For most of you, you haven't noticed the new found energy that we've recently brought back to the gym and the carry over to the workouts. Trainers are no different than anyone else, except for the fact that our entire job is focused on being on top of the world at all times, which means we have to constantly motivate, motivate, motivate!
Motivation takes it's tole on the mind after a long day at the gym. On average a trainer may have to deal with 30 or more different personalities each day. Some are intrinsically motivated and some need our slap across the face to get going. The intrinsic guys are easy but at the same time as a trainer we need to take them up a level as well. The tough ones are the ones that show up dragging there feet through the door and the last place on Earth they want to be is in the gym.
For years, I've dealt with both kinds of people and at the end of the night I was exhausted at the end of the night. You see, the motivation was being sucked away from me. I would let, those certain people who didn't like fitness, get to me.
After a couple of years of dealing with this issue I was having, I finally had an epiphany! Those folks that needed me to motivate them, I would go above and beyond the call of trainer duty. Instead of just letting people go upstairs and walk on a treadmill prior to training, I would grab them (even when I had another client) and get them to grab a med ball and warm up with abs or something completely different then what they had been doing for ever... you have to break the cycle and at the same time motivate someone and educate someone on the reasons why they need to break the cycle.
Here's my question to you: Do you do the same exact thing every time when you go to the gym? You walk in, throw your stuff in a locker and do what, look to walk on the treadmill at a pace that is slower than what you were doing before you walked through the door? Why? Oh yeah, you are warming up, right? Well, who told you that? Oh yeah, my fault, I was probably lazy one day prior to working you out and said "hey, Joe, hop on a treadmill/bike/elliptical and get loose."
That is what you call a trainer being a lazy instructor and not a trainer. So, ever since I opened up The BAR Fitness in our own building I've tried to get you guys off the treads and grab medicine balls, do a dynamic stretch, ab work or whatever will get the body into sweat mode and ready to rock. Many of you have figured it out.. mainly the Hybrid members because since day one we have warmed up with dynamic stretching. I bet every one of our Hybrid members could run a dynamic stretch themselves without even stuttering about what exercise should come next. It's been instilled into your mind and therefore you could do it without a trainers help... why don't you do it then??????? Well, that's easy too. Hybrid is a team! You do everything with your team and you don't leave anyone out!
My personal training clients: this week, don't use the treads/elliptical/spin bikes to warm up. Grab a med ball and do some ab work or your own dynamic stretches. Do you think you can do it? I know you can.
I'll work with the trainers and get them going again. Look for all new motivators and exercises to keep everyone on track.
This blog was just a shout to what to expect in the new year. You are all up for it and can do it! Get ready for 2010. It will be the biggest year for you as a member and The BAR Fitness as a place to call your second home!
See you in the gym on Monday!
Saturday, December 12, 2009
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
The Great Unknown
Tonight is the night for the Spencer Shores fundraiser. Hopefully 500 people show up and we don't know where to put everyone. I've received more than 50 silent auction items, probably 20 raffle items and a couple of live auction items. If all goes well, we should be able to raise quite a bit of cash for the family.
South Mountain Cycles came in huge for us. They've donated 4 really nice Specialized bikes. Two mountain and two road bikes, all at cost but still, we could get at least $100 over the cost for the foundation and everyone wins.
Stone Creek Furniture donated a queen sleigh bed.. it's really nice and to buy it new you'd be looking at $700. We are giving away about 5K worth of training. I figure if you have been blessed with the ability to help someone why not go all out and give everything you have. Hopefully the training alone brings in 3K but you never know who is going to be there to bid.
Times are different then they used to be. Two years ago, people would be throwing cash at this stuff without even batting an eye. Now, everyone is watching what they spend. I figure if you put one dinner out on hold for a week and donate to Spencer, you've just put yourself a little closer to the front of the line at the pearly gates.
Not everyone thinks this way but what the heck, that's just me. Anyway, hopefully we sell everything and auction off everything as well. More then anything I just want to see a smile on the Shore's face, especially Spencer. Hey may not understand the cash flow issues right now but someday he'll look back and say, remember when all those people helped my mom and dad? Perhaps he might raise some dough for someone else when he's older..
Random thoughts and now off to start the day... see you all at the party!
South Mountain Cycles came in huge for us. They've donated 4 really nice Specialized bikes. Two mountain and two road bikes, all at cost but still, we could get at least $100 over the cost for the foundation and everyone wins.
Stone Creek Furniture donated a queen sleigh bed.. it's really nice and to buy it new you'd be looking at $700. We are giving away about 5K worth of training. I figure if you have been blessed with the ability to help someone why not go all out and give everything you have. Hopefully the training alone brings in 3K but you never know who is going to be there to bid.
Times are different then they used to be. Two years ago, people would be throwing cash at this stuff without even batting an eye. Now, everyone is watching what they spend. I figure if you put one dinner out on hold for a week and donate to Spencer, you've just put yourself a little closer to the front of the line at the pearly gates.
Not everyone thinks this way but what the heck, that's just me. Anyway, hopefully we sell everything and auction off everything as well. More then anything I just want to see a smile on the Shore's face, especially Spencer. Hey may not understand the cash flow issues right now but someday he'll look back and say, remember when all those people helped my mom and dad? Perhaps he might raise some dough for someone else when he's older..
Random thoughts and now off to start the day... see you all at the party!
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Where the Wild Things Are!
I remember back when I was a little pain in every one's butt.. yeah I know, you're saying not much has changed but whatever, I used to read a book with the title "Where the Wild Things Are." All I can remember is that it was a little spooky but I loved it just the same. Anyway, the movie came out based on the book, I figure it would be amazing so I decided to take my oldest daughter Kate to the show today.
Not sure what the director was trying to accomplish but I thought it was rather weak and tough to follow. Kate, who is 3, loved it until the end when it became redundant and boring. She started to get ency and rambunctious.. she became the "Wild Thing."
Anyway, I don't think I would recommend it to anyone unless you where a die hard fan like I was prior to the movie coming out. Go into it with a open mind and you just might enjoy yourself, otherwise, drink heavily and sleep through it!
Not sure what the director was trying to accomplish but I thought it was rather weak and tough to follow. Kate, who is 3, loved it until the end when it became redundant and boring. She started to get ency and rambunctious.. she became the "Wild Thing."
Anyway, I don't think I would recommend it to anyone unless you where a die hard fan like I was prior to the movie coming out. Go into it with a open mind and you just might enjoy yourself, otherwise, drink heavily and sleep through it!
Friday, October 16, 2009
What's Your Approach to Fitness?
I just finished up the newsletter so my brain is pretty well shot but here you go: We all need a little motivation to start back up with a fitness program but seem to lack the know how or where to even start. Even as a trainer, I get into a rut of weighing the options for fitness and then weighting too long to decide so I never actually start anything.
