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This channel (presented by Two-Brain Business) is packed with business tools for gym owners and CrossFit affiliates. We provide actionable, data-backed business advice for all gym owners, including those who own personal training studios, fitness franchises, and strength and conditioning gyms.
Your best clients already know your next best clients. Here’s how to find them.
In this episode of “Run a Profitable Gym,” Two-Brain CEO John Franklin and founder Chris Cooper kick off Marketing May with the most underused growth tool in the fitness business: referrals.
Referrals are free, they get results faster than any ad campaign, and most gym owners are leaving them on the table every single day.
John and Chris walk through the seed client exercise, a simple process to identify your best clients and find more people just like them.
Chris shares three questions to ask seed clients over coffee to sharpen your offerings and open the door to referrals without feeling pushy, plus how to use goal reviews with all clients every 90 days to increase retention and referrals.
The pair also lay out a full playbook for in-gym and out-of-gym events that bring non-members through your doors and turn them into paying clients.
Subscribe and follow along all month. Every week in May, we’re breaking down one of the four funnels you need to grow your gym. Next up: social media.
Links
Gym Owners United
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0:50 - Why referrals first?
2:10 - Seed client exercise
9:21 - Goal review process
15:58 - Internal and external events
21:05 - Your actions steps
Bruce Edwards just became CEO of CrossFit. Two-Brain founder Chris Cooper thinks it’s the right call, and he has a very personal reason for saying so:
Bruce fired him. Personally.
In this episode of “Run a Profitable Gym,” Two-Brain CEO John Franklin sits down with Chris for an unfiltered reaction to the April 28, 2026, appointment, following Don Faul’s resignation in March.
In 2018, when Bruce trimmed the CrossFit Media team, Chris learned everything he needed to know about the kind of leader Bruce is.
“Bruce could have delegated the job. He didn’t,” Chris said. “He picked up the phone himself and did the hard thing the right way—head-on, with clarity and respect.”
Chris explains exactly why Bruce is the right person for this moment, from his time as CrossFit’s COO during the brand’s biggest growth phase to his experience as a CrossFit affiliate co-owner himself.
He also traces Bruce’s career since CrossFit—leading growth at In-Shape Health Clubs, barre3 and one of the largest Planet Fitness franchise groups in the country—and says that experience makes him even more qualified for the job.
Chris opens up about why he quietly ended his own affiliation in 2022 after 14 years, what it would take to bring him back, and the three signs he’ll be watching for in the next year to know whether the ship is actually turning around.
Then Chris and John tackle the bigger questions: why affiliate counts keep declining, how Greg Glassman fits into this transition and what Bruce needs to do first to rebuild trust with the affiliate community.
Links
Gym Owners United
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0:55 - Why Chris left CrossFit in 2022
5:26 - Bruce’s role in CrossFit’s growth
7:29 - Bruce’s post-CrossFit career
9:46 - Why affiliate counts keep declining
18:42 - What’s sacred and what has to change
27:48 - Chris' message to affiliates
29:36 - How Greg Glassman fits in
How do the best gyms in the world scale to 300, 400 or even 450 clients without burning out or sacrificing quality?
In this episode of “Run a Profitable Gym,” Two-Brain founder Chris Cooper presents the leaderboard for client headcount in coaching gyms and reveals what separates these businesses from the ones stuck at 100-150 clients.
The Top 10 gyms in Two-Brain have cracked the code: strong systems, outstanding coaching, community-first decisions and retention strategies that keep clients for years.
To provide more insight, Chris shares quotes directly from the mentors who work with these gym owners to maximize results.
Tune in to hear the exact tactics used by these world-class fitness entrepreneurs, such as adding high-value programs (Hyrox is a great one right now), running bring-a-friend events and asking for referrals during Goal Review Sessions.
Links
Gym Owners United
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0:01 - Intro
3:04 - The Top 10
4:09 - The leaders’ strategies
6:40 - Exactly what to do
9:24 - Success vs. failure
Gym owner Lauren DiSessa’s weekly HYROX class has generated $6,000 in revenue in just two months, and she’s not even charging members extra for it.
How’d she do it? Two-Brain CEO John Franklin gets the full scoop from Lauren today on “Run a Profitable Gym.”
Lauren walks through her V1 mistakes—treating HYROX as an afterthought with no real launch strategy—and explains what she did differently the second time around: a high-energy open house that drew 40 people, 70% of whom were non-members who paid to train at her gym.
She breaks down her pricing structure for drop-ins, class packs and full race simulations, and reveals the three things every gym owner needs to launch HYROX successfully:
1. Someone genuinely passionate about the sport
2. A dedicated class time that gives the program its own identity
3. The right equipment to attract serious athletes.
Lauren also shares how the program is pulling in a steady stream of prospects every single week and why even converting just one or two of them into full members each month is a bigger deal than it sounds.
Tune in to find out how a single Saturday morning class is quickly becoming one of the smartest revenue moves Lauren has ever made.
Then get "The Complete Guide to HYROX Affiliation for Gym Owners" in Gym Owners United, linked below.
Links
Gym Owners United
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0:56 - Gym overview
7:52 - Adding HYROX
16:33 - Open house results
20:37 - Pricing structure
29:46 - Keys to success
Are you sleeping on HYROX? That's a mistake.
In this episode, Two-Brain CEO John Franklin and founder Chris Cooper discuss the hottest thing in fitness right now: HYROX.
John, fresh off a race in Miami Beach, had nothing but praise for the event, and Chris Cooper suggests the races give your members a reason to keep training and way to find success and smiles outside the gym.
