Finding a Personal Trainer in New York City

Every January, a large group of mainly sedentary people descend on their local gym to purchase a membership.  Of course, they have the best intentions of sticking with it.  They will tell themselves that this is the year to turn it all around.  This is the year they get in the best shape of their lives.  After all, that is what you are supposed to say in January.  Similarly, come April, everyone is rushing to submit their taxes.  In both cases, people want to get maximum returns.  But for some reason, people are more likely to seek the assistance of an accountant than a personal trainer.  However, personal trainers, like accountants, help improve your returns.

Even the simplest tax return can take many hours to complete and be very stressful.  Still, there may be deductions that you are eligible for and it is important to be aware of what they are.  Plus, as is the buzz in Congress, the tax codes are very difficult to decipher.  So, many individuals will walk into the CPA office for help.  In fitness, the simple tax return is the equivalent of an otherwise healthy adult beginning a fitness program. There may not be any glaring health issues, but there are details to pay attention to like form and exercise choice.  Making the right choices can help you refine a workout to be more efficient and effective during your exercise sessions.

On the tax front, what happens when your taxes are more involved?  For those with families, joint filers, or small business owners, tax season can keep someone up all night.  For many, using a CPA is an absolute necessity.  However, some still feel they need to do it themselves or they can do just as well on their own.  Ask anyone with a difficult tax return and they will tell you, they got more money back and didn’t have to waste the hours trying to fill out the form properly.  Not only is it necessary to keep up with your expenses all year, but now you need to organize and reconcile everything.  You have to be sure that you separate each line item properly and are taking advantage of every single deduction, whether it is a business deduction or a childcare deduction.  This is the same as a person who needs or wants to start a fitness program and has health problems.  Whether they be illness related or a nagging injury, they need to be addressed when create your exercise program.  If you have high blood pressure, you need to monitor your heart rate and be sure to stay within the recommended range.  Someone with a knee issue may need to stay away from the squat rack.  Ignoring the condition could lead to far worse problems.

The biggest challenge with trying to address both of these scenarios on your own is that you need to know everything about tax laws and exercise physiology.   There are very few people who can be experts in both exercise physiology and filing tax returns, while at the same time have a successful, completely unrelated, full time occupation.  If you are reading this article, you are probably not one of those few, but rather struggle with your own fitness and taxes.  It’s best to delegate the task of creating a maximally beneficial exercise program and a maximum tax refund to one of these industry experts.

In these instances, it is best to hire an certified public accountant or a personal trainer.  They are professionals of their respective fields.  In both cases, they will move you efficiently and effectively through your task to completion.  From a tax perspective, a certified public accountant will save you countless hours of sorting through tax receipts and tax codes to make sure you maximize your returns.  Similarly, a personal trainer Queens will help design a program for you before even stepping out onto the gym floor.  Then they will execute it with you minimizing useless break times, while alternating exercises to give muscles the appropriate rest time to recover for the next set.

In March, you will see plenty of advertisements by companies stating that by having their accountants look over your taxes you will receive a higher tax refund.  In December and January, you will see an increase in advertisements by fitness facilities promoting gym memberships with a personal training NYC special.  For those of you who are do-it-yourselfers, take heed.  There is some truth to these advertisements.  Be true to yourself.  Ask for help when you need to find the best and quickest route to your goals.  Enjoy your workout!

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Let’s be honest.  Word of mouth referrals is not a marketing plan.  It is a testament to you being a great trainer and helping your clients reach their goals.  Your best clients are the ones who refer you to others.  Having those great long-term relationships with your clients, means working with the type of clients who match up well with your skills and experience.  Those who don’t may not stick with you for the long haul, leaving you with the task of finding another client to fill that session time again.  That takes work.  But what about when a client finds you?  They see your skills match their areas of need.  They see your experience matches their plight.  These are the people who stick with you and call you a “lifesaver” or a “life changer.”  They speak of you often and with great appreciation.

Visualize a tree root system and how it fortifies the tree’s foothold in the ground.  As a tree grows, it’s roots grow thicker and deeper into the ground seeking water and nutrients.  The thickest roots are always those that sprout from the tree’s base.  As the thick roots grow, smaller roots sprout from the thick roots so they can absorb more water from the ground.  From those smaller roots, offshoot even thinner roots, but eventually the roots become to thin to split off again.  If the tree is to continue its growth trajectory, it needs additional thick roots to come from its base and produce new roots from it.  Can you see the correlation?  Each root is a client, that can produce additional client.  The thicker the roots, the stronger your client relationship.  These can grow over time.  However, sometimes just like in tough economic times, eventually the soil can dry up and the root begins to shrink.  If the tree roots cannot attract any water they will die.

