67% of gym memberships go completely unused...

USA Today did a study a few years back that showed 67% of gym memberships go completely unused.

The business model is based around high levels of people paying, but not using. This allows very low price points, so low that many people won’t bother to cancel even if they never use it. The lower the price, the more they are counting on a high percentage of paying members never showing up.

Some go even further, and build their gyms in a way that makes it very hard to get any real results…. Over abundance of machine based exercises, unhealthy free snacks, etc. If you aren’t seeing real results, you’ll stop going (but hopefully keep paying)

Smaller fitness studios charge more, but 100% of those people paying are attending, and 100% of those people attending are seeing results, otherwise they’d stop going and stop paying.

So if you have tried the big budget gyms and failed, it’s not your fault. That was the plan, they want most of their members to fail, that’s how they stay in business.

This spring, do it right, join a program that wants to see you there 3x / week and see you succeed 🙂

Tonight, at midnight, Manitoba will be dropping the last of the public health orders. We will be health order free in Manitoba for the first time in a long time.

In 3 days it will be 2 years since we closed our doors for the first time, with public health orders following shortly afterwards that kept them closed for months.

Covid has caused havoc on our society, it's raised our stress levels, it's increased peoples waists, it's sky rocketed inflation, and its forced people apart.

Now, 2 years later, we have vaccines, the virus has gotten milder, and many people have had covid and recovered.

But, one important thing we need to recognize after all of this is how much worse this whole thing was made by the nature of our society.

We also have a obesity epidemic going on, and obesity has been one of the major determining factors of risk of severe outcomes from covid. Nutrition has been another major factor, and we live in a very fast / processed food dominate society. Stress has been a factor, and we are more stressed then ever (which many also link to the rises in ADHD, ODD and other childhood diagnosises)

2 years later, it's time to change those "Fundamentals", they need to include taking care of yourself. They need to include exercise, proper diets, healthy relationships, work/life balance and stress management.

Our "New Normal" is not about living apart, but improving our health from all sides so that we are able to face whatever comes next.

"The risk of severe illness from COVID-19 increases sharply with higher BMI." - CDC

"People who do little or no physical activity, or exercise, are more likely to get very sick from COVID-19 than those who are physically active." - CDC

"A new study has found that people who experienced increased stress, anxiety and depression at the start of the pandemic, were at greater risk of getting COVID-19." - University of Nottingham

"A diet characterised by healthy plant-based foods was associated with lower risk and severity of COVID-19." - Harvard Medical

"in patients aged 18 years and younger, having obesity was associated with a 3.07 times higher risk of hospitalization" - CDC

So lets make 2022 a year of lifestyle changes and getting healthy :)

It's been a long 2 years, but it is finally coming to an end. Restrictions are being lifted, hopefully for the last time, and we are back to being fully open.

It's been an interesting return... well, three returns so far. Each time the effects of the lock downs on people stands out just a little bit more. We closed our doors in March 2020 before the official orders required it, and we followed all the orders. And we survived, and are now rebuilding, much like everyone else.

The effects on kids is something that often gets overlooked. It can be little things, like having a harder time speaking up, keeping their hands in their pockets, not looking people in the eyes... and it can be the more obvious signs of social anxiety.

It also shows in behaviours. 2 years of living in an online world has brought out some ugly behaviours in some kids who have lived in "internet culture" for much of the past 2 years.

Disconnection is the source of bullying and becoming a victim of bullying. It is a major cause of eating disorders and crippling social anxiety. It is a major cause of addictive behaviours and depression. And it is at an all time high now. This pandemic has left us all with trauma that needs to be dealt with.

We didn't just disconnect from others, we disconnected within ourselves in many cases. We where left uncertain on what to do, what the future held, how to relate to others, etc. It's been a rough time, and we need to be patient and understanding, especially with our children who have even less tools to deal with the situation then the adults.

Trauma is a wound, an internal wound to our mental and emotional state. And like any wound, the actual event that caused it will affect use differently as it is very nuanced. If 100 people slip on the ice, most will get a bruise, some might come out with no injuries, others might get very serious ones. We all went through the same pandemic, and the same restrictions, but it has had different effects on everyone.

As we come out of the pandemic we need to heal, and healing means reconnecting. Building back confidence, building back relationships and doing things with people. For kids this has now been a significant piece of their lives, and it will take time to adapt back to being social beings again.

For us that means being back on the mat, back to training. And the difference after only a few sessions back is obvious to anyone, it's a return to being social, to contact, to struggle, to being humans. For others it will mean other things, but whatever it is, we need it more then ever.

Innovative Martial Arts is happy to announce that we have been named the Top Choice for martial arts school in Winnipeg! Thank you too all who voted and we look forward to living up to this title in 2022!

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Innovative Martial Arts is proud to announce that we are an Official 2020 Top Choice Award Nominee! Thank you to all of those who have taken the time to nominate us! Now, we need your help to WIN! Voting is now open and if you feel that we have earned your vote, we would appreciate you taking the time to vote for us. Winning the Top Choice Award is one of the largest endorsements a business can receive within North America & Europe, so this is a BIG deal!

Show us some love by voting for us. Your vote will automatically enter you into a draw for a chance to win a grand cash prize of $2000 or one of many Toppy T-shirts. You can vote for us here: https://www.topchoiceawards.com/vote?survey_id=KOb4ig Otherwise, you can contact Top Choice Awards via email or phone to vote for us.

‍Voting ends December 20th, 2019.

‍We would love to win the Top Choice Award... But we need your help to do so. If you believe we are your Top Choice, why not help us spread the word!Thank you for your time and we appreciate your vote!

P.S your written feedback in the survey is anonymous but very important to us, as it allows us to know what you love about us and what we can improve to continue serving you every day and providing the best customer experience possible. Many thanks in advance!

To vote click here: https://www.topchoiceawards.com/vote?survey_id=KOb4ig