The PT Roadmap

A weekly newsletter for personal trainers that'll guide you in your career to become a better coach and build a better business.

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Thanks for opening up today's newsletter. I appreciate you being here.

Let's get into today's PT Roadmap.

One Coaching Cue

"Back into the bar."

H/T @juggernauttraining

What's it for?

Back squats.

This can be a helpful cue to test when you see a client fall forward during a back squat. Or you see their hips rise before their shoulders.

“Actively drive your upper back into the bar as your first move out of the hole. Create equal pressure with your back into the bar, as with your feet into the floor.”

Better Business

Onboarding (on-board-ing): the action or process of integrating a new employee into an organization or familiarizing a new customer or client with one's products or services.

Onboarding is a word I didn't know existed when I started.

I did 'onboard' new clients.

As in...

I took their payment, got them to fill in a PAR-Q and got started.

But I didn't have a formal process until Lift the Bar's owner, Chris Burgess, started discussing it in our member group.

I integrated some new ideas into my new client onboarding process, and saw the results.

My clients reported being happier, the expectations between us were clearer and I often received positive feedback about how I integrated clients into my business.

Here are 5 things I started doing to onboard new clients that I've kept:

1. Welcome pack - I created a 5-page welcome pack that I'd print out and hand to new clients (once I'd received payment). This still gets positive feedback from new clients. It's a simple way to explain some elements of how my business works, talk them through some foundations, and underline my customer experience. Here is an editable one you can steal on Canva.

2. Handwritten thank you card - I feel like I recommend this one all the time, but it's for good reason. TY cards go down like that first coffee of the day. Clients love 'em as no other business uses them.

3. Welcome on Ig stories - Welcome new into your business clients on your stories. If you have permission, I'd also recommend doing a first session post. Get a selfie with them, take a pic of them doing a plank/ deadlift/ squat/ whatever. Say well done, and welcome them into your business. This is a great way to show off who you're working with and how you work with them, and it's a chance for the client to share it to their network.

4. Formal review date - Get this set in stone. It might be 14 or 30 days after they start, but make sure you have a calendar date set for when you're going to sit down and formally review things.

5. Cancellation explained - I'd go over this in the consultation, but it is also a good point to tell your new client what to do if they need to cancel. The industry standard is 24 hours for 1-1 (with leniency for first time/ genuine reasons). A common issue is clients cancelling and you not getting paid - this helps as you can refer back to it. Make a point of emailing your new client about it within the first week or two of their training.

Better Coaching

"Silent pauses are to speaking as clips are to barbells - they hold your message together." - Jenny Rearick

One of the best and worst things about running a podcast is listening back to yourself speak.

I can't tell you the number of times I've thought:

"omg, why did you just say that?"

"Jeez, Stuart, could you waffle for any longer?"

"What is wrong with my voice? Do I really sound like that?"

"That joke sounded way better in my head than it did out loud."

But it's also helpful as it gives me awareness of things I want to change.

One of those things has been my comfort with pausing.

Like everyone else, I struggle not to add an 'emm' or 'umm' every time I pause. A few years ago, I made a conscious effort to challenge myself not to add so many filler words and become more comfortable with a pause.

You might be wondering how this affects you...

Whether or not you realise it, you are public speaking every day.

If you run a semi-private or group class, you're speaking publically.

If you use video on your social media, you're speaking publically.

If you're talking in a staff meeting, you're speaking publically.

If you can use fewer filler words and more pauses, your message will be better received.

Try it next time you're talking to your client/s.

Bring awareness to your speech.

If you spot a lot of umms appearing, test yourself and see if you can use a pause.

One Social Media Post Worth Your Time

Is obesity harmful to health?

It can be.

Can you accept yourself regardless of your size?

Absolutely.

Both of these things can co-exist.

Dr. Spencer Nadolsky does a nice job of showing this in visual form with this meme.

"The false dichotomies are so ridiculous. We should have self-compassion no matter what. We can also recognize that having too much adiposity (fat tissue), especially in the wrong places can be detrimental to our health. No need to shame people. Losing weight and keeping it off is really hard. Yes, we have new tools to help, but even they are not perfect. ❤️❤️❤️"

Personal Instagram Growth (week 2)

TL:DR on this section - Meta decided my Fb & Ig violated their T&Cs and deleted my pages. I'm trying to rebuild them.

My goals just now:

• post three good quality Twitter-style posts per week (with at least one thread),

• and hit 500 followers by June.

The follower number doesn't really matter; I just want something objective to work towards.

Posts goal = 3 (Posts this week = 7 ✅)

Follower count = 337 (up by 13 from last week. Goal = 500 by June)

Thanks so much for reading.

Until next Friday, Stuart.

Whenever you're ready, here are two ways I can help you:

1) If you’re looking for a place to help you gain knowledge & develop your skills as a personal trainer, I’d recommend joining Lift the Bar on our trial for free for 14-days. You'll get access to courses, actionable webinars and time-saving downloads, and a community of PTs who have achieved what you're struggling to achieve.

2) Listen to the LTB Podcast. Latest episode #390: Josh Taylor - How to Create Engaging Videos on Social Media