Today we’d like to introduce you to Joyce and Woody Bedell.
Joyce and Woody, please share your story with us.
My husband and I were looking for a franchise, and nothing seemed to be a good fit until The Exercise Coach opened up as a franchise. We are an active family, with marathons and triathlons under our belts, so it was hard to believe that we could get such a great workout in just 20 minutes twice a week. After reading all the testimonies and experiencing it ourselves, we were sold on the idea and purchased a studio in Bannockburn, IL One of our sons was looking to start his own company in the building industry and the other son was just graduating from college and looking forward to helping us run the business. So, in June of 2012, our son Michael built out the studio and we opened in August. He was highly recommended to build out other new studios in the area and thus started his career as Bedell Builders in a commercial and residential building. Three weeks after signing our 5-year lease, my husband was diagnosed with stage 4 aggressive non-hodgkins lymphoma. In the past 6 years, he has undergone 800 hours of inpatient chemo, a stem-cell transplant, a shoulder replacement, and many different forms of ongoing therapies. Through it all, The Exercise Coach has been one of the things that have helped him remain strong. His surgeon for his shoulder said at 66 he had the leanest muscle mass he’d seen in a man his age. Our program is only 20 minutes twice a week with bio-sensitive feedback equipment no one else has. Eighty-percent of our clients is between 45-74 and getting great results, with improved sugar levels and blood pressure, lower cholesterol, improved golf skills, and just overall stronger and healthier. We offer 2 free sessions with no obligation for anyone to try it out. There is no way to explain what we do. It needs to be experienced, and once experienced, we hear a lot of “ah ha” moments!
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I think the struggles may have been listed in the previous section, but opening up a new franchisee with my two sons while my husband was doing 100 hours/week/inpatient on/three weeks off of chemo throughout the summer of 2012 was challenging. Opening the business and then having the cancer return in 2014 and 2016 with ongoing scans and treatments (including a stem cell transplant) took us both out of the business for weeks at a time which made it harder to grow the business Even with all this going on, we had our son, David, to continue managing the business, along with the help of our excellent staff of trainers and to take care of our existing clients.
The Exercise Coach – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
We specialize in and have a passion for the unlikely exerciser. We are a one-on-one personal strength training studio with only two 20-minute workouts a week. We use computerized equipment that taps into all your major muscle fibers every second of every exercise with 8 reps each at a 1:30-minute cadence. With regular cable/free weights, you may be pushing 100 pounds, but then resist the same 100 pounds. Because you are about 50% stronger on the resistance phase, with our equipment you may be pushing 100 pounds and be able to resist 150 pounds so the extra effort is not lost on our program. We cater to those who are afraid of getting hurt, don’t like the gym scene, are too busy and just plain don’t like to exercise. Eighty-percent of our clients is between 45-74.
As we all know, our muscles atrophy as we get older. Strength training matters because of our loss of structural support, with decreased muscle and bone density, diminished balance and posture and increased joint and back pain. As we age, we also have weakened cardiovascular health with increased blood pressure, increased cholesterol/inflammation/atherosclerosis and diminished heart and lung capacity. We have a slower metabolism with increased fasting glucose and insulin, elevated blood sugar levels, and decreased energy. Our program can help with all these issues and also helps maintain a better quality of life, with a stronger core, leaner muscle mass, and stronger bones.
What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
Our proudest moment is when we all came together as a family to open our business in the face of adversity. My son, Michael, who is the builder, moved back to Illinois from Virginia to build out the business. I was a stay-at-home mom for 22 years and now found myself as a certified personal trainer, opening and running a business while trying to make sure my husband had everything he needed in order to fight cancer. My other son, David, helped his brother build out the studio and then became a certified personal trainer to help run the business and take care of our clients.
We’ve been open 6 years and have a wonderful client base. We love our clients and enjoy watching them get stronger and healthier. I’ve heard many times – “this is the only program I’ve stuck with.”
Contact Info:
- Address: The Exercise Coach – Bannockburn
2517 Waukegan Road
Bannockburn, IL 60015 - Website: www.exercisecoach.com
- Phone: 847-948-8000
- Email: j.bedell@exercisecoach.com
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/exercisecoachbannockburn/
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