About Justin Cates

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Jack Tawney
A Passionate Focus on Results in the Northwest
March 2014 - Many years ago, when I was a young kid green to the world, I was taught many important lessons that have served me throughout my life. I am still learning to this day, and I always will; however, two of these lessons in particular have made a real difference in molding me into who I am today. The following interview with Jack Tawney, Co-founder and owner of Harbor Square Athletic Club in Edmonds, Washington and a partner in numerous Peak Health & Wellness locations across Idaho, Montana, Washington and Wyoming, reminded me of two lessons I learned at an early age. Read Article...

Jared Williams' Dynamic Fitness
The Passionate Coach Motivating Team Players to WIN
May 2022 - As I have written on occasion, the great game of football was a truly transformative experience in my life. I am not alone in this experience and subsequent observations. If you talk to anyone who played the game for more than that one "I'm going to try it out" season, they will tell you the same. Don't get me wrong, I played other sports, too, but they did not hit like football, literally and philosophically. The others did not change me as a person like football did. Read Article...

Jason Markowicz' Fitness Premier 24/7
One Team. One Dream.
June 2022 - Over the years, countless health and fitness club industry professionals have exclaimed that this is a people business. To begin this month's cover story, I want to once again shout that from the rooftops! The health and fitness club industry is a people business!!! Really, it's as people driven as it gets. Yes, we have some really cool stuff in facilities worldwide, and some facilities simply outmatch and outclass others. That is the nature of business. However, if we could be all-knowing and be granted the specific, non-skewed statistics as to what truly makes a club company successful or not, I have no doubt we would find that it is the people, not things. Read Article...

Jeff Quinn and Echelon Health & Fitness
Crafting and Cultivating the Member Experience
April 2023 - Each morning, while getting ready for the day, I look in the mirror. Not to check my devilish good looks (just kidding), but to look myself in the eye to know I am ready to do what I need to do once again. In doing so, I think about a few things. First, I think about how fortunate I am: I live where I want. I work how I want. I have created the life I want. Second, I think about how that occurred... Each week and month, I get to publish Club Insider, which has the sole Mission, "To help the owners and operators of health and fitness clubs professionalize their clubs and gain the trust and business of their community." Every action we take reinforces that statement. Within your business, my hope is your Mission or Values includes something such as: To help our members live a healthier and better life. Does each action you take reinforce a statement like that? Read Article...

Jeff Sanders
Lessons in Leadership, Alliances and Advocacy
January 2022 - We are the culmination of our life's experiences. Throughout that time, some events lead us to the top rungs of success; others bring us to the lowest depths of failure. But, each is an opportunity to learn and grow. Then, it is our duty to share much of that with others. This creates a never-ending circle of knowledge, and in business, this process can mitigate many failures before they occur. Read Article...

Keith and Kathy Rawlings' Arena Club
Making It FUN for Every Family
July 2017 - For years, Club Insider has published at least one ad each month that simply says: Make It FUN! The reason for this is quite simple; it is our way to remind our readers that the health and fitness club industry is supposed to be FUN! Sure, there is the daily, weekly, monthly and yearly pressures of successfully running a business in ever-increasingly competitive markets. But, without FUN, the product of health and fitness is a hard one to sell. Our industry's top challenge is that it is easier for people to sit around and live an inactive lifestyle. They know the consequences, but creating action is still difficult. A key way to combat that is to sell fun, in addition to the benefits of a healthy lifestyle. Throw in a focus on the family unit and you have the formula that serves The Arena Club in Bel Air, Maryland. Read Article...

Ken Davies' City Fitness
More Than a Gym. A Community.
July 2021 - Philadelphia. The Birthplace of America. The City of Brotherly Love. The Cheesesteak Capitol of the World. The Home of Rocky Balboa. And, the nicknames can go on and on. When you think of a quintessential American city, Philadelphia is it. And, within this great American city resides Ken Davies and City Fitness. Now, six locations strong, City Fitness prides itself on being more than a gym, but a community for its members. Like the stories of America and Rocky, the story of Ken Davies and City Fitness is one of fighting, surviving and thriving. As Rocky said, "You, me or nobody is gonna hit as hard as life. But, it ain't how hard you hit; it's about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward. That's how winning is done." I know... it's a movie, but Rocky wasn't wrong! Read Article...

Kim Manocherian and New York Health and Racquet Club
The Home of Health, Happiness and Everyday Heroes
September 2015 - The family business is an interesting concept, mixing elements from the business world and family dynamics to create an organization that offers a product or service. For some, it comes easy; for others, it is quite a challenge. In all cases, though, in order to succeed, a level of balance must be found, that of sound business concepts mixed with constructively handling possibly conflicting managerial styles. Crucially important to achieving this is communication. Going further, within the health and fitness club industry, in order to succeed, another balance must also occur, that of the relationship between the club and its member and what is offered to them across fitness, social, entertainment and other spheres. Read Article...