What does a tree root system have to do with your personal training business referrals?  A lot if you can picture it.  No matter how busy you are, ALWAYS be marketing.  “I get a lot of my business through word-of-mouth referrals.,” is what personal trainers often say.  That’s great.  That is the mark of a successful business, but what about when the referrals dry up?  What is your plan B.  Every great plan needs a plan B to sustain success.

Why do you always need to be marketing even in the best of times?  Because strong roots can help you set off a growth spurt.  Growing your personal training business is your goal.  Also, because nothing is guaranteed. what if one part of the tree’s root system dies or becomes sick? The recession hurt a lot of fitness businesses.  Lastly, on a more positive note, you are always more in demand when you look like you are in demand.  People want what they can’t have.

Someone needs you in 2012.  But will they be able to find you easily online?  Many NYC personal trainers already have a facebook page, twitter account, and a Youtube channel.  However, their existence is separate and fragmented.  Give your clients one source for learning more about you.  Bring them all together, along with all of your skills and experience in one easily accessible online profile.

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Denim wasn’t always so popular.  When I was younger, you went to The Gap and chose between Levi’s and Gap brand jeans. Or you could go to Sears and choose from Lee or Wrangler. Then someone decided they wanted the Jordache look of denim while others went ooh, la, la for Sassoon. Thus the designer denim wars began and now there are so many different companies making pants out of denim it is hard to decide which one to pick. Unless, you know what you need and which body type is best for you. This is no different than selecting a personal trainer. In the 80’s, everyone wanted to workout with Jane Fonda or Jack LaLanne. Then, the personal training industry exploded and with it, many ideas on what characterized the ultimate workout. Their ascendance in prominence has been very similar.

In the broadest sense, the denim companies are like the trainers. At first there were just a handful of trainers. However, as their popularity and success grew, more people wanted to turn their passion for fitness into a successful career. Similarly, now you can find denim from large fashion designers to the  “micro-breweries” of jeans.  You can find denim and personal trainers for virtually any body type.

With this new competition, fitness professionals had to find a way to differentiate themselves from each other. A trainer’s style and philosophy would be the difference maker. This was in the same fashion as denim pant producers began to diversify from a straight leg fit. Eventually you began to see boot leg cut, loose fit, slim fit, just to name a few. For trainers, this amounts to the equivalent of designing different programs for those who want to lose weight, tone up, build muscle, prepare for a competition, combat health problems, or prepare for golf or ski season. There is no all encompassing, one size fits all program for every fitness or wellness goal.

Finally, as each pants company developed, for example, a boot cut, they shaped that style with their own vision. To stand out from competitors, they added their own signature designs and tailoring. Some styled their pockets differently or went with acid-washing techniques to produced different looks. No two boot cuts could be created the same. This is also true for personal trainers when designing a program. For instance, one trainer may create a program centering around exercises using cables and bands, while another designs a similar muscle-building program, but uses more weights, tubing, and body weight.

From progress comes ingenuity. Most often that ingenuity produces advances in a micro and a macro sense. Whether you are designing with denim or designing fitness programs, the need to differentiate and seemingly personalize the details for different body types is becoming more and more essential. Just like there is a pair of denim jeans out there for everyone, you can certainly find the right personal trainer NYC to fit your needs.

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The fitness industry is a multi-billion dollar industry. Therefore, it isn’t fair to pigeonhole the entire idea of fitness into a single visual of a weight room and cardiovascular equipment. Some cannot stand the thought of exercise. However, it is common knowledge that some firm of physical activity should be done everyday for at least 30 minutes. Thus, if the gym is not going to get someone motivated, it is time to think about another form of exercise. For some, they turn to pilates or yoga.

For most people when they think of exercise, they visualize themselves in a gym surrounded by written and machines. They also see themselves doing exercises that they were doing as teenagers when they first started exercising. Maybe they are looking to get back into exercise now after a long layoff. The idea of doing those same exercises does not seem appealing. These people may benefit from the the services of a personal trainer who can show them a few new exercises and design a complete program. For those who can’t stomach the gym monotony, they may decide to try pilates.

