Episode 98: Michael Piercy on The Business of Fitness

"Fitness is Too Important To Be Boring"

About Today's Guest

Michael Piercy is the owner-founder of The LAB, a member of the Under Armour training team and a TRX Master Course Instructor and Global Presenter. Mike is the recipient of two of the most prestigious awards in the fitness industry the 2017 IDEA Personal Trainer of The Year Award as well as 2013 TRX Overall Instructor of the Year award given by his peers and colleagues for a great attitude, community spirit, and inspirational teaching.

Michael came into the fitness industry full time following a career in professional baseball in which he played for Major league organizations consisting of (Pittsburgh Pirates, New York Mets, Montreal Expos. Mike has had the pleasure of working with and creating programs for many athletes from a vast array of major sports including competing athletes in the NFL, MLB, and NBA.

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Show Notes

Michael got into fitness to stay off the streets. At the age of 15, his mum signed him up to help out at a local health club to help him stay out of trouble. Michael also became fascinated with his elder brother's weight set and to help him not use it all the time, his mum purchased a Hulk Hogan Kit for him to use. Jump rope, a cassette tape, and some instructions later – Michael began to deepen his commitment to the world of fitness.

He got his start in a large gym chain which enabled him to experience the many different aspects of a health club. Michael encourages new trainers to also try this entry point when starting out. You will learn a lot about what to do and then also a lot about what not to do. You can gain a tremendous amount of experience in a shorter period of time when you have so many different elements of fitness in one location.

Michael moved into the world of baseball when he was drafted by the pirates. He spent 99.9% of his time in the minor league which taught him many valuable lessons. In the minors, you have to do everything yourself for the most part. You're your own strength coach, you travel a lot, you learn to eat a little bit better and in turn, become your own advocate for a healthier lifestyle.

When talking about what Michael learned from his time in baseball that he carried with him into the world of fitness he replied with, “It would be split-second adjustment.” The ability to be able to adjust to certain things when things sometimes go your way and when things sometimes don’t. During his time traveling in baseball he also learned of the importance of being able to get on with many different personalities, cultures, and people from around the globe, this too has also served him well inside of the fitness world.

Michael shares how his world expanded when he attended his first fitness conference. He was captivated by the energy and the other attendees and saw there was an entire fitness world outside of New Jersey that was waiting for him to step into. After working hard and applying several times, he became a brand ambassador for TRX and his career was put on a jumpstart.

Michael shares the importance of asking the right questions when it comes to building your future and to also set meaningful and inspiring goals. He invites us to do goal setting every year. Write down your goals, write down what you want your life to be like, write down how you want your business to be. Write it down in as much detail and breakdown into as many micro-steps as possible. Just like a fitness program, this is a life program.

Another lesson that Michael learned from baseball was that “you have to stay on an even line across.” This meant you can't ever really get caught up in the hype, and can't ever get lost in the doubt. To always believe that you're better than your bad days and to never believe the hype that you're so good on your good days. Remain consistent and keep a consistent work ethic, because the game will humble you. In baseball, the guys in the hall of fame, are only good 30% of the time.

Michael talks about the importance of looking at your processes that you create and the people you surround yourself with. The importance of creating a tribe of people who you trust and who you can grow with. He struggles, just like most of us to delegate, but Michael also believes in the delegate or die principle too.
Michael encourages us to find our lane, to really discover where and with whom you do your best work. Take the time to figure out where you want to be. And in times of doubt ask yourself these three questions:

1. What are you worried about?
2. What are you protecting?
3. What are you waiting for?