June 1, 2011
First Word
Medically Integrated Fitness Centers Offer Opportunity for Growth
Partnering with the medical community may be a key to competing with low-price clubs and attracting new members....
Feature
Health Care Reform Spurs Growth of Medical Fitness Centers
The obesity crisis and health care reform may lead to an increase in medical fitness centers, which could provide opportunities for fitness management companies. ...
Industry Observer
Public-Private Partnerships on Recreation Facilities Offer Advantages to Each Group
In the last few years, reports of municipalities cutting funding for public recreation facilities have become common....
Civilian Fit Bosses Help Navy Sailors Keep Ship Shape
On every U.S. Navy ship, there are thousands of sailors whose hard work helps ensure Americans’ welfare and quality of life. Those ships also are home to a few civilians whose job is to ensure the same for the sailors on board. Those civilians include a fitness director employed through the Navy’s Morale, Welfare and Recreation Department Civilian Afloat Program....
Tornadoes Destroy Clubs in Joplin, MO, Tuscaloosa, AL
Tornadoes in the Midwest and Southeast this past spring killed hundreds and ravaged thousands of homes and buildings. Some fitness clubs in communities hit hardest by the storms were not spared....
Supplier Side
New ADA Standards Could Affect Health Club Locker Rooms
Health clubs that do not comply with accessibility requirements not only shut out potential members, but they also risk being hit with a civil rights lawsuit. ...
Industry Mourns Passing of Steve Williams
Friends and family of Steve Williams gathered last month to remember the man who affected the industry at Cybex International and Technogym....
Core Training Equipment Goes Mainstream in Health Clubs
Once viewed by some operators as merely a passing trend, functional core training has quickly become a revenue-boosting fitness movement at many fitness facilities, especially since it most often is provided through personal training, small group training or larger-scale group exercise classes. ...
iPad Provides Trainers, Members with a View to Stay Fit
FitView, San Jose, CA, provides tools geared for fitness coaches in personal training, boot camp and CrossFit environments. Although it has an iPhone application for members, what makes FitView unique is its functionality on the iPad....
Retention Edge
Focus Health Club Retention Efforts on the Right Things
Retention is such an overused word in the fitness industry. Health club operators consider everything from shakes to treadmills to a software program as the answer to improving retention. ...
Smart Design
Sustainable Design Saves Health Clubs Money Even without LEED Certification
Sustainability is more than a trendy addition to the vocabulary of responsible club design and operation. It is a must-have for our crowded planet and is here to stay....
Sales Strategies
Use Sales Standards to Increase Health Club Membership Sales
The more competitive nature of the health and fitness business these days means that everyone must constantly reassess how competitive they are. ...
