Creating Your Ideal Schedule
I often get asked by fellow fitness professionals, “What’s the best way to schedule my clients?” In my opinion, there are two options.. It depends on whether you are a new fitness professional trying to build up your client base or whether you already have a steady clientele.
1. New Fitness Professionals Starting Out
So, if you've just started at a new gym or training facility I highly recommend working whenever your clients want to train . This may seem like common sense, but one of the reasons why some trainers never get busy is because they tell their clients something like, “I can only work with you on Tuesday nights from 4:45-5:45pm, or Saturday morning between 8:00-10:00am.”
This would work if you currently have a busy schedule, but not if you’re just starting out . The truth is that if you really want this to be a career for you then you need to pay your dues in the beginning and that means you’re going to have to either work early mornings or late evenings. (Or both, if you really want to hustle and build up your sessions fast.) I remember starting my first studio, and I worked 15 hour days, training everybody & anybody! Of course, this was not ideal, but if the work is there, you take it!
Likewise, when a new trainer starts in our Studio's, I make it very clear the trainer has to put the work in when he/she is first starting out. In this process, I am always there to support them and help build their database, as long as they are committed to taking on every client I give them, regardless of training times. However, I find that if I hustle and get my trainers working Monday though Friday and a half-day Saturday then they could be over 30-40 sessions a week within 90-120 days.
Note: The thing we REALLY want to avoid is Trainer Burnout. This is very common in our industry, hence the average fitness professional only lasts 9 months. So, to avoid this, I work with the trainer on set days & times to see clients with adequate rest periods throughout. The commitment from both parties is that the goal is 120 days to get the trainer to capacity (whatever that is, and will vary depending on your KPI's). This way, both parties have a common goal and commitment to an end game!
Now, this next tip is how I recommend you create your ideal schedule once you are already working full-time: It's the age old principle of supply and demand. If you're in demand and there is supply, you can afford to be more assertive with your training times.
2. Seasoned Fitness Professionals
Only after I assured myself that I had a steady clientele did I begin to tweak my session times in order to create my ideal work schedule. The reason I had to wait is because I knew that if I ended up taking off Saturdays or a night or two each week that I would lose a client or two and so I needed others to be able to fall back on.
One thing I tell my Studio team to do is to actually book up and train more clients than you would like to in your schedule for about 4-6 weeks and then it will be easy to see which days of the week you’d like to take off and which clients you’d like to fit into other open time slots as you make your transition. And of course, if some of your current clients are unable to fit within your new schedule you will nicely pass them on to a colleague where you can help them make a smooth transition... of course, you need to have a team of staff to make this happen.
After 4 years of working my first Studio, I built my team to 5 trainers and I went through a fitness re-schedule myself . I used to work all day with clients morning to evening plus Saturdays, but then I moved all my clients to the first half of the day & dropped Saturdays too. This allowed me to spend the back half of the day developing my Corporate Health Company which I still run today, PLUS I got to see my family & spend time with my kids on the weekend, which was the goal of owning my own business in the first place... lifestyle!
So, in the process of downsizing, I did have to hand off some of my long-time clients to other trainers in my studio team since these clients weren’t able to train during my new condensed hours. However, they were fine, as they understood my position, and they got a reduced rate (as the other trainers charge less than me!) The script of reducing your hours AND keeping clients can be found here
Let's be real, it was hard letting those clients go, but this is the IDEAL schedule I had always wanted , and for years I was not able to transition over for one reason or another. After I made the change though, it gave me more energy for those morning clients and allowed me to switch focus for my new projects after midday.
It Only Takes 2 Steps
So, as you can see from the examples above you need to first show the world that you want this as your career and work whenever possible to build up your client base. And then once you get busy you can re-arrange your training hours to still hit your goal number of sessions each week while creating a better work life balance.
For some Personal Trainers they may be able to start from scratch to their ideal work schedule within 4-6 months while others may take a year or two. In the end, though, I can assure you it is worth all the work, sweat, long days, and energy it takes to get there. Getting to train clients and share your knowledge really is the best job in the world and it’s only a matter of time and perseverance before you achieve your dream situation.
Yours in Fitness Business Success,
Ben Dulhunty
