David Kirsch is the founder and owner of Manhattan’s Madison Square Club (www.madisonsquareclub.com ), celebrated for custom-designed fitness training and nutritional counseling.

In his 20-year career, he has developed a clientele that includes Heidi Klum, Faith Hill, Liv Tyler, and Ellen Barkin.

He is a regular columnist for Shape and is frequently featured in the national media, including appearances on “Today,” “Access Hollywood,” “Extreme Makeover,” “Fox & Friends,” and in national magazines such as People, Cosmopolitan, Self, and many other leading publications.

He is the author of the best-selling book, The Ultimate New York Body Plan (www.theultimatenewyorkbodyplan.com).

David answered the following questions:

What makes New York the ideal place for you to develop your renowned programs?

THE ULTIMATE NEW YORK DIET emphasizes lean protein and fresh vegetables. Where do you stand on the low-carb/high-carb debate?

How is your approach different from that of most recent diet-book authors? Why do your clients achieve so much long-term success?

What’s the common denominator in your book’s exercise program? Is weight lifting more important than cardio workouts? What benefits can a reader get from a hotel-room workout, without weights?

In THE ULTIMATE NEW YORK DIET you write about your parents’ health, particularly the weight-loss success of your mom. How has your parents’ experience affected the way you coach your clients?

In your international travels, what have you observed about eating and exercise habits outside the United States? Do Americans struggle more in the battle of the bulge?

How much weight can readers expect to lose on THE ULTIMATE NEW YORK DIET?

How is this book different from your previous ones?

How do you stay informed about the constantly changing studies on dietary supplements and weight-loss regimens?

What’s the significance of the three “phases” in your program? Do all readers have to go through Phase 1?

What is your personal exercise routine like? How has your own fitness program changed over the years?

You speak about approaching fitness from a “whole body approach.” Can you tell us more about that aspect of your program?

Why do you include almonds in so many of the recipes from your kitchen? What are some of the other power foods we should consider adding to our healthier diets?

To listen now click here: Fitness Business Radio (36:18 minutes 8.31 MB)

Trish Muse is a physical therapist, veteran pharmaceutical representative and published author.

Frequently featured in Essence, Heart and Soul, Self and Health magazines as well as several others as a fitness consultant, Trish provides continuing education internationally for fitness professionals and physical therapists and is currently pursuing her Doctor of Science in Physical Therapy.

As the owner of Body Productions, Inc. (www.bodyproductions.com ) Trish is a popular National Strength and Conditioning Association Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist and respected American College of Sports Medicine certified Health Fitness Instructor in the Washington DC area; as well as a Polestar Ccertified Pilates practitioner.

Trish is the star and creator of the popular exercise videos, Ab Attack, Body Management and The Workstation Workout and star and co-producer of the functional fitness video Rock, Roll and Reggae.

Trish answered the following questions:

Tell me a little about yourself and how you got into the fitness industry?

Where did you do your training?

What certifications do you hold?

How long have you been in the fitness industry?

Tell me how you got interested and why you chose this topic?

What are the business advantages of addressing the fitness needs of Breast Cancer survivors?

Who should fitness professionals target to market their services and secure referrals?

Which professionals should be part of the fitness professionals’ network?

Where could you provide the services for survivors?

How can you promote fitness services for these women?

What are the benefits of exercise for Breast Cancer survivors?

What current research is available as supporting evidence for the use of exercise programming in this population?

What can fitness professionals contribute to exercise programming for Breast Cancer survivors?

What should happen first when working with a survivor?

What information is important to know with survivors?

What would some typical exercise goals be for breast cancer survivors?

What fitness testing may be appropriate and helpful?

What should their exercise program consist of? Posture? Stress management? Aerobic conditioning? Flexibility training? Strengthening?

What modifications may be necessary?

How should you progress their exercise program?

What would a maintenance program look like for these ladies?

What signs or symptoms should fitness professionals look for?

What exercise modifications are necessary based on their signs and symptoms?

When should the fitness professional refer this client out?

