IHRSA 2015 was certainly one for the books!  What a show! new friends, amazing new technology driven initiatives and amazing education sessions! 

I have many favorite highlights to mention and I want to keep it simple! so here are my top 4 favorite moments of IHRSA 2015. 

1. The Fitness Technology (Fit-C) Meeting. 

Wow!  

Success through collaboration, the room was buzzing with engineers, manufacturers and many other executives that are very interested in moving the needle on technology driven initiatives impacting the fitness industry. 

This particular group is definitely one to watch! they are making huge waves and I look forward to whats to come!  

2.  Education Sessions! 

 Bryan O'Rourke , Rasmus Ingerslev and  Mel Tempest just to name a few had absolutely incredible content to offer! Click on each of their above names to learn more about their individual roles in our industry.

Bryan is very diligent about making sure he provides relevant and purposeful content in his messages.  For more info on this session in particular click here. 

3. The Tradeshow! 

My goodness! what a show, from shiny treadmills to new technology embedded right into the equipment, there were many exciting things to see! 

4. All of My Favorite Fitness Friends! 

I had so much fun walking the tradeshow floor and meeting and greeting with all of my fellow industry friends. I was able to reconnect with folks I have not seen in a while and also meet friends in person that I have been connected with virtually for years.  

Pictured above: Kelley Sweeney, Drew Surprenant,  Josh Trent, Sarah Pellagrino, Ingrid Owen, Robert Dyer, Harry Reo 

Thank you for reading my recap! Looking forward to IHRSA 2016 in Orlando Florida!

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Lindsey Rainwater is an experienced consultant and coach  to the fitness and wellness industry.  She specializes in business development and leadership. Currently she is working with the Fitmarc Team helping Health Club owners all over the south central region of the united states propel their business forward via group exercise solutions.  For more information about Lindsey, follow her @lindseyrainh2o

My Top 4 Reasons to be at IHRSA 2015

1. Amazing Education Sessions, like these two! 

 Two education sessions that I am especially looking forward to are Mr. Bryan O'Rourke's sessions on Thursday and Friday!  Seeing that my favorite topic is technology merged with fitness trends, you can imagine why the two below sessions are top of my list!  

Click the picture below to get more information about the sessions.   

Click here to register for this session 

Click here to register for this session

2. Key Note Speakers like, Arianna Huffington!

Read more here 

As an avid Blog reader, when I found out Arianna would be joining us this year I was beyond excited! Her thoughts on Success Redefined positions itself perfectly within the Fitness Industry and rally's a cry for participation! 

“Earlier in my career, I operated under the common delusion that burning out was the necessary price one paid for accomplishment and success. However, recent scientific findings have made it clear that this couldn’t be Less true. In fact, performance actually improves when our lives include time for renewal, wisdom, wonder and giving. ”

— Arianna Huffington

3. One Word. Tradeshow. 

4. People, of course People!

My favorite reason to go to IHRSA is to see all my fitness friends in one place at one time!

Will I see you there? 

Message me Here so we can meet in person! 

cheers!

Lindsey

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Lindsey Rainwater is an experienced consultant and coach  to the fitness and wellness industry.  She specializes in business development and leadership. Currently she is working with the Fitmarc Team helping club owners all over the south central region of the united states propel their business forward via group exercise solutions.  For more information about lindsey, follow her @lindseyrainh2o

Imagine you are in a movie theatre, the previews are over and the curtain lifts, the movie is about to begin! The sounds of the film begin to fill the room and the darkness takes over, giving the main screen the glowing, center stage.

All over the world, this same type of phenomenon is taking place, only the feature presentation is group fitness workouts led by virtual instructors and trainers.

What's on my mind right now that's relative to virtual fitness is not necessarily the products themselves but the way they are delivered to the members.

How incredible would it be if each time you went to take a virtual fitness class that the experience was similar to that of going to a movie? Exciting, full of anticipation with loads of entertainment.

When I travel around to different health clubs I consistently look at how the environment of the group fitness rooms are changing and evolving. What I am noticing is that subtle shifts are being made to allow for virtual offerings and enhanced room environments.