Pilates is another great form of exercise that has gained in popularity in recent years. New York City pilates instructors are readily available for in-home sessions or many may have their own studios to meet with clients. If you go to the studio, you will have the benefit of using a reformer machine. At home, a very effective program will take place on a mat. You may also want to explore some of the different variations of Joseph Pilates original vision. NYC pilates instructors may specialize in one variety over another, such as Stott or Power.

Should neither of those interest you and you want something more centering, you may want to look at yoga. NYC yoga instructors will most definitely be versed in the many varieties of yoga. Typically, yoga NYC studios will stick with one genre of yoga over another. There are several diffferent types such as, bikram, baths, and vinyasa, being some of the most popular. It is okay to ask specific questions before deciding on which one is best for you.

If you can’t decide on a form of exercise, simply close your eyes and see what types of visions come to mind. If ypu see yourself on a mat workout your core, pilates may be your thigh. Keep in mind, many trainers have multiple certfications and can incoporate exercises from all three modalities. This helpful from a few standpoints, including the one that you don’t have to make a quick decision. You can feel it out over time and see where your true sense of exercise motivation comes from. Enjoy your workout.

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Marketing is about building awareness for your business. Marketing can bring new business opportunities, but is not an immediate guarantee that new business will come. As a personal trainer, it is important to do all kinds of marketing from a grass roots effort to social media. If you aren’t doing several of them at once, you could be missing out on some new clients and revenue. Rightfully so, you have to be concerned with the cost of these services and their possible return on your investment.
The initial cost of designing, printing, and distributing of flyers and postcards can easily run into the hundreds or thousands depending on how many you are printing and the print quality. Thankfully, over time the cost goes down if you continue to use your existing design. Unfortunately, flyers, postcards and the like have a limited shelf life and once they have been removed or all been picked up they are gone until another distribution is contracted.
You could also consider giving away free sessions to charity events or school auctions. In any case, your session rate times the number of sessions you perform is the cost of trying to acquire a new customer. Even though there is no out of pocket cost, this can be a costly way to advertise. Be careful not to work for free during a desirable time slot when you could be earning money. The internet is the newest frontier and a necessary avenue of promotion. However, this can involve the most upfront capital. Search engine optimization includes building a website and optimizing for keywords. This will easily cost thousands of dollars initially. There are a number of items you can do for free, but it takes a lot of time and patience to get your website the way you want it, as well as competitive rankings. Rankings are what you need if you want people to be able to find your website. If you go with Google’s pay per click advertising, realize that anything related to NYC personal training is going to cost $3-$7 anytime someone were to click on your ad. Even if they click in error and go right back, you still pay Google. That said, 100 clicks will cost you $300-$700. It can add up quickly. As a less expensive, and much less technical, alternative to building your on website and optimizing it yourself, you may consider joining a fitness community website, like NeighborhoodTrainers. In addition to the fitness community membership, you may have event opportunities, blog opportunities, monthly newsletter “healthy tips” contribution opportunities, among others. This can provide a lot of value without the headaches of running your own site.
Again, these are just a smattering of strategies that a personal trainer NYC should use. They all work well together. Use some of them as well as others, for value comparisons. Whatever you choose, do not to give up on your marketing strategy too quickly. Make sure you are properly funded so you can sustain it for a period of time to give it a chance. Also, don’t expect everything to happen because you initiated something. Rather, use it to reach out to clients, prospects, friends, etc. Tell others what you’ve done. Put it on your Facebook page. Email every one of your prospects and then follow up with a phone call. Have your friends forward your link or like you link on Facebook. After all, a personal trainer NYC can never rule out the benefits of receiving a referral.

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Money is tight and when that happens, tough decisions have to be made.  Inevitably, some people look at their gym memberships or personal training sessions as a quick way to wade through the economic doldrums gripping our society.  Farcically, people tell themselves they can do it at home on their own.  The real results are that the workout ceases and a less active lifestyle ensues.   Stop the cycle of lying to yourself before it can start.  Exercise reduces stress and few things are more stressful than job insecurity.  Therefore, there is a greater need to find a fitness outlet than some kind of extravagant pampering expense.  Realize at all angles that if cutting expenses is necessary, that you can survive some fitness cuts, but will find an equivalent amount from other sources to equal what you need to reduce.

Stretch your sessions out over a longer period of time.  If you train once a week, move to once every other week Train on your own more and ask your trainer to provide you with a plan for the other days.  If you are up front about your situation and have a nice relationship with you personal trainer, then this should not be an issue at all.  They know when your situation improves that you will pick up your other sessions again.