What is lymphedema?

What are the do’s and don’ts when working with Breast cancer survivors?

What types of things can fitness professionals educate their clients about regarding exercise and Breast cancer?

What will fitness professionals gain from working with these women?

What will survivors gain from working with coaches, trainers and therapists (PT or OT)?

What qualifications would you recommend a fitness professional possess prior to working with this population?

Are there any resources for fitness professionals to educate themselves about exercise and Breast cancer?

What do you have to offer in terms of training?

How can our listeners access your products?

Where will you be appearing next?

What can we look for from you in the future?

To listen now click here: Fitness Business Radio (74:42 minutes 17.1 MB)

Nitro Fitness is on the leading edge of a hot new trend in exercise. Larry has been involved with the health club industry for over 20 years owning and operating exercise facilities.

He and his partner recognized an opportunity for explosive growth in an untapped market: meeting the exercise needs of men over 30 years old.

Nitro Fitness offers maximum results in minimum time because they personalize a core-training program for each member using professional-grade circuit training equipment.

Their staff helps track their progress, making first-time exercisers and experienced exercisers alike, stay motivated and feel comfortable.

Larry answered the following questions:

What is NITRO FITNESS?

Is it like a Curves for men?

What is your background, your partners background?

How did you and your partner come up with the concept?

Why do you call it a Core Circuit?

What is Core Training?

Why is it important?

Does the workout work, does it get results for men?

What happens when the members body adapts to the workout?

How do you determine what program/level/intensity to start a new member on?

Do men really want to workout where they cannot see beautiful women sweating and breathing heavy?

Who is your typical member?

How do you advertise NITRO FITNESS?

How do you sale the membership to NITRO?

Do you have treadmills, bikes or ellipticals?

Have you had anybody call you and your partner a genius for developing the concept?

What is the biggest hurdle for a NITRO FITNESS owner/franchisee to overcome?

Why did you and your partner not build/develop/operate the NITRO FITNESSs yourself?

Why Franchise the concept?

What type of training do you provide franchisees?

What does it cost to open a NITRO?

Where are your locations?

What does it cost to buy/build a NITRO FITNESS?

How do I know if I am a good fit for NITRO?

Why are you and your partner doing the interviews/sales/ of the potential franchisees, why not use a broker like so many franchise organizations use?

What do you look for in a potential franchisee?

What are the most important skill sets needed in operating a NITRO?

Who is your primary competition for memberships?

To listen now click here: Fitness Business Radio (44:57 minutes 10.2 MB)

Larry Bedell is the Co-Founder of Nitro Fitness For Men (www.NITROFITNESSFORMEN.com ).

As a owner of multiple businesses in the fitness industry Chris’ responsibilities have included strategic and financial planning, business plan development, financial management and executive oversight responsibilities, as well as arranging for accounting, legal council, and banking services. Chris has also has worked in private equity and leverage buyouts for multiple companies in and outside of the fitness industry.

Prior to his entrepreneurial career, Chris worked for San Diego State University as a Health Educator where he combined behavioral modification, nutrition, and fitness to create seminars for the student body, faculty, and staff.

Chris is certified by the NSCA as a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist and has worked with Junior Olympians and other elite-level athletes on nutrition/wellness program design.

Since 2004, he has led seminars on “Beating Burnout” at The FitExpo in Pasadena and had Action Potential’s products featured in Muscle and Fitness and Muscular Development.

Chris holds a BS degree from West Chester University in Exercise Physiology and did his graduate work in Exercise and Nutritional Science at San Diego State University; and completed his MSBA in Entrepreneurship at San Diego State University.

Chris answered the following questions:

What drove you and to write the book Personal Trainer Burnout – How To Transform Frustration To Fortune?

What do you see as the number one challenge facing the Personal Training Industry today?

What are the most important skills and certifications that someone needs for today’s competitive landscape?

Is it possible to earn a living in this industry without Burning Out?

How does someone change their income, career, etc. if they have or are facing Burn Out?

