The majority of respondents who feel that members should not have to pay for unused months feel that it is better for business to allow members to take time off. They feel it is a service, and members should only pay when that service is actually used. Says one respondent, “[Facility usage is] a service, [and] clients [don't] have a chance to use that paid service without being present…. [One way to handle this] is to give clients … one month in the year not to pay. Even if the club is ‘overbooking,’ you don’t lose a lot of money, and clients will be happy because they have the chance to manage their month….” (more…)

Not long ago, most people would have guessed that St. John’s wort was some sort of ecclesiastical skin condition. Now, it’s one of the most popular herbal remedies around. But which herbs will grab the spotlight next? SELF asked the experts to name the newbies—and tell you whether you should consider trying them. (more…)

Kathie Davis, executive director of IDEA, The Health & Fitness Source, San Diego, Calif., has observed the transformation of group exercise over the last 10 years. According to Davis, even 10 years ago, members were beginning to show signs of diversification. “After the implementation of dance-exercise, jazz aerobics and high impact, the interest of exercising in a group dynamic became more and more appealing,” she says. “It didn’t take long for this interest to evolve into an explosion of programming.” (more…)

The staff at Excel Fitness Center in Anderson, Ind., had heard the excuses before — over and over, as a matter of fact. So they decided to do something about it. The “If What?” health promotion, targeted at the couch-potato population, encouraged people to stop making excuses and start focusing on doing something good for themselves — namely, exercising. (more…)

A panel of scientists at the US National Institutes of Health has confirmed what health experts have known for years: The proper use of condoms dramatically cuts risks for sexually transmitted gonorrhea and HIV.

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In the summer of 1996, LifeStart decided to automate all of the clubs under its administrative umbrella through a single, areawide computer network. Through “Centralized Accounting” the firm hoped to reduce accounting costs, standardize procedures and reporting, increase access to financial information and limit the storage and maintenance of files to a single location. (more…)

Can your body size predict your future risk of bone fractures? Past research shows this to be the case with hip fractures, but what about other fractures? A study, published in the July 18 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine, examines the relationship between body size and fractures in elderly women.

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The staff at the Excel Fitness Center realized that one of their target markets, the deconditioned adult, would use any excuse not to exercise — including their children! To combat this, they created The Jungle Club, designed to be a place that children would beg to come to, thus getting their parents into the fitness facility. (more…)

5. Equity
The people magnet. The motivator.

Stock motivates both people and capital. Startup stock can and has turned secretaries into millionaires, and produced annual capital returns measured in hundreds of percent rather than tens. While stock is behind the scenes, it is the central force that pulls startup ingredients together and motivates them to do the impossible. Startups need capital, and stock, of course, is the way to get it. It is the ultimate unfair advantage against incumbents, as no matter what they do, their stock is never as valuable as startup stock. (more…)

New advancements in technology have led to hair loss treatments that actually work. Propecia offers some of the best hopes for successful treatment. This drug inhibits the hormone that leads to hair loss. A majority of the men who have used this drug have had more hair growth. (more…)