Linda Fondren
Instituting The Local Shape Up
October 2010 - From time to time, adversity can strike and change one's life. Sometimes, that change is for the better, if the difficulty of that time motivates someone to achieve better things. And sometimes, that change can be much worse if the difficulty prevents the ability to move on. Read Article...

Michael Olander
The O2 Fitness Experience
June 2014 - Think back a few years to the Great Recession. During that time, did your health and fitness club company thrive or merely survive? What did you learn during that time, and what would you change prior to the recession if you could go back? These are very important questions because, as history will attest, another recession will eventually come. Will you be ready? If the answer is, "I don't know," I hope the following cover story will help. Regardless of the answer, though, read on because the story of Michael Olander and O2 Fitness is an exciting one and a refreshing approach to fitness. Read Article...

Mike Feitelberg and Team
The Future Begins At The Edge
May 2015 - Get the right people on the bus, the wrong people off the bus, and then, figure out where those left should sit and where to drive the bus. In its most simplistic form, this is a key takeaway from Jim Collins' Good To Great. This month, Club Insider is pleased to feature Mike Feitelberg, Co-Owner and President of The Edge, a 6-club chain located in Vermont. Carrying the previous analogy further, Mike Feitelberg and his team have an incredible bus. They have filled the seats with amazing people. And now, they are driving it towards the future of our industry. Read Article...

Modern Club Architecture and Design - Part I
Featuring Interviews With Rudy Fabiano and Bruce Carter
May 2018 - Each month, at Club Insider, we attempt to bring to you, our readers, stories of club success. Though we always seek to report the full story of how an organization came to be, eventually, the core of the story becomes about what they are doing now. As so many have been quoted about overnight successes, though, the irony they try to embellish is that an overnight success is never that. It is something that took years and levels of planning to achieve that most cannot comprehend. That is why, this month, I am personally excited to bring to you an in-depth cover story about modern club architecture and design, featuring two true veterans of the field in our industry, Rudy Fabiano and Bruce Carter. Read Article...

Modern Club Architecture and Design - Part II
Featuring Interviews With Rudy Fabiano and Bruce Carter
June 2018 - In Part I of our 2-part cover story on modern club architecture and design, Rudy Fabiano and Bruce Carter discussed many of the aspects required in the detail-oriented field of club architecture of design. There are many things to consider with every project before you ever get to the stage of picking actual design elements, materials and finishes. This month, in Part II, Rudy and Bruce will discuss those design elements, materials and finishes. I invite you to read on. Read Article...

New! clubinsideronline.com
March 2008 - Read Article...

Newtown Athletic Club and Jim Worthington Raise Over $200,000 for Augie's Quest
April 2016 - Augie's Quest, an organization that's leading the search for the Cure for ALS, has become an immeasurable force for good within our industry and the greater society in which we operate. In the eleven years since its founding, the Augie's Quest cause has raised more than $45 million towards finding that cure. Many have said that it is Lou Gehrig's disease, but when it is rid from this Earth, it will be known as Augie's Cure. Augie has been our General for the fight, but within that title are the soldiers helping to fight that war. One of those soldiers is Jim Worthington, owner of the Newtown Athletic Club (NAC), in Newtown, Pennsylvania. Read Article...

Norm Cates, Jr.
75 Years and Still Kickin'!
January 2021 - One's life is the aggregate of the experiences, lessons and people met and affected along the way. And, a life well lived is one that fills each of these categories with a plethora of stories and shared experiences. The life of my Dad, Norm Cates, Jr., is one that has been well lived, and I am thankful it is one that continues on. In honor of his 75th Birthday on January 17, 2021, this month's cover story will share his life to date with you. Now, 75 years in, his experiences, lessons and the people he has met and affected along the way can fill volumes, so I am going to do my best to share as much of it with you as I can in this limited space. Sharing this milestone in my Dad's life is a top honor in my own life, so I thank you for the time you spend reading this story. Though it is long and thorough, I can promise you it is entertaining, informational and beneficial. So, once again, I invite you to grab two or three of your favorite beverages, sit in your favorite comfortable spot, and enjoy the following in-depth interview with Norm Cates, Jr. Read Article...

October Cover Story Preview
Paula Neubert and Club Greenwood
September 2020 - This year, 2020, has been a year of firsts for so many us. From our personal lives to professional careers, we have had to adapt like never before. The same has occurred for us here at Club Insider, especially over the course of the past two months as important industry news continues to break, day-in and day-out. We are thankful to be a nimble publication, because it allows us to quickly change editorial direction in order to effectively cover pertinent news in near real-time (both online and in print). Our recent August and September Cover Stories have been a testament to that fact. Read Article...