A few years back a good client friend of mine got me started with mountain biking. I purchased a fancy bike or at least I thought it was fancy and started hitting the trails at South Mountain. I soon found myself on the mountain everyday and getting in the best shape of my life. I couldn't get enough of the sport and the fact that I could do it by myself and without anyone criticizing or watching me do it. I deal with people and different personalities all day so anytime I can get out and listen to just my heart rate and the tires hitting the dirt, I'll take it!
Anyway, summer roles around and mountain biking days are few and far between unless you get up at 5am and don't mind running into snakes occasionally. So, I opt out of the early mornings. I've got two little girls that I like to have breakfast with so my priorities tend to shift towards family life instead of my fitness life.
Long story short, I slack off in the summer with riding which means that my fitness becomes an occasional Hybrid class which gets the job done but I prefer to ride and do an occasional class.
Anyway, I've looked up all kinds of mountain biking races in the state and have set a goal to do all of them. I figure if I pay the dough for each event, I have to go and continue to get my butt in shape to complete them. i just finished one in Pinetop and took 10th out of 85.. I was really proud of myself considering the last one I did in April I took 48th out of 100.
My next race is in February and it's a 24 hour team race. I'm putting together teams of 4 that want to do it with me. It will motivate all of us to get in shape and the end result will be a great time near Tucson and lots of memories to go along with it.
So, if you need a motivator and want to try something different, throw leg over a bike and join me. Anyone can do it but you do however need a bike. Go see Erik at South Mountain Cycles on Ray and 36th. Tell him I sent you and he'll help you out.. he's a good dude who always takes care of my bikes.
Later.. I have to go ride now!
A few years back a good client friend of mine got me started with mountain biking. I purchased a fancy bike or at least I thought it was fancy and started hitting the trails at South Mountain. I soon found myself on the mountain everyday and getting in the best shape of my life. I couldn't get enough of the sport and the fact that I could do it by myself and without anyone criticizing or watching me do it. I deal with people and different personalities all day so anytime I can get out and listen to just my heart rate and the tires hitting the dirt, I'll take it!
Anyway, summer roles around and mountain biking days are few and far between unless you get up at 5am and don't mind running into snakes occasionally. So, I opt out of the early mornings. I've got two little girls that I like to have breakfast with so my priorities tend to shift towards family life instead of my fitness life.
Long story short, I slack off in the summer with riding which means that my fitness becomes an occasional Hybrid class which gets the job done but I prefer to ride and do an occasional class.
Anyway, I've looked up all kinds of mountain biking races in the state and have set a goal to do all of them. I figure if I pay the dough for each event, I have to go and continue to get my butt in shape to complete them. i just finished one in Pinetop and took 10th out of 85.. I was really proud of myself considering the last one I did in April I took 48th out of 100.
My next race is in February and it's a 24 hour team race. I'm putting together teams of 4 that want to do it with me. It will motivate all of us to get in shape and the end result will be a great time near Tucson and lots of memories to go along with it.
So, if you need a motivator and want to try something different, throw leg over a bike and join me. Anyone can do it but you do however need a bike. Go see Erik at South Mountain Cycles on Ray and 36th. Tell him I sent you and he'll help you out.. he's a good dude who always takes care of my bikes.
Later.. I have to go ride now!
Sunday, September 20, 2009
Biggest Loser
My favorite show that has ever hit the market is Biggest Loser. I can't stand the lady trainer. I think she gives trainers a bad name. Bob is great. Positive yet tough with the wussy's that think they are uncapable of doing something.
I run accross a lot of people that have told themselves for pretty much all there lives that they can't do certain things with there body. Truth be told, exercise is tough at the start. Even as a trainer, when we take time off from working out, it's really tough getting back on the saddle.
Anyway, check out the biggest loser sometime. You'll love watching these people change there lives.
We got an ongoing contest at the BAR. Eighty pounds down is the largest amount of weight loss that we've had at the gym. We do however have a fairly new person who is about to break that number and continue on and add insurance runs to the thing. Mark Schembri is already probably 70lbs by now.. it is Sunday for pete's sake. He seems to lose at least 5-8 lbs a week. How does he do it? He is one of the few who listens to what his trainer says and works his butt off when he comes in.. and he never misses a workout.
Anyway, it's refreshing to watch Mark workout. His life is going to change forever and I'm proud to be a part of it. Ryan has done all the work for this guy as far as creating a program for Mark to follow... nice work Ryan.. you don't get enough recongintion for your work but from my standpoint, you're doing a great job...
Everyone have a successful week!
I run accross a lot of people that have told themselves for pretty much all there lives that they can't do certain things with there body. Truth be told, exercise is tough at the start. Even as a trainer, when we take time off from working out, it's really tough getting back on the saddle.
Anyway, check out the biggest loser sometime. You'll love watching these people change there lives.
We got an ongoing contest at the BAR. Eighty pounds down is the largest amount of weight loss that we've had at the gym. We do however have a fairly new person who is about to break that number and continue on and add insurance runs to the thing. Mark Schembri is already probably 70lbs by now.. it is Sunday for pete's sake. He seems to lose at least 5-8 lbs a week. How does he do it? He is one of the few who listens to what his trainer says and works his butt off when he comes in.. and he never misses a workout.
Anyway, it's refreshing to watch Mark workout. His life is going to change forever and I'm proud to be a part of it. Ryan has done all the work for this guy as far as creating a program for Mark to follow... nice work Ryan.. you don't get enough recongintion for your work but from my standpoint, you're doing a great job...
Everyone have a successful week!
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
God and me!
Most of you know that I'm not much a religious person. In fact, the only time I really ever say prayers is during dinner on Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter. Tracie wants me to go to church but I tell her that God doesn't need me to go to a building and hang out with hundreds of strangers for him to know that I believe in him.
I remember when I was twelve, I lost my big sister to a car accident, she was 17. I would imagine I said hundreds of prayers during the month that my sis was holding on to her life. After she passed on, I had my doubts about the man upstairs. I had so many emotions running through my head (so many that I think I ran out of them) that I didn't know what to think. I told myself there was no such thing as God, how could he take someone who had so much going for her?
Well, after sometime passed my brother and sister in law had a baby (Lexus). Come to find out she was conceived right around the same time that my sis had passed. This is where it gets interesting; I used to think that Lexus was filled with my sister's spirit. Of course years later, I realize that Lex got the artistic side of her spirit and her hard headed nature. My daughter Kate was born on the same day that Stacy passed some 19 years later (kate was 2 weeks early).
Anyway, after Lexus was born, I came to terms with God. My sister was a good person in the world and judging by the thousands of people that came to her memorial service I would say that she made an impact on a lot of people. I realized that if she would have come to, her way of life would not be too good. She loved volleyball and loved to dance. She had severe head trauma which means that she would more than likely be in a wheel chair and with no way to communicate. God and me had a chat: He needed a leader and a saint to help upstairs as well as a front blocker on his cloud volleyball team. I figure when it's your time and God needs your assistance, it's time to check out. I'm cool with that now.
