CategoriesMotivational rant

How to Prevent Burning Out as a Fitness Professional

I wanted to use a blog title that fit my personality more.

Like:

“Life as a Fitness Professional: See Brick Wall. Throw Face Into It. Repeat.”

But, you know, SEO and all.

Being a Personal Trainer/Coach Isn’t All Kitten Kisses and Rainbows

Forgive the nebulous tone out of the gate.

Let me be clear: I love what I do, and I wouldn’t have chosen to do it for the past 20 or so years if I didn’t gain some semblance of enjoyment from it.

[Although, truth be told, if Hollywood came knocking at my door tomorrow asking me to be the next Jason Bourne I’d peace out faster than you can say undulated periodization.]

I’ve been very fortunate and lucky (with equal parts hard work and insatiable consistency) building a career that not only provides an immense amount of pride and gratitude, but also satisfaction and sustenance.

Now, we could make the argument that being a fitness professional is a pretty sweet gig.

I mean, you get paid to hang out in a gym all day and wear sweatpants. There’s also a low-barrier to entry, which can be good and bad.

Good in that it allows people to pursue their passion without dropping $40,000 per year on a degree. Bad in that, well, there’s a low-barrier to entry.

Anyone can become a personal trainer.

via GIPHY

Additionally, I could go on forever listing all the other benefits to being a fitness professional:

  • You help and inspire people on a daily basis.
  • Free gym membership.
  • You more or less set your own schedule.
  • You can eat out of a Pyrex container and no one will judge you.
  • Did I mention you get to wear sweatpants to work everyday?
  • You get to wear sweatpants to work everyday.

There is a dark side, however.

While the numbers can vary, and it’s more or less an arbitrary, ball-park figure: many fitness professionals – personal trainers in particular – have a “life span” of 1-3 years.

Feeding that statistic, the average personal trainer makes roughly $32,000 per year, working a split-shift 60 hour per week schedule1 often with minimal (if any) benefits.

  • Spotty health insurance
  • No 401k plan. It can happen, but it’s rare.
  • Limited (if any) paid vacation.
  • But hey, you get to wear sweatpants.

While by no means a dirt poor scenario, there’s a reason a very finite number of fitness professionals ever hit the magical six-figure mark.

The ones that do often either work in a big city or in a very affluent area where people can afford high(er) price points for their services. Running the math, a trainer could work a 20-hour week charging $100 per session and easily make six-figures in a year.

However, that’s not realistic for most.

Not many can charge $100 per hour ($40-$50 is more like it), and not many are taking 100% of the profit. I.e., for those working out of a commercial gym, it’s often standard they take 30-50% of the cut (depending on what kind of “tier system” implemented).2

Not only that, cost of living has to be taken into consideration. Sure, trainers living in a more urban area can charge more, but they’re also paying $2000 per month to live in a closet (and $16 for a burger).

Another thing to consider is this:

This is NOT a “Demand” Career

Being a fitness professional means you’re in the service industry. How many people in the service industry do you know who are making bank?

Not only that…it’s not a “demand” career.

There’s always going to be a demand for funeral home directors, electricians, doctors, and, unfortunately, used car sales(wo)men.

Personal trainers and strength coaches? Not so much.

When the economy is stagnant people have a tendency to chop off what’s expendable. If it’s a matter of putting food on the table or paying someone 2x per week to take them through a killer front squat Tabata circuit while balancing on two kettlebells, what do you think is going to win out?

So, what can be done to not burn out and set the odds in your favor?

First: read THIS. <—The holy grail isn’t necessarily owning your own gym.

1) Grind, Hustle, [Insert Motivational Word Here]

To be honest, I hate the connotation of “grinding” or “hustling.” Every time I see a Tweet or IG status of someone saying how they’re up early “grinding” or how much they’re” hustling,” I want to jump into a live volcano.

I get it, though.

You’re reading anything and everything Gary Vaynerchuk has in print or paper and you’re listening to all of his podcasts.

I did too, for about three days. And then I got over it. His message, while good, just comes across as a broken record to me.

I don’t want to be Gary Vee, and I don’t think Gary Vee wants you to be Gary Vee either.

He works….all……the…….time.

Even he will admit he’s an outlier when it comes to work ethic and loving the grind.

There IS a degree of grinding and hustling that’s inherently conjoined to the fitness industry.

We work when others don’t.

Too, it’s a very, very, VERY saturated market…and you better bet your ass you need to do something to separate yourself from the masses (and by extension, begin to build a brand).

Being epically good at what you do is step #1.

This doesn’t require Twitter followers or a status update. It requires hard work, consistency, maintaining integrity, along with empathy and gratitude.

“Building a “brand” isn’t a social media illusion. Things like integrity, empathy, & gratitude (along with being good at what you do) count.”