PASS PHIT!
The Importance of Passing PHIT and What You Can Do To Help
August 2018 - The Health and Fitness Club Industry is on the verge of an accomplishment that has been years in the making and one that should further bolster its growth in the years to come. Of course, I am talking about PHIT, the Personal Health Investment Today act. After more than a decade of hard, in-the-trenches work by hundreds of industry leaders and advocates, on July 25, 2018, H.R. 6199, the Restoring Access to Medication Act of 2018, a broader bill that included the current language of PHIT, passed the U.S. House of Representatives with a bipartisan vote of 277 to 142. On the heels of being recommended by the House Ways and Means Committee, for the first time, PHIT has passed a House of Congress vote. In doing so, it sets up what can only be described as the most crucial moment in history that our industry has faced. We must win. So, to that end, this month's cover story is going to be all about PHIT. How did it come to be? Who are the key players that brought it to the forefront of national awareness? What will it do for this great industry? And, if not already, what can you do to get involved? More than ever, I urge you to read on. Read Article...

Paula Neubert and Club Greenwood
Truly Creating a Sense of Belonging
October 2020 - If you are reading this, I have to assume you make your living in the health and fitness club industry. Well, what is a club? Simply defined, a club is an association or organization dedicated to a particular interest or activity. For our industry, that interest or activity is health and fitness. And, in this year of years, that is more important than ever! At Club Greenwood in Greenwood Village, Colorado, the word "Club" is purposefully front and center, and everything revolves around creating that cohesion of interest, and thus, a sense of belonging. As Paula Neubert, President/General Manager of Club Greenwood, said of the name change to create this effect, "It was one of the best decisions we have made. It further simplified our name and encompassed everything we do versus just being an athletic facility." Read Article...

Pete Moore & Integrity Square
Connecting the HALO Sector with Growth Capital
March 2019 - Since the advent of the spoken word, humans have told stories. Some stories are just for fun; others have the important task of passing along history. In almost all stories, though, fun or purposeful, lessons are taught. Then, the story is passed along again, adapted and evolved as it makes its course through time. The story of Pete Moore, Founder and Managing Partner of Integrity Square, is comprised of several chapters, each built on the previous and each teaching its own lessons. If you think about the story that is to be told as a square structure, the first chapter builds the foundation for what is to come. The second and third chapters create the walls of understanding, building upon the past. The fourth chapter completes the structure. The fifth chapter, however, is the crux, filling the square in with color and providing a springboard into the future. That springboard is now Integrity Square, creators of the term: the HALO Sector (Healthy, Active Living and Outdoors). Read Article...

Play On at Little Rock Athletic Club
May 2017 - "It's what we do. We're a big, diverse family of tennis players, swimmers, runners, CrossFitters, cannonballers, stairmaster-ers, weekend warriors, big kids, little kids and kids who never grew up. We love to run, jump, serve, swim, splash, sweat, lap, lunge, squat, compete and do pretty much any other verb you can associate with fitness. We believe that fitness and fun not only can co-exist, but that they are soul mates that should never be apart. It's why this club exists. And it's why we come to work. It's why more than ever we're committed to helping you, our members, play often, play hard and Play On." Read Article...

Prairie Life Fitness
A Smart Balance of Fitness and Fun
April 2010 - Fitness can be fun! And, you can never be too young or too old to have too much fun. At Prairie Life Fitness, Dean Rasmussen has built a culture of making it fun in his clubs, not only for his members but for his employees. Read Article...

REX For Women Leaders
Introducing The Iron Maidens
June 2023 - We all know what a Board of Directors is, at least in business. You have to be a big company worth a lot of money to need or have one, right? Wrong!!! Whether we are talking about a single person or a giant organization, the idea of a Board of Directors is simple and valid. It is a group of people who care about the person or organization they are representing enough to dedicate time, knowledge and advice. This idea is nothing new, and in fact, it has been mentioned by several of our cover story subjects over the past few years. Interestingly enough, what they have in common is they are REX Roundtable Members! The reason for this is the power of outside insights. As we go through our own day-to-day, we are more likely to experience tunnel vision than not. Our personal Board of Directors or that of an organization exists to offer an objective viewpoint, a periphery. Read Article...

Rick Caro's 13th Annual IHRSA Financial Panel
April 2009 - It is needless to say that the financial tumult we have seen in the past year has created worry in the minds of many across this country and the world. The result has been decreased spending, increased layoffs and a fear that our current recession becomes a depression. Ironically, less spending, increased savings and future planning are all good things, but right now, they are contributing to the overall financial situation we are experiencing. Read Article...

Rob Goldman and The Columbia Association
The Quality of Life People
August 2013 - "There really can be no other right purpose of community except to provide an environment and an opportunity to develop better people. The most successful community would be that which contributed the most by its physical form, its institution and its operation to the growth of people." Read Article...

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