The best part? HYROX affiliation fees for gyms are low—about US$150 a month—so it's easy to get huge ROI, if you have a plan.
No plan? No ROI. Solid plan? Huge ROI is possible.
For example, one Two-Brain gym generates $12,500 a month in HYROX revenue, and another added $100,000 in annual revenue just by setting up two HYROX training sessions a week.
Chris and John dig into the details to help you determine if a HYROX program is right for your gym, even if you're a CrossFit affiliate. Newsflash: CrossFit gyms don't need to be scared of HYROX; the program is complementary.
Check out this discussion, and if you want to take the next step, "The Complete Guide to HYROX Affiliation for Gym Owners" is available if you DM Chris Cooper through our Gym Owners United group, linked below.
Links
Gym Owners United
Book a Call
0:29 - Why is HYROX working?
4:02 - The opportunity
5:48 - Should CrossFit gyms be afraid?
8:05 - How to get ROI
15:48 - Marketing, selling, retaining
Most gyms treat old members as if they’re gone forever—but Xtra Mile Fitness brought back 36 departed clients in one year.
In this episode of “Run a Profitable Gym,” Corey Lewis (owner of Xtra Mile Fitness) reveals how he reactivated 36 alumni—comprising nearly 40% of his “new” members—last year.
Corey’s philosophy: The client journey doesn’t end when someone leaves your gym.
To help you reacquire members, he lays out fundamental exit practices every gym should implement: exit goal reviews, thank you postcards and 90-day follow-up texts.
He also shares more advanced tactics for winning old members back, including social media engagement, video texts and coffee meetings.
Corey never “pitches” to alumni. He leads with a "help first" mentality and checks in genuinely. The resale happens naturally when the person is ready.
Tune in to get Corey’s complete system for reactivating former gym members, then implement it in your gym!
Links
Gym Owners United
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0:00 - 36 returning members
2:44 - Exit goal reviews
6:22 - Postcard follow-ups
9:03 - Social media engagement
13:13 - Why this works
The future belongs to gyms that specialize.
The data proves it: Small group training has a 7% higher profit margin than large group training, and length of engagement in niche gyms is double the industry average.
Today on “Run a Profitable Gym,” Chris Cooper lays out how niching down will transform your gym. Yes, you can find and own a niche without kicking out existing clients.
When you niche down, everything gets easier: Marketing becomes crystal clear, referrals become automatic, your schedule shrinks, facility costs drop, staffing simplifies, and retention skyrockets.
Generic “fitness for everyone” gyms compete on price and lose. Specialized gyms charge premium rates and win.
Stop trying to be everything to everyone. Find your people and serve them exceptionally well.
Links
Gym Owners United
Book a Call
0:01 - Intro
0:40 - The industry right now
5:25 - Why niche down?
8:39 - How to find your niche
18:37 - What isn’t a niche?
Buying a gym can be one of the best business decisions you’ll ever make or one of the most expensive mistakes of your life.
In this episode of “Run a Profitable Gym,” Two-Brain Business CEO John Franklin and attorney Matthew Becker of Gym Lawyers PLLC walk you through exactly how to buy a gym without overpaying, buying a disaster or landing on legal landmines.
Matthew has handled over $50 million in gym transactions, and John has personally bought and sold five gyms in New York City.
In this step-by-step training, the pair break down:
Before you commit to a buy, check out this show and make sure you're setting yourself up for long-term success in the fitness industry.
Links
Free valuation calculator: "How to Buy a Gym"
"How to Value a Gym: SDE, Multiples and What a Gym Is Actually Worth"
2:41 - How to value a gym
17:14 - Define your “buy box”
18:55 - The search
22:12 - Legal and financing
36:43 - The full playbook
If you burn out, your gym dies. That’s why taking care of your mental health is the best business decision you can make.
In this episode of “Run a Profitable Gym,” Chris Cooper explains why burnout happens to gym owners and how to prevent it.
If you pour your energy into clients all day, manage staff, call leads, clean bathrooms and run your business, then go home and scrape the bottom of the bowl for whatever’s left for your family, you'll eventually run out of gas.
Your clients will know exactly when that happens. And they'll walk out.
Chris shares six practical strategies for improving your mental health before you burn out, including setting boundaries, finding someone to talk to and systemizing your business.
You can’t sell your clients energy if you don’t have it. Tune in to learn how to keep your cup full—and your gym alive.
Connect with gym owners just like you at the Two-Brain Summit. Get tickets via the link below!
Links
Two-Brain Summit Tickets
Gym Owners United
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1:46 - What we’re really selling
6:18 - The money problem
9:29 - Mental health strategies 1-3
15:37 - Mental health strategies 4-6
21:35 - The Two-Brain Summit
Most gym owners stay stuck because of fear. Fear of failure. Fear of confrontation. Fear of making things worse.
But here’s what Chris Cooper learned after 15 years of mentoring gym owners: The only thing stronger than fear is love.
You have to love the local people who need your help more than you fear publishing that Instagram post. You have to love your family enough to fire that coach who’s hurting your gym.
Today on “Run a Profitable Gym,” Chris presents gym owners with a challenge: Expand your comfort zone.
Coop gives you 10 difficult scenarios to choose from and a simple four-day process for practicing them until they become easy:
Your comfort zone is like a muscle. When you exercise it, it gets bigger—and you become more capable of making the changes your business needs.
To get the free Comfort Zone Challenge worksheet, DM Chris in Gym Owners United, linked below.
Links
Gym Owners United
Book a Call
0:01 - Intro
1:57 - How to change
3:27 - Do you care enough?
11:01 - Comfort Zone Challenge
15:09 - Which gym owners succeed?
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