To listen now click here: Fitness Business Radio (64 minutes 14.6 MB)

Chris J. Snook is the Founder of Action Potentials (www.actionpotentials.com ), Co-Author of Personal Trainers Burnout - How To Transform Frustrations To Fortune (www.burnoutbooks.com ), and has extensive experience in the fitness industry as an entrepreneur, educator, and athlete.

Bob Quast is Senior Director for Cardiovascular Product Management at Life Fitness (www.lifefitness.com ).

With more than 16 years of experience in the fitness industry behind him, Bob is responsible for all aspects of Life Fitness cardiovascular product development.

Fluent in German and English, Bob worked in marketing management for a year and a half at the Life Fitness German European Headquarters. He’s also held positions in international sales, channel marketing and market research for Life Fitness. For an industry edge, Bob conducted internships as an athletic trainer for the Chicago Bulls and Chicago Blackhawks.

Bob’s expertise includes cardiovascular equipment for health club and home use, cardio fitness machine design, testing and durability, trends and innovations in cardio fitness equipment, including personalized entertainment and the latest in equipment design. He also has experience in cardiovascular equipment for baby boomers, the physically challenged and other exercisers with special needs.

Holding a master’s degree in international management from Thunderbird in Arizona, Bob also received a master’s degree overseas from the European Business School in Östrich-Winkel, Germany. His bachelor’s degree of arts is from DePauw University in Indiana.

Bob answered the following questions:

Tell me a little about your background in fitness and your role at Life Fitness.

What sets Life Fitness apart from other equipment manufacturers?

The Summit Trainer is a new cardio product for Life Fitness. Tell me about it.

How does the Summit Trainer work?

What kinds of fitness programs does the Summit Trainer offer?

How will a product like the Summit Trainer help with attraction and retention to a club/gym?

Was this product developed to meet a demand in the industry?

What trends does Life Fitness see going forward and what types of products is it developing to meet this demand?

To listen now click here: Fitness Business Radio (27:51 minutes 6.38 MB)

John Allen Mollenhauer is a Lifestyle and Fitness Entrepreneur, and the creator of The Healthy High Achiever, where he teaches the 7 Steps to Live, Feel and Perform Better. in a lifestyle you can call your own.

He is the founder of MyTrainer.com (www.MyTrainer.com ) for Performance Lifestyle Training, and coaching for Pro-Active People Who Want to Be Healthier and Even More Successful Living Well, in an Overwhelming World.

Each of the steps represents one of THE seven most influential health and performance skill sets high-achieving people need to know to be sustainable and even more successful.

In the age of achievement where people have access to more information and opportunity than ever before, and we can accomplish our goals faster than ever before, achievement oriented people are suffering from a paradox. The busier they get the less time they have to take care of themselves with limited time space and energy. It is for this reason and his personal experience as an entrepreneur on the downward trend that inspired John Allen to do something about it.

John Allen envisions a world where people “live” feel and perform better, and are no longer caught up as poor health statistics. So he created a network online where everyone has access to a trainer and ongoing support with Internet-based coaching.

With the guidance and reinforcement of a world class lifestyle, health and science advisory team, the most comprehensive study of nutrition ever conducted and extensive personal and professional experience with thousands of clients; John Allen also produced www.NutrientRich.com for those who want to master one of the most important steps to live feel and perform better… the Nutrient Rich way of eating.

Nutrient Rich ( www.NutrientRich.com) is the cornerstone of sound nutrition and the new trend in eating that is freeing millions of people stuck in dead-end diet traps. A Nutrient Rich Diet enables people to live normally and naturally, at or near their ideal weight and free of lifestyle diseases, like hypertension and heart disease, diabetes and obesity.

John Allen’s mission is to help as many people as possible get free of diet, weight and long term health issues developing lifestyles that promote health and sustainable success.

