During lockdown, motivating clients to train is more important than ever. Giving them an exercise programme to follow can help, but for many, tracking fitness progress and performance is key to their continued commitment.

If the many stories about people running full marathons without leaving home, attempting to ‘summit’ Mount Everest by climbing flights of stairs and cycling the Tour de France on an exercise bike are deemed believable, it seems that many people are still keen to exercise during this difficult time. In fact, they’re looking for even more new challenges and ways to stay motivated and socially connected.

While you might be unable to open your gym during this period of uncertainty, you can always find new ways to keep clients engaged and encourage them to return to class fighting fit as soon as possible.

For instance, we’ve seen a recent increase in Myzone fitness tracker sales as more and more exercisers turn to technology in an effort to improve their at-home fitness regime. So, if your clients are eager to train and reach new levels of fitness, we could have the answer.

“All our new members trial a Myzone belt to enjoy the full experience and 80 per cent of them go on to purchase a belt.”

“No-one really knows how studios will successfully operate with social distancing measures in place. Lots of people have opened up to the world of online training during lockdown and as operators, we need to embrace this or risk being left behind”

Jamie C - Club owner & Myzone partner

It’s all about effort

Fitness tracking is nothing new, but the Myzone heart rate monitor offers exceptional tracking with an accuracy of 99.4% compared to a medical-grade EKG machine. We’ve combined this technology with easy-to-use fitness software, allowing users to harness raw biological data to inform hyper-personalized, user-friendly workouts.

Myzone members can enjoy a solo workout using our in-app Zone Match challenge, or train with you remotely. And because the Myzone fitness tracker requires only an elevated heart rate to measure performance, it’s perfect for home-based, inclusive fitness challenges using minimum equipment.

When designing fitness challenges for home-based exercisers, there are a few more things you can do to improve their success...

1. Choose suitable exercises

When designing your challenges, remember not everyone has access to the same home exercise equipment, so you need to plan accordingly. For instance, high-impact burpees aren’t always suitable for those with sensitive neighbors, and not everybody can get outside to run sprints.

MyzoneMoves is a great place to find inspiration for safe home-based exercises.

1. Don’t push too hard

A great Myzone fitness tracker challenge doesn’t just mean go hard or go home. As a trainer, you already know if you push people too hard too soon, they’re likely to give up more easily. Make certain you’re coaching all your clients to exercise in a safe way as part of an overall lifestyle change.

Remember too that this is a stressful period for many. Try building into your challenges daily, weekly, and monthly targets to motivate as many people as possible over a longer period, so as not to discourage users if they have an off day.

Likewise, also think about placing an effort cap for every day, week, or month for your fitness tracker challenge. This way you can ensure clients who work hard get rewarded, but protect against overtraining while in isolation and away from your professional advice. Capping MEPs can also keep those less motivated clients exercising, as it ensures the unequal points gap doesn’t become insurmountable.

1. Cater to all audiences

Myzone fitness tracker challenges are structured so members move between five different colored training zones, each indicating a different percentage of their maximum heart rate. This means that instead of taking part in isolated, difficult to monitor exercise sessions, your members can now compete against each other or themselves based upon effort, not ability.

For instance, a twenty-year-old triathlete could easily find themself a distant second to a sixty-year-old novice, if the novice spends a larger percentage of their time in a higher heart rate zone relative to their own ability. Encourage motivation through inclusive participation.

1. Sing their praises on social

By combining your client’s fitness trackers with both the Myzone app and your own social media, you can cultivate a real sense of community spirit among your members.

Praising in public is a great way to motivate both the dedicated and the uncertain alike, and social media channels provide a great platform to share useful challenge-based content like nutrition, stretching and technique advice to a wider audience.

To explore how Myzone could help your facility click Here to get in touch.