Negotiate a lower rate for a less desirable time.  There are always hours in the day that personal trainers have trouble filling.  But if you have some flexibility and want to work something out that helps both you and your trainer, then this may be a great alternative.  If you are hurting, your personal trainer will undoubtedly be feeling it from other clients. Get ahead of the curve.

Look for group fitness opportunities. Small group training, boot camps, cycling groups, deal sites are all geared towards the budget conscious who want to stay involved with some level of personal training.  There are a few different options here.  Small group training, often referred to as semi-private training can help someone maintain a program that goes more at their pace.  Boot camps and other group fitness classes still can give you direction and a program to follow, but you will lose much of the personal attention.  Finally, be wary of the crazy deals promoted by some websites out there today.  While the price may speak of great value, you may be overwhelmed by a class that is overcrowded and understaffed.

These are just a few alternatives to seek when trying to reduce the expense of working with a personal trainer NYC.  There are inevitably other options you may consider for your own situations.   What is important is to assess the financial need and decide if giving up your NYC personal trainer all together is the best course of action to save money.  Because when you give up fitness, you may up end up creating new expenses associated with health problems.

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If you go to the gym once and work your legs out until they are so sore you can’t sit on the toilet, do they look thinner? Feel stronger?

What a silly question! Of course not.

Then WHY is it that so many people out there think they can get a quick fix at the gym? They think “I’ll do one personal training session and then I’ll be on track and I’ll get thinner and stronger.” Yes, going to the gym is the right idea. And yes, getting on track is the right idea also. The ‘on track’ is the bridge between your cause and effect.  It’s the path that you set yourself on.

So why do so many people start on the path, hop off of it, and then feel disappointed that they didn’t achieve their goals? Unrealistic expectations. There are NO quick fixes at the gym!

It takes approximately 3 months to see a difference in your body from consistent exercise. So, yes, after one month please feel great that you got that far, but don’t expect to see much difference. Pay attention to the difference in how you are feeling and keep on keeping on. Yes, you may get discouraged, and that’s when you really need to dig your heels in and move it! If you can’t do that on your own, hire a Personal Trainer who knows the most effective route to get you where you want to go and will hold you accountable.

When you set out to do something you put a plan into action and start on a path. Think of your exercise goals in 3 month segments. Work for that 3 month goal and stay on your path. When you achieve the goal, have a pre chosen reward for yourself. Then take your newly empowered self and move on to the next goal.

DON’T GIVE UP!! Give it the whole 3 months. If life happens and you waver, adjust your time frame and hop back on your path.

Many people have trouble motivating themselves to keep going for a three month period. That’s where I come in. I can assign you an experienced Personal Trainer based on your individual needs and fitness goals. We have an introductory special going on to get you started on your path to Health and Fitness! It’s $150 for 3 sessions! That’s half off the regular price.

Are you going to keep saying “I really should work out”, or whatever your version is? Or are you going to DO it???

Here’s a quote from Tony Robbins:

“A real decision is measured by the fact that you’ve taken a new action. If there’s no action, you haven’t truly decided.”

See you at the gym.

Your Wellness Coach,

Miranda Zukowski

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What is the TRX Suspension Trainer, and why should you care?  The TRX (http://www.trxtraining.com ) is an entire gym in a bag, a set of non-stretch straps that can be hung from a door in your apartment, your gym’s pull-up bar or Smith machine bar, or a swing set bar outside, allowing you to work your chest, back, arms, legs, and abs.  The TRX, invented by a Navy Seal, looks similar to gymnastics rings; however, the TRX has padded handles and foot cradles, which allow you to do a much wider variety of exercises.  The TRX weighs next to nothing and is small enough to fit in your gym bag, purse, or briefcase.  Training with the TRX has several unique benefits over other types of fitness equipment.

3 DIMENSIONAL

Unlike most machine exercises, many TRX exercises are in 3D.  Most gym machines are in the sagittal plane, which means you only move forward and back (bicep curl machine, a leg extension machine, a treadmill).  In real life, your body moves in all three planes: forward and back, side to side (frontal plane), and rotation (transverse plane).  Because the TRX allows you complete freedom of movement, you can do BOTH traditional strength training/single-plane movements AND multi-planar/3D functional training.