Truth be told, my sister has always been by my side. When I used to step to the plate at TCU, I would dig in, clean the landing point, step out and draw a "S" in the dirt next to the box and always say, "alright Stace, what do you have planned for me this time?"
Sometimes she'd help me and sometimes not! You can't be victorious all the time.
Well, this is where the God things comes into hand again. Yesterday my brother called me and the first thing out of his mouth is, "I've got some bad news." If wasn't sitting down already, I would have fallen because my knees buckled. I said those three little words, "Oh My God." I prepared for the worst and Jake said, "mom's been kicked by a horse!" I said those three words again, mainly because I was speechless and couldn't think of anything else at the time. For one second, my world got turned upside down. Jake's next sentence was, "she has three broken ribs and a possible broken arm." Oh thank God!
Now, I'm not sure what you would call what happened but to me, I said a prayer and he came through. It wasn't her time to go. Apparently, there are plenty of horse trainer, jewelry makers and marketing people up there so she gets to hang around for a while longer.
Not sure where I was going with this story. Perhaps I just needed to get it out. I don't talk about my sister much and I haven't showed emotion in more than 20 years. As I write this, I'm sure my eyes are swelled up and I can tell I still have some emotion within. I probably still won't go to church but I'll say prayers more often. Not just for my family but for those that are less fortunate than myself or those who may be going through rough times. Perhaps that is what we all need to do. Give some thanks and be grateful for the people we have around us!
Again, thank you God for keeping my mom on this Earth!
I remember when I was twelve, I lost my big sister to a car accident, she was 17. I would imagine I said hundreds of prayers during the month that my sis was holding on to her life. After she passed on, I had my doubts about the man upstairs. I had so many emotions running through my head (so many that I think I ran out of them) that I didn't know what to think. I told myself there was no such thing as God, how could he take someone who had so much going for her?
Well, after sometime passed my brother and sister in law had a baby (Lexus). Come to find out she was conceived right around the same time that my sis had passed. This is where it gets interesting; I used to think that Lexus was filled with my sister's spirit. Of course years later, I realize that Lex got the artistic side of her spirit and her hard headed nature. My daughter Kate was born on the same day that Stacy passed some 19 years later (kate was 2 weeks early).
Anyway, after Lexus was born, I came to terms with God. My sister was a good person in the world and judging by the thousands of people that came to her memorial service I would say that she made an impact on a lot of people. I realized that if she would have come to, her way of life would not be too good. She loved volleyball and loved to dance. She had severe head trauma which means that she would more than likely be in a wheel chair and with no way to communicate. God and me had a chat: He needed a leader and a saint to help upstairs as well as a front blocker on his cloud volleyball team. I figure when it's your time and God needs your assistance, it's time to check out. I'm cool with that now.
Truth be told, my sister has always been by my side. When I used to step to the plate at TCU, I would dig in, clean the landing point, step out and draw a "S" in the dirt next to the box and always say, "alright Stace, what do you have planned for me this time?"
Sometimes she'd help me and sometimes not! You can't be victorious all the time.
Well, this is where the God things comes into hand again. Yesterday my brother called me and the first thing out of his mouth is, "I've got some bad news." If wasn't sitting down already, I would have fallen because my knees buckled. I said those three little words, "Oh My God." I prepared for the worst and Jake said, "mom's been kicked by a horse!" I said those three words again, mainly because I was speechless and couldn't think of anything else at the time. For one second, my world got turned upside down. Jake's next sentence was, "she has three broken ribs and a possible broken arm." Oh thank God!
Now, I'm not sure what you would call what happened but to me, I said a prayer and he came through. It wasn't her time to go. Apparently, there are plenty of horse trainer, jewelry makers and marketing people up there so she gets to hang around for a while longer.
Not sure where I was going with this story. Perhaps I just needed to get it out. I don't talk about my sister much and I haven't showed emotion in more than 20 years. As I write this, I'm sure my eyes are swelled up and I can tell I still have some emotion within. I probably still won't go to church but I'll say prayers more often. Not just for my family but for those that are less fortunate than myself or those who may be going through rough times. Perhaps that is what we all need to do. Give some thanks and be grateful for the people we have around us!
Again, thank you God for keeping my mom on this Earth!
Monday, August 24, 2009
Way Too Many Tech-E Things To Deal With
As many of you have probably noticed or more than likely have given up on, is the fact that my Blogs have been few and far between these days. Reason being, Twitter and Facebook have taken over my life. Business wise, both Twitter and FB are really helpful when it comes to reaching out to potential members. The Blog stuff was fun when it was all that I had, now with the other two websites, I can communicate with 100 times more people.
So, the Blog thing may go by the wayside but I may keep writing some occasional garbage about how some people make me angry. For instance, a lady who is new to the gym and on a free pass of the next couple of weeks, hammered my wife for not having a particular piece of equipment.. it wasn't even a workout piece of equipment. Anyway, seriously you have been given a gift.. a free gift at that, you don't have to sign up for anything so for the sake of being a good person in the world, please let me run my business the way I see fit and perhaps instead of badgering my wife, why not take it out on the workout.
Those of you who are rock star members, thank you for being you and for supporting the business that I love. I would say that it is all of you and I won't let one bad apple ruin for the rest of us.... thank you for letting me vent.. see you all at the gym... oh yeah.. sign up for twitter and type in www.twitter.com/barhybrid... get on board with the rest of us...
So, the Blog thing may go by the wayside but I may keep writing some occasional garbage about how some people make me angry. For instance, a lady who is new to the gym and on a free pass of the next couple of weeks, hammered my wife for not having a particular piece of equipment.. it wasn't even a workout piece of equipment. Anyway, seriously you have been given a gift.. a free gift at that, you don't have to sign up for anything so for the sake of being a good person in the world, please let me run my business the way I see fit and perhaps instead of badgering my wife, why not take it out on the workout.
Those of you who are rock star members, thank you for being you and for supporting the business that I love. I would say that it is all of you and I won't let one bad apple ruin for the rest of us.... thank you for letting me vent.. see you all at the gym... oh yeah.. sign up for twitter and type in www.twitter.com/barhybrid... get on board with the rest of us...
Friday, August 7, 2009
Good Hybrid Workout Today.. very special!
Today's workout was extra special. I had the opportunity to show other fitness business owners what Hybrid and our business was all about. For some of you we may be just another place to workout but what you may not be aware of is the fact that The BAR is very unique when it comes to other fitness facilities. You see we approach this business not from a "you have to get results or else" type place but more of a welcome and let's make you workout experience mind blowing and let's make it the best part of your day.
Most trainer guys (not all.. don't get butt hurt guys) only focus on the results that people achieve. We focus on the experience! If your experience is awesome then the results will come.. there is no doubt that it works.. Anyway, the hybrid group today was made up of graduate students from A.T. Still Univeristy (health science school) where Tracie is a professor at. Tracie gave a talk that I was fortunate enough to sit in on, Tuesday. She spoke about trainers putting down the clip board and start focusing on what people really want... A Great Experience!
