a compliant facility.Guidelines for safetyBloodborne pathogensCompliance with OSHAThe risk of handling a bloodborne pathogen by a fitness center employee is much greater compared to many others industries, except a medical setting, in that the fitness facility environment is conducive to encountering bio-waste in the form of blood from minor injuries and/or other types of bodily fluid. By implementing OSHA guidelines and maintaining a compliant facility, you will not only reduce your exposure to OSHA penalties and potential lawsuits, but, more importantly, create a much safer work environment for your staff.

Cross Training for Fun, Fitness and a Total-Body Workout

Cross training can help members and clients improve health and fitness, and prevent workout boredom. In cross training, two or more types of exercise are performed in one workout, or used alternately in successive workouts. A distance runner in training, for example, may also lift weights twice a week, perform daily stretching exercises and perform high-intensity bicycle sprints every Tuesday. Even if you have clients who are indoor athletes, these examples can be modified to work for them.Although cross training seems to make perfect sense, not all experts agree on its benefits. Cross training contradicts the time-honored principle that training should be limited in scope and closely aligned to the performance your clients want to improve. This is know as task specificity (typically referred to as the SAID principle: specific adaptation to sport-specific demands), and it means that, if your clients want to be good distance runners, they need to run mainly long distances. According to this principle, non-specific activities for runners, like weight training or swimming laps, are a waste of effort because they do not make someone a better runner. However, recent research demonstrates that a well-balanced periodized program will enhance the primary activity. Besides, the typical fitness enthusiast is interested in total-body conditioning, rather than sport-specific training.The cross-training edgePlanning a programTo improve aerobic fitness, for example, clients can cycle for 30 minutes. To increase strength, they can lift weights for 30 minutes. Both can be done on the same or separate days. Depending on the level of fitness and the desired result, varying the frequency, intensity and duration will provide optimal outcomes. If performed on the same day, clients should change the order in which they are performed.Tailor cross training to the needs and interests of the clientele. Select exercises from each of the types in Table 1 as an example, but don't limit the program to the activities listed. Then build a program. (See Cross-Training Sampler.) When working with competitive athletes or experienced exercise enthusiasts, be sure to consult them on their previous experiences and workout schedules. This will keep the program consistent for them, and show efficacy to their program.Benefits of specific sportsCycling. Cycling works running-related muscle groups, such as the quadriceps and shins, both of which don't develop as rapidly as the calf muscles and hamstrings. Cycling also strengthens the connective tissue of the knee, hip and ankle regions, thus reducing the risk of injury. After a stressful run, cycling also loosens fatigued leg muscles. Key points to remember: Since it's much more difficult to run after cycling, have clients run first before getting on the bike (unless they are duathletes/triathletes, and even so this change can be a welcome relief from the usual). Be sure they spin easily as opposed to grinding the big gears.Deep-water running. Deep-water running is just what the doctor ordered for rehabilitating many injuries. Because there is no shock from foot strike, water running is a great alternative to dry-land walking or running activities. For either purpose, it should be based on the client's current level of ability and present dry-land program. While it is possible to run in the water without floatation aids, these devices (e.g., vests, belts, etc.) make the workout easier.Nordic Track ski-simulator machine. Cross-country ski machines provide a challenging workout that is effective in building and maintaining aerobic conditioning and endurance, while strengthening the muscles of the upper and lower body. Because the exercise requires the ability to balance and coordinate dual-action movements of the upper and lower extremities, proper form must be used. This is a great workout for individuals interested in supplementing their training.VersaClimber. Using a VersaClimber provides a total-body workout because all the major muscles of the upper and lower body are fully engaged and, thus, strengthened. Because of the coordination required by the arms and legs (climbing against gravity, similar to the motion of ascending a ladder), it can be a challenging machine to learn to use correctly. Again, be sure clients learn proper technique.Cross training and strength trainingIncrease in muscle mass. The increase in lean muscle mass that results from strength training is the key to the body's ability to metabolize glucose and thus "burn" fat. This occurs because muscle cells require more energy (and also use more calories) than fat cells.Bone protection. Weight training helps protect bones. This is an important benefit, particularly for women (though men can get osteoporosis, as well), as decreased estrogen production causes bone demineralization. This, in turn, increases the risks of osteoporosis and the additional risk of incurring stress fractures. Muscles tugging on bone structure as a result of weight training facilitates bone regeneration.Final thoughts

Personalized Client Programming

Bridging the gap between science and fitness can drive your facility's competitive edge and grow your profits. A personalized client program is a fully integrated testing, training and nutrition system grounded in science, attention to detail and quality assurance. The program is driven by technological advances, fitness science research, assessment, follow-up training and a nutrition program.While personalized client programming can operate as a stand-alone profit center, it is specifically designed to function as part of a total training continuum, in which testing results are part of a greater whole.Personalized client programming helps to pinpoint individual needs through a personal fitness profile, which consists of more than 50 predictive measures of health, fitness, performance capacity and biological age, known as biomarkers. These measures include a cardio profile (the heart, lung and muscle energy systems' response to exercise); body composition and type based on plethysmography (air displacement technology) and computerized somatotyping; a comprehensive blood biochemistry, including proteins, lipids, plasma vitamin/minerals, hormones, advanced cardiac risk panel and overtraining/ stress panel; muscular fitness functional analysis; extensive nutrition profile and nutrient prescription based on thermodynamics, diet composition and blood chemistries; and a series of proprietary inventories to assess quality of life, stress/recovery capacity and longevity.Once a personal fitness profile is created, fitness professionals must then lay the groundwork for the follow-up nutrition and training programs, establish a baseline physiological blueprint for each client, prescribe follow-up strategies, monitor responses over time and modify strategies based on those responses. This is not a one-time, one-size-fits-all approach, but rather a system for life based on sequential testing and follow-up over the years.Facility and client benefitsFor clients, the results of these tests will not only identify individual goals, but will also help chart a roadmap to reach those goals. The results identify their physiologic blueprint -- exactly where they are relative to where they should be and, therefore, what impact their current lifestyle and genetics have on their physiology. The results not only identify individual strengths but, more importantly, critical weaknesses that may be blocking your clients' paths to reaching their goals. The program's results arm trainers and nutritionists with the information they need to design follow-up training, nutrition and lifestyle strategies, and ensure the safety of exercise participation.Test results are also used to monitor progress, determine whether the desired goals are reached in a timely fashion and, if not, why. This will help staff address any roadblocks encountered along the sometimes winding path to reaching client goals. These tests will also make clients aware of factors that influence their overall health, fitness and well-being, so, therefore, they function as an important educational tool. The results presentation serves as an educational opportunity to discuss what clients have to do to reach their goals. Finally, monitoring results over time helps identify problem areas, and continue with motivation.

Gym & Fieldhouse

Sky's the Limit

Once conceived as windowless boxes, gymnasiums are introducing daylight as a benefit for health-conscious users.

Gym lit by skylights

Commercial Success

A Wisconsin rec center launches a program that airs in-venue ads for local businesses.

LakeView IcePlex

Hazardous To Your Health Club

Because fitness centers face myriad liabilities -- from the minor to the catastrophic -- insuring against those risks can be quite complicated.

Health club member

Swimsuit Issues

Drag, buoyancy, water-repellence -- they all affect how an athlete moves through water, but money too influences what the world's top swimmers choose to wear in competition.

USA's 2004 Summer Olympic swimmers outfitted in Speedo suits

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AB Show 2026 in Orlando

AB Show is a solution-focused event for athletics, fitness, recreation and military professionals.

Nov. 17-19, 2026