What many refer to as “grinding” is just, you know, going to work. Like everyone else.

However, there’s a difference between going to work and actually going to work and taking pride in it…and working towards something bigger and better.

Learn and respect that difference.

2) “Brand” Building

It’s 2021: You better recognize that “building a brand” isn’t anchored on this idea that you need to optimize website SEO or hire a photographer to take nice looking photographs of you eating a kale salad next to a Ferrari so you can post them on your social media.

Renowned coach and speaker, Brett Bartholomew, shared a powerful message recently:

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Brett Bartholomew (@coach_brettb)

As Brett notes, SOCIAL SKILLS are what’s missing in this industry; not more certifications and licensures. Brand building (and by extension, success) isn’t so much about putting more letters next to your name or having a 3x bodyweight deadlift.

It’s about CONNECTION and having the social skills necessary to build healthy and long-lasting client relationships & rapport.

NOTE: Anyone interested in that topic should come to Boston this November to attend Dr. Lisa Lewis’s 2-day workshop: Inside the Coach’s Mind. (wink wink, nudge nudge).

👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇

Social media is certainly part of the equation, however.

“But wait, Tony, didn’t you just say that social networks are a waste of time?”

Nope, that’s not at all what I said.

I said “do the work.”

Coach. Interact. Get people results. Get good at what you do.

CURATE RELATIONSHIPS.

Social media should serve as a complement to your brand. Not BE the brand. Pete Dupuis wrote an awesome article a few years ago on what Cressey Sports Performance did to build their brand.

“Believe it or not, we were open for business for 293 days before our Cressey Sports Performance website went live.  In fact, we strung together more than 1,200 days of operation before realizing we needed to get CSP up on Twitter.”

Anecdotally, I’ll be the first to admit I lucked out in this regard.

I helped build CSP from scratch, and both Eric (Cressey) and Pete encouraged me to build my own brand within a brand. I served as an ambassador for the CSP name, but was also able to leverage that to help construct the brand of “Tony Gentilcore.”

Having Eric and Pete in my corner helped, a lot.

It also helped that I jumped on the website and social media bandwagon before it became a “thing.”

I wrote my first blog post in 2006. I now have over 200o+ posts on this site. And this is not counting the hundreds of articles I’ve written on top of that for other websites.

It wasn’t until 2009-2010 that I invested in myself and hired someone to make a customized website for me.

Quick shoutout to Copter Labs on that front.

Nevertheless, I wrote hundreds of blog posts on my site and interacted with a lot of my readership before I “graduated” to being paid to write for other sites. I often joke that my high school English teachers would shit a copy of “Catcher in the Rye” if they knew I was a paid writer.

Moreover, once I started gaining more traction with my writing I started being asked to present at conferences and started to also be invited to gyms across the world to put on workshops.

Being transparent, open to other ideas, amicable, a good listener, and generally not an asshole have all served me well in growing my “brand.”

All of this to say: I now have other streams of revenue to not only bolster my brand, but to also help augment my coaching. I don’t have to be on the floor 30-40 hours per week (as it stands now, I coach 15-20 hours per week). What’s more, if COVID-19 taught us anything in this industry, it’s that having more “diversity” with your revenue streams is imperative.

  • In-person coaching
  • Distance/online coaching
  • Writing
  • Presenting/workshops (virtual *& in-person)
  • Affiliate income
  • Digital products/resources
  • Mentorships
  • And, sure, sponsorships and “influencing” can be tossed on the list too.

NONE of this happened over-night. And, if I were to be 100% honest: It’s only now – year 19 into my career – where I feel like I’m starting to “get it.”

Not be a Debbie Downer and all, there’s A LOT of noise out there. More and more fitness pros are out there vying for everyone else’s attention and a piece of the social media pie, and it’s becoming more saturated by the day.

It’s becoming harder and harder to make a name for yourself (if that’s what you choose to do).

However, it’s not an insurmountable feat to rise above the chaos.

The key, though: amazing, unparalleled, consistent content.

And not being an unapproachable tool canoe.

That helps too.

CategoriesUncategorized

5 Mistakes I Made as a Trainer and Coach That You Should Avoid

Here’s a little TG trivia for all of you: it was never my intention to become a personal trainer or strength coach. That wasn’t my game plan at least.  Nope, my game plan, and what I went to school for, was to become a health teacher.

Bachelor’s degree in Health Education, thank you very much.

Well, actually, my real game plan all along was to become a professional baseball player, sign on with the Oakland Athletics, and become an honorary member of The Bash Brothers alongside Mark McGwire and Jose Canseco.

Growing up I had the exact same poster you see to the left hanging on my wall in my bedroom, and I can’t even begin to tell you how many hours I spent outside in my side yard hitting a baseball back and forth pretending to be a Major Leaguer hitting a 3-2 fastball to win game 7 of the World Series.