Long story short, after the talk, numerous trainer graduates came up to (all these people are trainers that own there own facility or want to) Tracie and asked more about our philosophy... after all the Q and A, Tracie finally told everyone to come by and see it for yourself. Well, the school is at least 45 min away so only the ones that were in dire straights for a workout showed up. Two guys missed.. they were from FreeMotion which is a equipment manufacturer (too bad guys, I wanted to look into new equipment.. you could have sold me today!).
Only a few showed up but we gave them everything we offer.. not treating them any different than normal joe shmoe walking through the door.. Ryan was nice enough to put all of us through a Hybrid workout.. I almost puked a little again (i might need to see advice).. anyway, they loved it.. question after question and so forth. We gave them all the sales material that we have and I even told one lady that if she was interested in a Co-Op in Florida.. that I'm in! We'll see what happens there (sometimes change is scary for people).
Well, I have to say and of course I'm biased; judging by the response, we really do have a special place for people to get healthy... Thank you guys for coming today and I hope you incorporate some of the ideas that you saw today into your existing business. Just remember, people are good and they need you to help change there lives! You have to love helping people otherwise don't get into training... it's all about the people..
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
Exercise and Intensity
For many of you reading this particular blog, you'll probably get a couple sentences into it and stop right away. Why? Because you are not ready for change in your fitness program. What I've been trying to do with all of our clientele and anyone else who will listen, is to try to get all of you to think outside the box of your regular fitness program and put your focus on intensity of the exercises rather than how many sets and how many reps.
What do I mean? Here we go: For years trainers around the world have always relied on writing down a program based on sets and reps. Yes, sometimes the intensity of one particular exercise may be high, mainly based on the type of exercise, but the rest of the exercises in the program for that day are generally low intensity. What I mean is, if you do a hang clean during the exercise bout your heart rate will be through the roof, if done right. Then your trainer puts you on a seated bicep curl. So now, you've just reached your anaerobic threshold and all of a sudden you drop down to almost resting HR. Then after that curl, you go to a row or whatever it may be, your HR will not come close to what you achieved on that hang clean.
What I would like you to try is this: Approach your workouts like they are your last. Every exercise you do, take your HR to it's max and do it for at least 5-15 seconds and in some cases longer. After you reach it and maintain for a little while, stop the exercise and wait until your HR drop to 65% of your max. For instance, I'm 32 so we'll do a simple equation.. 220-age (32) and I'll add 10 beats per minute because the 220-age isn't really a good indicator. My max is right around 188 +10, so 198 beats per minute (BPM). Granted, I work out already so I can probably reach that number but I'd want to puke after a couple of these. I wouldn't have someone who is new to exercise that has the same age as me try to reach the same Max HR... not a good idea and definitely not safe.
What we want to see happen once you reach your max HR and stop that particular exercise is to check HR again and watch it drop. Once you reach 65% of max, crank up the exercise again. Now the first couple weeks of training this way, you may only last 15 minutes and you'll notice that it takes your HR minutes to drop back down to 65%. But, again after a few weeks of HR training, your HR should drop really fast (recovery). This is how you know that you are starting to get in shape. You know what happens when you start to get in shape? Your body fat drops, your strength increases and thus your power output will increase.
What happens if you continue to workout with sets and reps at low intensities? The same thing that's been happening for the last 20 years of your same program.. nothing! YOU stay the same.
Why all this talk about intensity and HR? I want to make a difference in your life.. I always have, that's why I started doing what I do. No, I don't train anymore.. I sit in this office and continually find ways to motivate not only you guys as clients but my trainers as well.
I've been pumping HYBRID likes it's going out of style. Not to take away from our regular personal training groups or one on ones, they are still on the rise and we continue to make changes in those program to make them better. They HYBRID concept though is really exciting because we can incorporate all that I talked about above without anyone in the class even knowing it. We are able to keep HR at high enough levels to get amazing results... what I would like to do eventually is convince all the members of the gym to take a similar approach to there program.
The next time you walk into the gym, especially those of you who are personal training clients, tell your trainer to "bring it on and there is nothing you can throw at me today that I can't do!" This gets everyone excited because it will allow the trainer to think outside the usual box and get your HR way up and consistent... THIS is how you get in shape!
I've got HR monitors in the studio that are open to anyone. I would suggest getting your own though because of sanitary reasons but by all means, use one of ours if you need. Throw it on before your next workout and let's get rockin' You'll love the results in the end.. I promise!
What do I mean? Here we go: For years trainers around the world have always relied on writing down a program based on sets and reps. Yes, sometimes the intensity of one particular exercise may be high, mainly based on the type of exercise, but the rest of the exercises in the program for that day are generally low intensity. What I mean is, if you do a hang clean during the exercise bout your heart rate will be through the roof, if done right. Then your trainer puts you on a seated bicep curl. So now, you've just reached your anaerobic threshold and all of a sudden you drop down to almost resting HR. Then after that curl, you go to a row or whatever it may be, your HR will not come close to what you achieved on that hang clean.
What I would like you to try is this: Approach your workouts like they are your last. Every exercise you do, take your HR to it's max and do it for at least 5-15 seconds and in some cases longer. After you reach it and maintain for a little while, stop the exercise and wait until your HR drop to 65% of your max. For instance, I'm 32 so we'll do a simple equation.. 220-age (32) and I'll add 10 beats per minute because the 220-age isn't really a good indicator. My max is right around 188 +10, so 198 beats per minute (BPM). Granted, I work out already so I can probably reach that number but I'd want to puke after a couple of these. I wouldn't have someone who is new to exercise that has the same age as me try to reach the same Max HR... not a good idea and definitely not safe.
What we want to see happen once you reach your max HR and stop that particular exercise is to check HR again and watch it drop. Once you reach 65% of max, crank up the exercise again. Now the first couple weeks of training this way, you may only last 15 minutes and you'll notice that it takes your HR minutes to drop back down to 65%. But, again after a few weeks of HR training, your HR should drop really fast (recovery). This is how you know that you are starting to get in shape. You know what happens when you start to get in shape? Your body fat drops, your strength increases and thus your power output will increase.
What happens if you continue to workout with sets and reps at low intensities? The same thing that's been happening for the last 20 years of your same program.. nothing! YOU stay the same.
Why all this talk about intensity and HR? I want to make a difference in your life.. I always have, that's why I started doing what I do. No, I don't train anymore.. I sit in this office and continually find ways to motivate not only you guys as clients but my trainers as well.
I've been pumping HYBRID likes it's going out of style. Not to take away from our regular personal training groups or one on ones, they are still on the rise and we continue to make changes in those program to make them better. They HYBRID concept though is really exciting because we can incorporate all that I talked about above without anyone in the class even knowing it. We are able to keep HR at high enough levels to get amazing results... what I would like to do eventually is convince all the members of the gym to take a similar approach to there program.