A certified trainer, and lifestyle coach, and former business manager for best selling author DrFuhrman Online, and protégé of Tony Robbins, John Allen appears frequently on radio and television shows, including Comcast CN8, Air America, MoJo Radio and others. He is a featured speaker at the Annual CoachVille Conference, the National Health Association Annual Conference and the Monkey Bar Gym Fitness Chain. He also delivers the famed “Jam Sessions” via weekly teleseminars and at conferences of all types. Listeners and attendees discover the 7 Steps to live feel and perform better. He is a regular contributor to the Health Science Journal and other national magazines

John Allen answered the following questions:

Tell me a little about your background and how you came about developing THE 7 Steps to Live, Feel and Perform Better, what you call The Performance Lifestyle- for High Achieving People who want to Healthy and Successful.

How would you best describe the “Performance Lifestyle” and why is it valuable for fitness professionals to understand this concept and the 7 Steps?

What value does it offer today’s ultra busy consumer who has limited time space and energy?

Do you thinking that fitness professionals really understand “lifestyle” as it’s talked about today?

Will an understanding of the Performance Lifestyle and THE 7 Steps to Live, Feel and Perform Better, help people make better use of fitness facilities?

Could you give me an overview of the 7 Steps and why these steps are so important to the fitness lifestyle?

Will this open up new revenue opportunities for fitness professionals? How about facilities?

How do you see the fitness industry shaping in the coming years, do you have any speculation you’d like to share?

To listen now click here: Fitness Business Radio (52:37 minutes 12 MB)

Ben Midgley has been in the fitness industry for 16 years, and is the author of Golden Circle Secrets: How to Achieve Consistent Sales Success Through Customer Values & Expectations (www.goldencircle.biz) . His approach has always been ethics, values, and relationships first, then profits, and year after year it has proven to work dramatically well.

Ben has an extensive background in sales and sales management both for internal and external sales teams. He has taught to the fitness industry all over the United States and Canada through industry conventions and consulting and is an industry leader and trendsetter. He is a previous faculty member of the International Health Racquet & Sports Club Association’s—Institute of Professional Club Management. Ben is a regular contributing writer for national and international fitness industry publications and has been honored as the top sales person in the $15 billion fitness industry by IHRSA - the International Health Racquet & Sports Club Association.

Ben is currently the Senior Director of Corporate Sales, for 24 Hour Fitness, the world’s largest privately owned fitness company. He oversees the relationships of more than 3,500 corporate clients, including many of the country’s best-known corporations. He also oversees the business-to-business sales results of 42 corporate sales managers and the sales staff of over 340 health clubs nationwide.

Ben has also been recognized as an expert in the area of corporate wellness programming. Because of this distinction, he is a member of Governor Schwarzenegger’s Get Healthy California Workgroup as well as the California Joint Assembly’s Task Force on Youth and Workplace Wellness, both of which where developed to address the growing concern of rising health care costs in California.

Ben answered the following questions::

What are the most common ways in which clubs do not sell effectively?

What affect does pricing have on a clubs membership sales success?

What if your club is not as nice as others in the market, can you still have as good or greater sales success?

What are the most important principles that a club owner /operator should consider when it comes to selling?

How is selling in a club different from other types of sales?

What is most important aspects of running a successful sales team?

What is the best way to make your sales team better?

How many sales people does a club need to employ?

What about compensation, how should clubs compensate their sales team?

What types of promotions work best?

What about community out reach, selling outside the club?

To listen now click here: Fitness Business Radio (45:33 minutes 10.4 MB)

Each week, over one million people around the world enjoy a fitness program created by John Spencer Ellis. John is the CEO of NESTA Certified (National Exercise & Sports Trainers Association) (www.nestacertified.com) and the Spencer Institute for Life Coaching (www.spencerinstitute.com). These two professional associations have 45,000 members in 30 countries.

John is on the Advisory Boards of the National Health, Wellness and Prevention Congress, Exercise TV, Conference for Healthy Living, Irvine Valley College, Get America Fit Foundation, and is a Fellow of the National Board of Fitness Examiners. He is the author of “How Badly Do You Want It? - Your Ultimate Guide to Optimal Fitness,” and a contributor to “Power of Champions.” He created Adventure Boot Camp, the largest fitness boot camp program in the world. His signature series of outdoor exercise equipment is used in communities worldwide, and his fitness programs are implemented in the top resorts, spas and health clubs.