By my count I think I won roughly 5,974 Game 7s. Not too shabby!

Moreover there wasn’t any point throughout the year where I wasn’t playing a sport or game of some sort.  Wiffleball, basketball, kickball, football, tennis, swimming, cops and robbers, duck-duck-goose, you name it, I played it.

All of this to say I was a very active kid growing up.  “Fitness,” even though I didn’t know any better back then, was always a part of my life.

I got my first weight training set when I was 13 or 14 (Santa dropped it off one Christmas), and I remember setting up shop downstairs in my parent’s basement, slapping the poster on a wooden beam, and religiously following the diagrams with the muscly dude (who wore really short shorts) to a “T” every other day until I entered high school and had access to a real weight room.

All throughout my high school career, I’d stay after school to lift weights for 45-60 minutes and then take the “late” bus home which ended up being another 45-60 minute bus ride.  During that time I’d sit there, usually alone, and day dream about playing college baseball while jamming a softball between my fingers which I ascertained would make it easier to grip a baseball to throw a forkball (which, coincidentally enough, was the go to pitch of Oakland A’s ace, Dave Stewart).

I could easily sit here and go on and on about my high school (and college!) baseball playing days, but I’ll spare you all the details because I don’t want to bore you to tears

Although, there was this one time, at baseball camp……….

KIDDING.

Long story short, I had a few professional tryouts but nothing panned out.  Apparently there wasn’t much of a demand for a 6-1 right-handed pitcher with a mid 80s fastball.  Go figure!

That’s me my senior year at Mercyhurst College (home team) pitching the first game of a double header. And let me just say I looked gooooooood in baseball pants…..;o)

With my playing days caput, I moved back to my homestate of New York and transferred to SUNY Cortland to pursue my degree in Health Education.

I figured that as much as health and fitness was a part of my life, I might as well make it a career.

I did all the course work, even did my student teaching in both a high school and middle school placement.  If you can believe it I actually had to teach Sex Education to a bunch of 7th graders.  I challenge anyone to say the word penis to a group of 13 year olds and not participate in all the giggling.

To this day I’m still amazed that I was able to make it through alive.

Ironically enough, academia wasn’t the road I ended up travelling down. As part of my concentration (Health and Wellness Promotion) I also had to complete an internship that following summer, and luckily for me I found one at a corporate gym just outside Syracuse, NY.

After three months, I had to make a decision:  I could either wear a suit and tie everyday…..or sweatpants.

It was a no-brainer.

That was a little over ten years ago.  Looking back I can tell you I made a crap ton of mistakes when I entered this field. While I thought I was the bees knees and that I knew everything there was to know, I can tell you from experience I was a walking ball of fail.

Don’t get me wrong, I feel I was better than the average trainer, but I’d ve lying if I said I was anything to brag about.  I had my fair share of ups and downs, and if I had to pick which were some of my major mistakes

1.  Trying to Prove to Everyone How Smart I Was

In an effort to showcase to every new (or prospective) client how smart I was, I used every opportunity I could to use big words and talk over them – as if that was going to be the “x-factor” in winning them over.

Reciprocal Inhibition

Synergistic Dominance

Active/Passive Restraints

Accomodating Resistance

Onomatopoeia

Blah blah blah. While I thought I was wowing them with my knowledge base and extensive vocabulary, looking back, all that really happened, much of the time, was coming across douchier than a Jersey Shore reject.

Listen, if you’re working with someone who’s coming to you with chronic low back pain, they could care less about what Dr. McGill says about compressive loading, force vectors, and biomechanical breakdowns.  Well, some may care and actually be interested. And if so, I want to hang out with them.

But 95% of the time, they do not care in the least.  All they care about is whether or not you can help them get out of pain.  Or lose 15 lbs.  Or help them increase their bench press.  Whatever the case may be.

One piece of advice that I’ve always relayed to other trainers (and I only say this through experience) is that if you can’t explain something to a cocktail waitress on a napkin, you’re making it too complicated.

2.  Being Scared S***less to Ask for People’s Money

To be honest: this is still something I struggle with, but through the years I’ve gotten much better at it.

As a new trainer, and especially when I moved to Boston, this was something I really had to work to get better on.  It’s never easy to ask someone for their money, but when you consider that you’re offering a service, and you’re damn good at what you do, you need to recognize that you should be compensated accordingly for your time.

More or less I feel that if you’re a good person, demonstrate that you actually care and are invested in helping someone, and act professional (and don’t try every trick in the book to swindle them), people will more than likely commit.

It’s just the whole conversation of asking for money that I’ve always had a hard time with – especially when I first started out. I’d have 1-2 comped sessions with a new member, and then after their last session the crickets would start chirping, a few tumbleweeds would blow through, and I’d be like, “soooooo, uh, wanna train with me?”