The next time you walk into the gym, especially those of you who are personal training clients, tell your trainer to "bring it on and there is nothing you can throw at me today that I can't do!" This gets everyone excited because it will allow the trainer to think outside the usual box and get your HR way up and consistent... THIS is how you get in shape!
I've got HR monitors in the studio that are open to anyone. I would suggest getting your own though because of sanitary reasons but by all means, use one of ours if you need. Throw it on before your next workout and let's get rockin' You'll love the results in the end.. I promise!
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Learning Somethig New
It's been a while since my last blog entry. Reason being, the summer has taken it out of me and I've also found other computer based stuff to keep me occupied. You've read it in the newsletter already but the twitter thing is really quite cool!
I got into road biking a couple of months ago and have learned a ton about the Tour de France over the past couple of weeks. Anyway, I've been following Lance Armstrong and some of the other guys on the other teams on there respective twitter sites. It's really funny to read the comments back and forth between the teams. Some of the guys get along good and talk strategy for the next stage and then you get to watch it the following day on TV. It's all good stuff.
Well, that's the blog for today. Sign up for Twitter and have a ball.
I got into road biking a couple of months ago and have learned a ton about the Tour de France over the past couple of weeks. Anyway, I've been following Lance Armstrong and some of the other guys on the other teams on there respective twitter sites. It's really funny to read the comments back and forth between the teams. Some of the guys get along good and talk strategy for the next stage and then you get to watch it the following day on TV. It's all good stuff.
Well, that's the blog for today. Sign up for Twitter and have a ball.
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
Another Proud BAR Moment
If you read the newsletter then you'll notice the article about CJ and Josh doing really well with there baseball career. What I didn't mention is another one of our athletes David Darnell is also excelling at a high level.
David was an outfielder for Mountain Pointe High School and then went on to West Pointe to represent our country, get an education and play a little baseball in the meantime.
I was flipping through the channels while I was watching Utah play Fullerton during the regional and noticed that Army was playing the University of Texas in a similar regional. Now The BAR had three athletes playing in a regional... absolutely a cool moment in my life.
While we are on this subject of kids that have excelled; for some strange reason I heard through the grapevine that a parent told a friend of mine that they hated us because all we want to do is make kids throw up! Seriously lady? What good would that do if that was our focus?
This is how it works. There are two potential issues that cause someone to vomit during exercise. Number one, a new athlete that hasn't worked out in a while or ever for that matter.. exercise is a shock to the body causing all kinds of stuff to be out of wack in the nervous system. Another part of that is that these are athletes we are working with which means that they push themselves very hard even if we ask them to pay attention to what there body is telling them. Hard working people will always be hard working people and wussy's will be wussy's!
The other thing that happens is that these kids each junk prior to coming to workout. When they eat cereal or pop tarts, all that they've done is spike there insulin levels which is basically giving them really high levels of energy, which in turn throws there nervous system off again.. forcing vomit.
For the lady who thinks that vomit is our goal, get with the program and stop babying your kid. If you want a baby sitter take your high school kid to Tutor Time, if you want your kid to play for a regional championship then let us do our job and help us out at home by helping with your kid's nutrition.... FYI, all three of those kids above puked at one point in time... now there school is paid for and they continue to come back for training during the off season. Funny how that works!
David was an outfielder for Mountain Pointe High School and then went on to West Pointe to represent our country, get an education and play a little baseball in the meantime.
I was flipping through the channels while I was watching Utah play Fullerton during the regional and noticed that Army was playing the University of Texas in a similar regional. Now The BAR had three athletes playing in a regional... absolutely a cool moment in my life.
While we are on this subject of kids that have excelled; for some strange reason I heard through the grapevine that a parent told a friend of mine that they hated us because all we want to do is make kids throw up! Seriously lady? What good would that do if that was our focus?
This is how it works. There are two potential issues that cause someone to vomit during exercise. Number one, a new athlete that hasn't worked out in a while or ever for that matter.. exercise is a shock to the body causing all kinds of stuff to be out of wack in the nervous system. Another part of that is that these are athletes we are working with which means that they push themselves very hard even if we ask them to pay attention to what there body is telling them. Hard working people will always be hard working people and wussy's will be wussy's!
The other thing that happens is that these kids each junk prior to coming to workout. When they eat cereal or pop tarts, all that they've done is spike there insulin levels which is basically giving them really high levels of energy, which in turn throws there nervous system off again.. forcing vomit.
For the lady who thinks that vomit is our goal, get with the program and stop babying your kid. If you want a baby sitter take your high school kid to Tutor Time, if you want your kid to play for a regional championship then let us do our job and help us out at home by helping with your kid's nutrition.... FYI, all three of those kids above puked at one point in time... now there school is paid for and they continue to come back for training during the off season. Funny how that works!
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
All it Takes is One Time!
Quick and to the point: I've been a catcher all my life. My dream like many of you was to be a professional baseball player and stare out into Wrigley Field from behind the plate. I was always taught that when you step on the field you give nothing less than 110% and for years that is how I approached my game and have continued to preach to the kids I work with.
A long time ago I was watching a game with Mackey Sasser behind the plate and Matt Willimas was the runner at second base. My dad had always told me to fire the ball back to the pitcher harder then they were throwing in to me, so you would never see me throw a bleeder back to the pitcher. I wasn't programed to do so and therefore I don't even think I could throw one back easy. I'd probably hurt myself or launch it over his head. Anyway, Mackey Sasser was catching and has always lobbed the ball back to the pitcher, almost painful to watch. His thinking is probably that he doesn't want to wait his arm on a simple part of the game. Here's the deal though, everyone knew that he did this ever single pitch so when Matty was on second he waited until Sasser was going to lob it back like he'd done every pitch prior, Matty took third base without even a throw from the pitcher once he received the ball.
Yesterday, my favorite catcher in the big's right now (Russel Martin for the Dodgers) was catching against the Phillies. Martin has always been, since being a big leaguer, a leader and a go getter. For some apparent reason though he had a lazy moment and decided to lob the ball back to the pitcher. Jason Werth for the Phillie's was on third and a right handed hitter up at the plate which blocks the catchers view of third base. Here we go, the ball is thrown from the pitcher, strike, Martin lobs it back to the pitcher and Werth takes off. The pitcher grabs the ball and tries to make a throw to the plate but throws high and Werth takes the plate.
So back to my original title of my blog.. "It only takes one time." I would imagine that you won't see anyone steal home again on Russel Martin. He got complacent for a second and paid the price.
Again, kids at home. When you put the uniform on, give it your all and when I yell at you from the dugout, not to get lazy.. remember Mackey Sasser and Russel Martin.. they got lazy and I'll always remember both plays. I would like to remember the catchers that I work with in a positive way rather than saying, "remember the time so and so got lazy and the other team took advantage of them?"