In my observation there are three specific tactics that can enhance a group fitness space.

1. Dimmed/Low Lighting

Set the mood! Dim the lights down, set the mood and enhance the room by creating a darker setting. This is the most affordable and easy way to enhance the ambiance.

2. Fun Party Lights

What's more fun than a disco ball? A few colored lights and a disco ball can go a long way! I have seen a handful of really cool group fitness rooms that look like dance clubs, a super cool party like atmosphere to exercise.

3. Paint and Graphics

Ditch the white walls! A fresh coat of colored paint or a large image can make a world of difference!

These three simple tactics to enhance your space is a fantastic way to complement virtual fitness.

As the group fitness offerings in the fitness industry continue to expand, staying relevant is very important. The days of white walls, wood floors and fluorescent lights are coming to a close. A new era of Virtual classes, specialty lighting and classes that resemble dance club parties is upon us.

How can you enhance your own space to stay relevant?

Happy room enhancing!

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Lindsey Rainwater is an experienced consultant and coach  to the fitness and wellness industry.  She specializes in business development and leadership. Currently she is working with the Fitmarc Team helping club owners all over the south central region of the united states propel their business forward via group exercise solutions.  For more information about lindsey, follow her @lindseyrainh2o 

Upon returning home from IHRSA each year I take time to reflect on the trip and capture the most meaningful take away's to share with you.  This year the event was in San Diego, such a great place to hold the event, you can't beat the sunshine and coastal breeze! not to mention yummy fish tacos that are walking distance from the convention center!  

Two of my favorite speakers this year were Mrs Sally Hogeshead and Mr Bryan O'Rourke. 

Mrs Sally Hogesead delivered a compelling talk about fascinating your listener in 9 seconds or less. She engaged the audience with many different suggestions to better enhance the delivery of who you are as an individual. 

Mr Bryan O'Rourke spoke on the impact of mobile technology on the fitness industry and how important it is to have a mobile ready website and apps to improve the member experience. For more information on his presentation, click here. 

And of course, the trade show! what a lovely show it was this year.  I always enjoy the buzz of the trade show, so many club owners and operators making impactful decisions on their equipment and programming options for the year.  You will see some pictures below of the event!

Be sure to share your IHRSA 2014 thoughts with me if you desire! 

cheers,

Lindsey 

Tradeshow floor, showing several equipment providers booths.

Ms. Sarah and Myself at the Les Mills booth

Mrs Rebecca Cofod and myself

Your's Truly :)

Lindsey Rainwater, Consultant to the fitness industryThis past month I have been highlighting details about how to create the best group fitness environment and the step by step details about how to create a space that is welcoming and functional for your members.

Now that the stage is set and the vision is created, let's get to the juicy party! actually building relationships with vendors so you can get bodies moving in the space.

I was thinking about this subject in the context of a "support team"- we all have them, hair dressers, dry cleaners, assistants, even our phones act in some respect as support to us on a daily basis.  When you need something done, at a certain point you have established relationships in your life that depending on what it is, you have a 'go to guy' for that specific task.  This is really no different, flooring, equipment, sound, audio, all of what is needed to properly furnish and equip your studio can come from established relationships to avoid the trial and error of finding people to fulfill all of these tasks.

The importance of vendor relationships is critical.  We all have specific brands and functions we like best, price obvisouly being king in many respects, although in my experience the relationship with a vendor often times trumps pricing. 

Robert leading the fitmarc teamAt Fitmarc, our friend Robert Dyer has done a lovely job of building solid relationships with vendors specific to the group fitness environment.  So much so that we can assist in guiding you through the process of going from start to finish.  All of the work it takes to pre qualify vendors etc, has already been done on our end. 

My last installment of this blog series will be next week, I will be covering program selection and highlighting the different methods of delivery that are cutting edge both live and virtual programming.

Please contact me, Lindsey Rainwater and let me know how I can guide you in establishing the best possible group fitness environment for your members and instructors.