TRX BENEFITS FOR WOMEN

It’s time to lose the fear of bulking up and gain slim, firm, toned muscles!  Many women are doing cardio-only workouts, or using weights too light to do any good, because they are afraid of big, bulky muscles.   The TRX allows you to build tremendous strength and power without ever bulking up, no matter what number of reps per set you do, and regardless of whether you do TRX by itself or in addition to traditional cardio.  Check out Rachel Cosgrove’s book The Female Body Breakthrough for scientific research on strength training for women.  The book also has numerous real life stories (with non-photo-shopped pictures) of women who are using strength training to lose weight, and who have not bulked up in the slightest.

TRX BENEFITS FOR MEN

I know many of you guys out there want to build muscle.  But guess what? If you don’t burn the fat that’s covering your muscles, you will never see them.  TRX lets you chisel away the fat to reveal the muscle definition you already have in your arms, chest, and abs, all without lots of added cardio.  “But wait,” you say, “guys NEED dumbbells to build muscle.”   Not so—dumbbells are just one of many great tools to build muscle.  The TRX is effective for stand-alone strength training when you don’t have access to DBs, such as when traveling.  However, using the TRX does NOT mean you need to give up the iron!  TRX makes a great addition to DB and barbell strength training.  Check out the book Abs Revealed, which is packed with color photos of each exercise.  The models have great muscle definition, but they’re regular guys, not bodybuilders.  The author, men’s fitness expert Jonathan Ross, two-time personal trainer of the year, shows you how to combine the TRX with traditional equipment to “reveal” the muscles you’ve never seen (but have always been there).

Having worked as a personal trainer for over 5 years, I have observed that the biggest missing component in most men’s (and some women’s) training programs is flexibility.  The TRX is not just for strength training – it also allows you to do a full-body stretch.  While you can use the TRX with a mat for some flexibility moves, there are many TRX stretches for which you don’t even need a mat!  Many men who swear they hate stretching have found that with the TRX, they can finally get the flexibility gains they need to support their strength workouts.

WHAT THE TRX IS…AND ISN’T

I don’t know about you, but I’m sick of hype in the fitness industry.  I’m not going to tell you that the TRX is “the only piece of equipment you’ll ever need” or that TRX is “the best piece of equipment on the market” or any other such nonsense.  Dumbbells, barbells, kettlebells, stability balls, and jump ropes, for example, are all just as beneficial, and just as proven to help you reach your goals as the TRX.  The best workout for you is the one you will actually do!  But if you’re tired of the usual weights and machines and want something different and fun, TRX is for you.  If you’re sick of stuffy indoor air, and want to take your workout outside, TRX is a great option.  If you want to work out indoors, and have next to no space in your apartment, TRX is the solution.  If you’re bored to death with crunches that get you no results, and want functional training for your entire core, TRX is a worthwhile tool that allows you to do dozens of exercises for your abs, obliques, and deeper core muscles.

HOW TO GET STARTED WITH THE TRX

A new TRX sells for around $200, or you can check Craigslist for an even less expensive used TRX.  Wherever you buy it, be sure to buy the Door Anchor.  The TRX by itself is only equipped to be hung on a bar (at your gym or park); the Door Anchor is usually sold separately.  Even if you think you will mostly be using your TRX outdoors, it is really worth a few extra dollars to have the option of using it inside on a rainy day or in a hotel room.  Don’t want to pay for a TRX?  You can connect with a personal trainer who will bring their TRX to you.  If you compare the cost of the TRX to getting a TRX without even purchasing one, it’s like getting the first two sessions with your trainer for free!  You can search Neighborhood Trainers for certified fitness professionals in your area, and then read through the profiles to find a trainer who has a specialty certification from TRX/Fitness Anywhere.

Still not sure the TRX is worth your time?  Think it sounds kind of cool, but can’t quite visualize how it would work for you?  Visit the TRX Video Library.  While the makers of TRX do have some DVDs for sale, everything in the TRX Video Library is free.  Although there are a few testimonials, you can skip them and go straight to the free videos that actually teach you how to do the TRX exercises by clicking the tabs that say “Upper Body,” “Lower Body,” and “Core.”  If you already have a TRX (or can borrow a friend’s), you can work out right along with the free videos.  http://www.trxtraining.com/trx-resources/trx-exercise-video.php

Lisa Snow is an ACE, NSCA-CPT, and NPTI certified personal trainer and boot camp instructor who is also certified to teach TRX to groups and 1-on-1.  eftpersonaltraining.com

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