That's my thought of the day. Work hard in life and succeed, get lazy one time and the world will pass you by! Chew on that for a while!
A long time ago I was watching a game with Mackey Sasser behind the plate and Matt Willimas was the runner at second base. My dad had always told me to fire the ball back to the pitcher harder then they were throwing in to me, so you would never see me throw a bleeder back to the pitcher. I wasn't programed to do so and therefore I don't even think I could throw one back easy. I'd probably hurt myself or launch it over his head. Anyway, Mackey Sasser was catching and has always lobbed the ball back to the pitcher, almost painful to watch. His thinking is probably that he doesn't want to wait his arm on a simple part of the game. Here's the deal though, everyone knew that he did this ever single pitch so when Matty was on second he waited until Sasser was going to lob it back like he'd done every pitch prior, Matty took third base without even a throw from the pitcher once he received the ball.
Yesterday, my favorite catcher in the big's right now (Russel Martin for the Dodgers) was catching against the Phillies. Martin has always been, since being a big leaguer, a leader and a go getter. For some apparent reason though he had a lazy moment and decided to lob the ball back to the pitcher. Jason Werth for the Phillie's was on third and a right handed hitter up at the plate which blocks the catchers view of third base. Here we go, the ball is thrown from the pitcher, strike, Martin lobs it back to the pitcher and Werth takes off. The pitcher grabs the ball and tries to make a throw to the plate but throws high and Werth takes the plate.
So back to my original title of my blog.. "It only takes one time." I would imagine that you won't see anyone steal home again on Russel Martin. He got complacent for a second and paid the price.
Again, kids at home. When you put the uniform on, give it your all and when I yell at you from the dugout, not to get lazy.. remember Mackey Sasser and Russel Martin.. they got lazy and I'll always remember both plays. I would like to remember the catchers that I work with in a positive way rather than saying, "remember the time so and so got lazy and the other team took advantage of them?"
That's my thought of the day. Work hard in life and succeed, get lazy one time and the world will pass you by! Chew on that for a while!
Monday, April 20, 2009
Why We Do the Things We Do!
If you are reading this, you are probably one of the loyal members who continues to read the newsletter as well as clicking on my blog posts. Last week you may noticed in the newsletter that I wrote a little statement about how The BAR was up 77% from last year's workout numbers for the same month.
I got some mixed revues for posting such a bold statement. Why did I post it? Simple! I want everyone to know that The BAR is rock'n harder than any other business in the area. Not just fitness business (we put those guys to shame), but just business in general.
The BAR isn't going anywhere. We are stronger than ever. Yes, we have had some transition in the last couple of months. We've lost a couple of trainers to fire fighting and one to a career position where he can get better use out of his Master's Degree. Both of which will be back to help periodically and potentially they will continue long term with us.
So, even with transition we are growing. Honestly, I believe we will continue to grow because we are all willing to work hard and strive to give the best customer service that is possible. When other gyms are cutting towel service and cutting hours. We are buying new towels, adding fresher scents and offering new exercise options and incentives to refer friends and family to us.
Yada yada yada. I can chat all day about what we are doing here but the truth of the matter is; Tracie and I love our staff and we love to work with each and every one of our members.
I look forward to coming into the office everyday and finding out what I can do to make someones exercise experience better. For instance, one of our members the other day asked if we can get more matts for the stretch class as well as a AED (just in case). Right then, Kevin got online and ordered five more matts and I am in the process of saving my nickels for an AED... they cost about $1,500, so I need to manange cash flow to be able to purchase one.
I'm willing to do what other gym guys won't. I'll put more into my studio to make sure that your experience is special.. that's how we do business.. we take care of people and those people take care of us.
Ok, I'm done... any feedback is always appreciated... enjoy and have a successful week!
I got some mixed revues for posting such a bold statement. Why did I post it? Simple! I want everyone to know that The BAR is rock'n harder than any other business in the area. Not just fitness business (we put those guys to shame), but just business in general.
The BAR isn't going anywhere. We are stronger than ever. Yes, we have had some transition in the last couple of months. We've lost a couple of trainers to fire fighting and one to a career position where he can get better use out of his Master's Degree. Both of which will be back to help periodically and potentially they will continue long term with us.
So, even with transition we are growing. Honestly, I believe we will continue to grow because we are all willing to work hard and strive to give the best customer service that is possible. When other gyms are cutting towel service and cutting hours. We are buying new towels, adding fresher scents and offering new exercise options and incentives to refer friends and family to us.
Yada yada yada. I can chat all day about what we are doing here but the truth of the matter is; Tracie and I love our staff and we love to work with each and every one of our members.
I look forward to coming into the office everyday and finding out what I can do to make someones exercise experience better. For instance, one of our members the other day asked if we can get more matts for the stretch class as well as a AED (just in case). Right then, Kevin got online and ordered five more matts and I am in the process of saving my nickels for an AED... they cost about $1,500, so I need to manange cash flow to be able to purchase one.
I'm willing to do what other gym guys won't. I'll put more into my studio to make sure that your experience is special.. that's how we do business.. we take care of people and those people take care of us.
Ok, I'm done... any feedback is always appreciated... enjoy and have a successful week!
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
Where Did Respect Go?
If any of my former coaches ever read this article I bet you they would chuckle and say "wow the kids come a long way." What I'm talking about is the lack of respect that young athletes have towards their peers. I remember in Nevada where I grew up and played ball since I was 4 years old I used to show up to the ball park and do what I thought I was supposed to do.. play ball.
I never thought one bit about hustle or "busting my butt." I used to think that I did all those things.
It wasn't until my senior year at Carson High School when I was being recruited by the University of Nevada Reno. This was a huge opportunity for myself and my family. Everyone from my area wanted to play for Reno but very few ever got the chance. Most players went to junior colleges in California from my area. Anyway, we were playing our first night game ever at our park and the opponent was McQueen High School who was our biggest oponent at the time.
The UNR coaches called my dad and told him that they would be at the game and to sit with them if he liked. I was extremely excited to say the least. This is where it all went wrong. We were down by a run in the bottom of the fourth inning. I was up to the plate with a guy at second. I think I had walked my first two at bats, but looking back it really isn't relevant. Anyway, down by a run and I'm up, swinging from the left side of the plate. The pitcher through me a fastball down the middle and I hit a lazy fly ball to right field. I knew it would be caught and I slowly jogged down to first base.
It was something that I more than likely had done before but this time I had guys watching me. Well, the coaches got up and left right then. My dad looked at them and they said, "we don't want a player that isn't going to hustle for us!"
That was it. My one chance at a scholarship at UNR... GONE!
To say the least, my dad ripped my butt when I got home and my coaches ripped my butt prior to that when I got in the dugout.
I never argued with my coach about it and from that day forward, I hustled for every ball and every play that I could be involved in. (I'll finish the rest tomorrow.. I've got more... tune in tomorrow to read the rest of the story..)