Of course my delivery improved throughout the years as I gained confidence in my abilities, but time and time again, if there’s ONE trait that upcoming trainers say they need to work on, it’s learning to ask for money.

3.  Training People the Way I Wanted to Train Them (Emphasis On “I”)

There’s no secret that I have an affinity for lifting heavy stuff.  I think everyone should place an emphasis on strength and getting stronger, and good things will happen.

Thing is, as a trainer, sometimes, begrudgingly, you have to remember that not everyone’s goal is to deadlift a mack truck.

If someone is paying you good money as their trainer, you have to realize it’s a bit of give and take.  On one end you’re the trainer, the expert, the guy (or girl) who knows WTF they’re talking about.  It’s your job to dictate to your clients what they need to do, not necessarily what they want to do given their goals, health history, and ability level.

Powerlifters like to train people like powerlifters.  Bodybuilders like bodybuilders. Jedis like Jedis.  So on and so forth.  And that’s okay.  In my younger years I used to gravitate towards telling people that they have to get strong, they have to squat, and that they have to avoid body part splits at all costs.

While I still feel that’s the case much of the time, I also know that I turned off a lot of clients back in the day for being so pigheaded.

Just remember:  Yes, you’re the professional.  People are paying YOU for your expertise.  But it’s also important to understand that your goals aren’t necessarily their’s.

4.  Not Networking Sooner

Establishing a close-knitted network of other professionals that you can exchange ideas with, talk shop, and learn from is CRUCIAL.  This is something I completely ignored my first 1-2 years in the industry.

It wasn’t until I started reaching out to other people via email and asked for their advice I certain thing that I felt I was making strides in my career.

Many people don’t know this, but Eric Cressey and I met through the internet.

Now, it’s not like we met on BestFriendStrengthCoachFinder.com or anything, but we always seemed to cross paths on various fitness websites and what not. Before long we corresponded through email, met in person at a group gathering in NYC in 2004, and the rest, as they say, is history.

Going out of your way to reach out to other trainers or coaches or practitioners is a big deal. Asking a local coach if you can stop by to observe one day is pretty much standard practice nowadays.  Most are more than willing to help out, and chances are it’s going to lead to other potential networking opportunities down the road.

Hey, you never know what it could lead to!

5.  Continuing Education Is Kind of a Big Deal

This is something that took me a while to grab onto back in the day.  To me, because I wasn’t making much money out of the gate (and trust me, most trainers don’t), I felt everything was a cost.

Whether it was a book, a DVD, or heading to a seminar or conference, my immediate thought process was “how much is this going to set me back?”

And then I heard Mike Boyle speak on the topic, and he changed my mindset entirely. Instead of viewing things like books and seminars as a cost, you need to view them as an investment!

You’re investing in yourself – and more often than not, what you pick up or learn will end up paying for itself (and then some).  I remember going to see Dr. McGill speak once to the tune of a few hundred dollars, and upon heading back to work, easily picked up 2-3 clients because I was able to articulate some knowledge bombs I learned regarding managing lower back pain.

And since I’m on the topic of continuing education, as it happens, my good friends Jon Goodman, Dean Somerset, and John Romaniello released their killer Becoming the Expert DVD set today.

It stands to reason that a vast majority of people who read this site on a daily basis are trainers or coaches and are either trying to pick up more personal training clients (and struggling to do so) or trying to build their business or brand (and struggling to do so).

Becoming the expert today is more than just book smarts, training knowledge, and good looks (although, that doesn’t hurt….wink).

Having a repertoire of unique skill-sets like the ability to write, creating a reputation online, and finding a niche market are huge selling points and serve as fantastic ways to separate yourself from the masses.

Any edge you can gain is a good thing, and these guys went out of their way to divulge some of the things that helped them succeed in their respective careers.

Jonathan Goodman – Social Media Domination for Fitness Professionals (2hrs)

John Romaniello – Fuck Mediocrity: Kick-Ass, Take Names and Make Money Your Way to World Domination (3hrs)

Dean Somerset – Specialization and the Expert Experience (1hr)

What’s more, there are several 20-30 minute BONUS videos from the likes of Lou Schuler, Neghar Fonooni, and Mark Young, to name a few.

The whole set is on sale for $87 through this week, and that includes FREE SHIPPING anywhere throughout the world.  It doesn’t matter if you live in England or Botswana – there’s no additional cost with shipping.

But that only lasts for THIS WEEK only (ending 4/13).

I don’t think I need to tell you that the information provided is solid, and I really feel this is something that will help a lot of upcoming (and veteran) trainers out there take their business to the next level.

===> Becoming the Expert <=== (Click Me)