In order to retain your gym members, it is important to provide them with the equipment and information they need to get the most from their workouts and stay motivated to achieve and maintain good physical fitness.

Since your gym members have different fitness levels and goals, it is advantageous for you to provide education regarding the appropriate level of intensity for exercise, personalized to the gym member using the information.

Heart-Rate Training That Benefits All

For instance, consider the matter of heart-rate training. As a fitness professional, you know that, in order to get the most from exercise, your members need to be working out at the proper level of intensity. This is true whether the member is trying to lose weight, trying to improve cardiovascular fitness, or preparing for a high-level athletic competition.

What can you do to help your members get the most from their exercise? Member education is the key.

Teaching Members to Get in the Zone

Ideally, new members will spend some time with your personal trainers, who can provide education regarding how to calculate the ideal heart-rate training zone.

However, some members may be reluctant to work with a personal trainer, for a variety of reasons. In this case, a good alternative is to provide new members with an instructional handout that details how to calculate the proper heart rate training zone for their goals, along with an offer for a consultation with a personal trainer to address any questions.

Here is a quick guide based on information from the American Heart Association and the Mayo Clinic to help your members calculate their heart rate training zone.

1) Determine your resting heart rate.

Take your pulse before getting out of bed in the morning. Record the results for a week to get a basic idea of the number of times your heart beats per minute at rest.

2) Calculate your maximum heart rate.

For those who want precise information about maximum heart rate, a stress test performed in a hospital or clinical setting is an option.

However, for most of your members, the following rule will work well enough for their purposes: Subtract your age from 220. This is your maximum heart rate.

Understanding Heart-Rate Training Zones

Once you have these two basic numbers, you can use them to determine your target heart rate zone for different levels of intensity.

For a moderate intensity workout in which fat burning occurs, your target heart rate zone is 50 to 70 percent of your maximum heart rate. At this intensity, you are not quite out of breath. For instance, you can carry on a conversation, but you cannot sing. You will likely begin to sweat lightly after about ten minutes at this intensity level.

For a vigorous intensity workout, your target heart rate zone is 70 to 85 percent of your maximum heart rate. At this intensity, your breathing is deep and rapid, and you cannot say more than a few words without pausing for breath. Sweating typically starts in earnest after just a few minutes.

Making Heart-Rate Training Easy

While providing this information to your members is evidence of your interest in their physical fitness, there is more that can be done to support your members as they attempt heart-rate training. Providing the proper equipment to help them monitor their heart rate while exercising supports their efforts.

The AccuroFit system is compatible with all Accuro heart rate monitors, and enables your gym members to monitor their workouts to ensure they are reaching their heart rate target zones during every exercise session. 

Tracking their progress in the gym, on the web, or on the move, your members will be constantly reminded of your gym as they move through their day, and you will see your retention levels rise.

Ready to see how it works for yourself? Contact us to request a demo of the AccuroFit system today, and put your gym in the member retention target zone.