Franchising 101 With Tim Pickwell | Starting Strength Gyms #54

[@martystrasinger3801]

It’s great listening to someone who not only knows the law, but knows the history of the law. Awesome.

[@richardackermann7809]

Tim is a franchise genius. Starting Strength Gyms got the right guy.

[@xmoogoox]

We are lucky to have his help 🍻

[@LPMutagen]

Back pain story. At 40, I had a girlfriend who wouldn't let me carry in more than 2 bags of groceries because she was afraid I'd hurt myself. Case in point: I threw my back out putting a gallon of milk in the fridge because I wasn't standing close enough to the fridge when I did it. I'm now 47 and regularly deadlift 350+ pounds (which isn't that impressive in the grand scheme) and my back is impervious to anything I'm going to encounter in daily life. I'm a self employed welder fabricator who often works on construction sites and I promise you that starting strength is the reason I can still do this for a living and, frankly, work circles around lots of younger guys.

[@rns7426]

BACK PAIN: I’m a middle aged man and I have multiple herniated discs. I’ve lived with back pain for decades. I was told not to lift. Not to put my spin under a load. I used SS linear program to get stronger and put weight on. After 2 years I have been squatting over #400 and deadlifting regularly near #500. Yes, it has helped immensely to rehabilitate my back. I walk around, sit, and generally sleep with no pain. Interestingly enough, like Rip says, my spine hates twisting. I’ll never be a martial arts kicker again. My spine will not tolerate that. It doesn’t even like repeated punching because of the twisting. But I walk around with little or no pain and I can lift heavy stuff with no pain or problems. That curmudgeonly old man, Rip, he really knows what he’s talking about!

[@shilohsanders5475]

Used to tweak my back all the time. Teak it much less now, and instead of the tweaks lasting weeks, they last hours, days at most.

[@martystrasinger3801]

FWIW, I have two “I take iron for back pain” shirts.

[@asdf8asdf8asdf8asdf]

Tim it's powerfully effective and in very very short order. I half-assed the program without a coach. Still got best results out of anything else I've tried. By a LONG shot. Got ridiculously stronger just by lifting eating and sleeping. No tricks. No pain. And in no way an athlete: spend a lot of time seated. 60s, male, 175 lbs, Type III shoulder damage and long standing lumbar scoliosis. Start your novice linear progression ASAP because in short order you'll be kicking yourself for not having done it sooner...

[@GHolmes-hy1sh]

Great video Ray. I think it communicates the culture and philosophy of Starting Strength Gyms well. I am a fan. A few comments. (1) Wish there was a SSG opening in the North Miami Beach / Aventura Florida area. I know there is one that is pending opening in the South Miami area but that would be 60+ minutes each way probably and with Miami traffic I'd never know if I could make it in time plus with my schedule it is too far away. If I wanted to be in a business I'd consider becoming a franchisee. (2) Having enough SS Coaches is THE bottleneck in opening gyms for sure. I did see Rip had recently put out a video encouraging people to become SS Coaches. You can's skimp on the training and commitment/passion of a SS Coach, they are the secret sauce for your business (as I am sure you know). They have to have both the knowledge and the time under the bar. I'd continue to recruit aggressively from people that have lived SS. The bottleneck may be a blessing in that it will ensure smooth growth - 5 lbs at a time, right! LOL (3) I appreciate being committed to SSG and not being interested in a quick buck. The U.S.A. needs these gyms! BUT if someone says they want to do a buyout for $30M it is worth a meeting, NOT to sell but to learn their perspective and to see what they see in your business. Let them do all the talking. Free advice from successful business people shouldn't be passed on. If they are THAT interested, be aware they could end up being competition. Best wishes!

[@xmoogoox]

Thanks for the positive feedback. I'll let the Miami owner, Keith, know about your request for North Miami. Agreed - without the coaching quality, our gyms are just pretty retail establishments. RE: not meeting with the sharks - this was when the company was brand new and we were racing against the clock. Every meeting I took = time spent away from building the company. Extremely important to be disciplined and focused towards a singular goal in business and in training. Since then I've taken some meetings, mostly just for validation that were valuable - but yep, not for sale. Good luck with your training and let us know if we can be helpful 🍻

[@spicyboi6297]

Back pain: Couldnt sit more than 10 min without back pain. 1 month startimg strength no coach, pain 95% gone. 3 months no coach, pain has not come back. 3yrs perform ss lifts now.