I never thought one bit about hustle or "busting my butt." I used to think that I did all those things.
It wasn't until my senior year at Carson High School when I was being recruited by the University of Nevada Reno. This was a huge opportunity for myself and my family. Everyone from my area wanted to play for Reno but very few ever got the chance. Most players went to junior colleges in California from my area. Anyway, we were playing our first night game ever at our park and the opponent was McQueen High School who was our biggest oponent at the time.
The UNR coaches called my dad and told him that they would be at the game and to sit with them if he liked. I was extremely excited to say the least. This is where it all went wrong. We were down by a run in the bottom of the fourth inning. I was up to the plate with a guy at second. I think I had walked my first two at bats, but looking back it really isn't relevant. Anyway, down by a run and I'm up, swinging from the left side of the plate. The pitcher through me a fastball down the middle and I hit a lazy fly ball to right field. I knew it would be caught and I slowly jogged down to first base.
It was something that I more than likely had done before but this time I had guys watching me. Well, the coaches got up and left right then. My dad looked at them and they said, "we don't want a player that isn't going to hustle for us!"
That was it. My one chance at a scholarship at UNR... GONE!
To say the least, my dad ripped my butt when I got home and my coaches ripped my butt prior to that when I got in the dugout.
I never argued with my coach about it and from that day forward, I hustled for every ball and every play that I could be involved in. (I'll finish the rest tomorrow.. I've got more... tune in tomorrow to read the rest of the story..)
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Proud Husband
You may or may not know, but Tracie ran in a relay race this past weekend that started in Prescott and ended in Mesa. More than 200 miles and 12 team members. This means that Tracie alone ran three legs for a total of 16 miles.
Tracie's team finished in 38 hours (give or take a few minutes). The Ragnar Relay, which is a for profit company that puts on these events around the west had more than 200 teams participate.
When Tracie first said she was going to participate, I was supportive but at the same time I figured she would bow out after a couple of days of training. To my surprise race week was approaching and she was on pace to compete.
Tracie not only participated but she actually ran all of the 16 miles of her legs. I don't know about you readers but 16 miles is an eternity for someone who is a non runner. I've done 5K's with her and almost killed myself trying. I'm a power guy, not an endurance athlete but hey this is not about me.. it's about my wife.
Anyway, we seldom get to tell our better half how proud we are of them but in this instance I am honored and extremely proud of Tracie for sticking to her goal and completing the race. Very few people participated in this event and my wife is one of them.
Even though I don't say it very often; Tracie, I am very proud of you and your accomplishment.... maybe I'll run it with you next year (probably not!)
Tracie's team finished in 38 hours (give or take a few minutes). The Ragnar Relay, which is a for profit company that puts on these events around the west had more than 200 teams participate.
When Tracie first said she was going to participate, I was supportive but at the same time I figured she would bow out after a couple of days of training. To my surprise race week was approaching and she was on pace to compete.
Tracie not only participated but she actually ran all of the 16 miles of her legs. I don't know about you readers but 16 miles is an eternity for someone who is a non runner. I've done 5K's with her and almost killed myself trying. I'm a power guy, not an endurance athlete but hey this is not about me.. it's about my wife.
Anyway, we seldom get to tell our better half how proud we are of them but in this instance I am honored and extremely proud of Tracie for sticking to her goal and completing the race. Very few people participated in this event and my wife is one of them.
Even though I don't say it very often; Tracie, I am very proud of you and your accomplishment.... maybe I'll run it with you next year (probably not!)
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
Taste of Ahwatukee
For the first time in a long time I signed up to have a booth at a local function called Taste of Ahwatukee. Rarely, do I ever sign up for much but this was a special occasion that was for a good cause.
Anyways, I going to keep this blog short and simple. The event was to raise money to build homes in Mexico. A lot of our baseball kids go down every summer and build five or six homes for some people in need. I think last year they raised $17,000 and hopefully they raised more this year.
Well, when I first started to set up I was really unsure what to expect. I noticed a lot of elderly people walking around and the first thing I thought of was.. not our target market.
To put a long story short, once the event started the place got packed with all kinds of people and we probably spoke with ten different families about what we offer at The BAR. With all the different packages that we offer we can pretty much accommodate every one's budget and needs.
I even came across a really great couple that remembered me from the Foothills Athletic Club back in the day. We chatted for quite some time and I think they will be in next week to give us a go. Great people and perfect for the BAR; they'll be great members.
Anyway, the booth cost me about $150 (went to a good cause) and I made probably ten different leads for training or just help with fitness. All in all it was a good event for the BAR.
I think I'll sign up for more community based events. I realized there are a ton of people in our community that need to know about us and I'd like to know more about them!
Anyways, I going to keep this blog short and simple. The event was to raise money to build homes in Mexico. A lot of our baseball kids go down every summer and build five or six homes for some people in need. I think last year they raised $17,000 and hopefully they raised more this year.
Well, when I first started to set up I was really unsure what to expect. I noticed a lot of elderly people walking around and the first thing I thought of was.. not our target market.
To put a long story short, once the event started the place got packed with all kinds of people and we probably spoke with ten different families about what we offer at The BAR. With all the different packages that we offer we can pretty much accommodate every one's budget and needs.
I even came across a really great couple that remembered me from the Foothills Athletic Club back in the day. We chatted for quite some time and I think they will be in next week to give us a go. Great people and perfect for the BAR; they'll be great members.
Anyway, the booth cost me about $150 (went to a good cause) and I made probably ten different leads for training or just help with fitness. All in all it was a good event for the BAR.
I think I'll sign up for more community based events. I realized there are a ton of people in our community that need to know about us and I'd like to know more about them!
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Back in the Game
You may have noticed, if of course you are a local resident, The BAR has been in the media almost every week for the past couple of months. We won the best of Ahwatukee customer service award, best mom and pop shop, the Joe Mather article relating to his training at our local establishment, our annual shoe drive article, channel 15 news shoe drive piece and pretty soon an article about one of our oldest clients, Lee, who is turning 75 and still to this day comes in three times a week and hits the heavy bag to stay in shape.
Yes, we are back in the game of getting our name out there again. People ask me all the time why we don't advertise? To be quite honest, an add in the paper will run you anywhere from $400-700 for a one time shot quarter page, black and white, plus you have to sign a year contract and never has anyone ever come in because of an add that we placed in either the newspaper or magazines for that matter.
Most of you know us really well and also know that we don't cut deals for any one, so to place a deal in an add would go against what we are trying to provide. We treat everyone the same everyday regardless of if you are a long time client or a new person walking through the door. So, to put something in the paper for $700 and a one time shot, what would be our call to action? We know we are the best at what we do, but how do you place an add and convince people to come in and see it for themselves. Yes, we do the first time workout thing free but that's it (what's really funny is that because of the economy stuff, we've had new people who have actually tried to play the "give me more card" or you don't get my business kind of thing... you know what? We don't want your business.... go wheel and deal with someone who doesn't value what they do. Which ever trainer that makes a deal with you will more than likely be out of business in the next 4 months so your deal will be lost anyway.)