John has been featured or quoted in every major fitness publication, and held the post of Fitness Editor for OC Flair magazine. John has been featured on ABC, NBC, CBS, PBS, SPIKE, ESPN & Bravo. He serves as an on-air expert for Life & Leisure Television and Health Journal Television with General Norman Schwarzkopf. He is the producer and host of The OC Body on The Healthy Living Channel, which reaches 15 million homes. John is a Nautilus sponsored athlete and Fitness Apparel Council Member. He stars in the workout DVDs Playground Boot Camp™ & Kung-Fu Fitness™. John created fitness programs used by Cirque du Soleil and the U.S. Secret Service. He consults the UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championships).

John has been continuing his professional education since 1987, and holds bachelors degrees in business and health science, an MBA, and a doctorate in education. He is currently completing a second doctorate in naturopathy. He has fifteen certifications including massage therapy, plyometrics, self-defense, fitness kick boxing, fitness boxing, water fitness, exercise rehabilitation, golf conditioning, Pilates, personal training, clinical hypnotherapy, sports hypnosis, PACE circuit training and yoga. He holds a 2nd degree black belt in kung-fu, has completed the Ironman triathlon, and finished 5th at the U.S. National Biathlon Championships. His medical training includes a license in radiological technology, a medical assisting certification, and training in McKenzie rehabilitation. John was nominated for the California Community College Distinguished Alumni Award.

To listen now click here:

Fitness Business Radio (45:36 minutes 10.4 MB)

Larry Thonn (Lean Larry) is a fitness equipment specialist and designer of the Lean Abs Machine (www.leanabs.com) which is a unique and advanced abdominal exerciser that is done from and in the standing position.

The Lean Abs Machine is a highly diverse and quality training machine that offers chest presses, shoulder raises, ab crunches, squats, rows, and dozens of other exercises; in a very small, compact, easily transportable system ideal for home, on the road, and for fitness professionals no matter where you work.

Here is an indepedent review of the Lean Abs Machine by Andrew Shortt, IART Fitness Clinician of the Year 2004-2005.
(Click here for the Lean Abs Machine Review).

Larry answered the following questions:

What exactly is the Lean Abs Machine?

What is different about the Lean Abs Machine?

What makes the Lean Abs Machine so advanced?

Isn’t the exercise movement similar to the ab wheel?

How many abdominal exercises can one perform?

How did you come up with the idea to design something like this?

Can I just use a shovel to perform this exercise?

What type of testing have you done?

You mentioned that it does leg exercises and has other uses, Could you explain?

Who can benefit from using a Lean Abs Machine?

Will the Lean Abs Machine help someone to get Lean?

To listen now click here: Fitness Business Radio (42:32 minutes 9.73 MB)

Sean Kirby is a Board Member of the Fitness Industry Suppliers Association N.A. (www.fisana.org) and the National Sales Director of ASF International (www.asfinternational.com).

The purpose of FISA N.A. is to improve business conditions within the commercial sector and selected areas of the retail fitness sector and to assist all suppliers in dealing with common business problems.

FISA N.A. was incorporated in April of 2000 as a 501c3, non-profit corporation.

FISA events are designed to connect suppliers with decision-makers in several vertical segments in an educational and entertaining setting. Events include pre-set, one on one appointments, social and networking activities designed to help build relationships. FISA events do NOT require suppliers to purchase exhibit space.

Sean answered the following questions:

Give us a brief history of the FISA Invitational?

How is the FISA Invitational structured?

How many buyers and suppliers generally attend?

What’s the primary goal of the event?

ASF International has been around since 1973 . Briefly summarize your company’s history.

How did you get involved the fitness industry?

Where do you see the fitness industry headed towards?

How do you see the relationship between suppliers and fitness facility operators?

To listen now click here: Fitness Business Radio (33:38 minutes 7.70 MB)