If you don't think the BAR is the best workout place on Earth after your first time coming in, then we probably didn't our jobs real well and we don't deserve your business... don't think we are going to give you another test run at it though.. that's not how it works. I can count probably 8 different times where someone came in and tried us out for 2-4 (no pay) sessions before finally pulling the plug and we never hear from them again. Of course we all look at each other as a staff and say what the heck happened? My guys gave their time and expertise, thank you cards went out, emails occurred daily and nothing? You know what happened? The person was looking for free anything and decided to try us! Not going to happen again though. One time shot and then we go back to what we always preach: "We treat everyone the same everyday," and if we haven't earned your business after the first day then we probably don't deserve your business anyway.
That's it... we don't advertise in the papers (very often) and we don't do deals (ever)! People that come into the BAR are treated with respect and we are always very appreciated when we get a referral from them. You know what? They treat us the exact same way. It's back to referring to the BAR as a family place, but I'll save that one for another blog!
Yes, we are back in the game of getting our name out there again. People ask me all the time why we don't advertise? To be quite honest, an add in the paper will run you anywhere from $400-700 for a one time shot quarter page, black and white, plus you have to sign a year contract and never has anyone ever come in because of an add that we placed in either the newspaper or magazines for that matter.
Most of you know us really well and also know that we don't cut deals for any one, so to place a deal in an add would go against what we are trying to provide. We treat everyone the same everyday regardless of if you are a long time client or a new person walking through the door. So, to put something in the paper for $700 and a one time shot, what would be our call to action? We know we are the best at what we do, but how do you place an add and convince people to come in and see it for themselves. Yes, we do the first time workout thing free but that's it (what's really funny is that because of the economy stuff, we've had new people who have actually tried to play the "give me more card" or you don't get my business kind of thing... you know what? We don't want your business.... go wheel and deal with someone who doesn't value what they do. Which ever trainer that makes a deal with you will more than likely be out of business in the next 4 months so your deal will be lost anyway.)
If you don't think the BAR is the best workout place on Earth after your first time coming in, then we probably didn't our jobs real well and we don't deserve your business... don't think we are going to give you another test run at it though.. that's not how it works. I can count probably 8 different times where someone came in and tried us out for 2-4 (no pay) sessions before finally pulling the plug and we never hear from them again. Of course we all look at each other as a staff and say what the heck happened? My guys gave their time and expertise, thank you cards went out, emails occurred daily and nothing? You know what happened? The person was looking for free anything and decided to try us! Not going to happen again though. One time shot and then we go back to what we always preach: "We treat everyone the same everyday," and if we haven't earned your business after the first day then we probably don't deserve your business anyway.
That's it... we don't advertise in the papers (very often) and we don't do deals (ever)! People that come into the BAR are treated with respect and we are always very appreciated when we get a referral from them. You know what? They treat us the exact same way. It's back to referring to the BAR as a family place, but I'll save that one for another blog!
Friday, January 23, 2009
It's A Great Day!
For the last five years Tracie and myself have prided ourselves on being a part of the community and doing whatever we can to contribute. Today we were honored with four different Ahwatukee voted on achievements for 2008.
Yes, we would have liked to be voted number 1 for best place to workout but seriously, exercise is exercise. What makes your exercise special and demanding is the experience that you go through during your exercise. I like to call that customer service and yes, we were voted #1 best customer service in all of the Ahwautkee based businesses. To think that a little mom and pop gym (yes, we won that one as well) would have the best customer service in town. So now I'm thinking either we are really good at treating people right or Ahwatukee businesses need to step it up a little on their services. Of course just a thought though.
We also took second in best personal trainer (Kevin). You know the sad part about it? Kevin not only gives great workouts but he gives every ounce of who he is to the members of the gym. Not just the ones that he works with directly but everyone that is a member or potential member for that reason. He may have been voted number two but I would put my entire reputation on it that Kevin is one of the best trainers in the country. It's not that he is the most educated in fitness but that he completely understands what it means to be a personal trainer. The workout part is only a small portion of what he does, it's the entire experience that he provides that keeps everyone coming back for more. We have a saying that we use a lot in our meetings: "Give people what they want, but incorporate what they need." I would say Kevin understands this completely. "Dry.. you've got my vote and thank you for being the person that you are."
That's it. My two cents are in. I'm proud to have won all these achievements and am humble at the same time. Tracie and I have come a long way since to moving to Arizona in 2000. Here's a quick story; when we moved here from Texas, I was working in Peoria, trying to run a guys gym who lived in Austria, we would chat via the internet. I made no money and drove 45 minutes each way to get there. Tracie was finishing up school at ASU and we lived in a dump in Tempe. We were so broke that I would do yard work for my dad to make $400 a month.... middle of the summer may I add just to cover the bills. Yadayadayada, I can't believe that I have six employees now and a gym that everyone of the town supports. I am grateful to all of you who do business with us. You could go anywhere but you chose us and for that all I can say is thank you.
Yes, we would have liked to be voted number 1 for best place to workout but seriously, exercise is exercise. What makes your exercise special and demanding is the experience that you go through during your exercise. I like to call that customer service and yes, we were voted #1 best customer service in all of the Ahwautkee based businesses. To think that a little mom and pop gym (yes, we won that one as well) would have the best customer service in town. So now I'm thinking either we are really good at treating people right or Ahwatukee businesses need to step it up a little on their services. Of course just a thought though.
We also took second in best personal trainer (Kevin). You know the sad part about it? Kevin not only gives great workouts but he gives every ounce of who he is to the members of the gym. Not just the ones that he works with directly but everyone that is a member or potential member for that reason. He may have been voted number two but I would put my entire reputation on it that Kevin is one of the best trainers in the country. It's not that he is the most educated in fitness but that he completely understands what it means to be a personal trainer. The workout part is only a small portion of what he does, it's the entire experience that he provides that keeps everyone coming back for more. We have a saying that we use a lot in our meetings: "Give people what they want, but incorporate what they need." I would say Kevin understands this completely. "Dry.. you've got my vote and thank you for being the person that you are."
That's it. My two cents are in. I'm proud to have won all these achievements and am humble at the same time. Tracie and I have come a long way since to moving to Arizona in 2000. Here's a quick story; when we moved here from Texas, I was working in Peoria, trying to run a guys gym who lived in Austria, we would chat via the internet. I made no money and drove 45 minutes each way to get there. Tracie was finishing up school at ASU and we lived in a dump in Tempe. We were so broke that I would do yard work for my dad to make $400 a month.... middle of the summer may I add just to cover the bills. Yadayadayada, I can't believe that I have six employees now and a gym that everyone of the town supports. I am grateful to all of you who do business with us. You could go anywhere but you chose us and for that all I can say is thank you.
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