HALO Talks: Elevating Wellness

Hassan Shah is an avid gamer and entrepreneur from Pakistan who is passionate about the intersection between connected fitness, sports, and gaming. He's set out to transform the fitness market with an innovative open world game, mixing Peloton and Zwift, which (among many other things) creates an all-encompassing experience with a unique monetization system. His company is called X-Originz and based in the UK. They're currently looking to raise £2.7m to order their first batch of 10,000 bikes and take them to market.

When it comes to starting a new business and the challenges it brings, Shah states, "Life is nothing without struggle. And that's always kind of stuck with me, and hopefully I'll pass that on to my children and we persevere and we keep going." Hassan took note of the rise and fall of Peloton, some of the shortcomings of Zwift, and set out to create an app that combined the two, providing an engaging gaming experience. With his vision of a centralized data system and a bike costing next to nothing, he has the potential to reach a very large market (starting in the UK initially) and provide a solution for those struggling with fitness. In this episode, Pete and Hassan discuss:

1. How gaming has evolved from a young age to its current state.

2. The potential of the metaverse to connect different worlds and gaming experiences.

3. Creating an accessible and engaging bike fitness experience through monetization, data, and a kids version.

Other episodes you'll enjoy around virtual fitness:

Bill McBride: https://www.halotalks.com/bill-mcbride-president-ceo-active-wellness/

Mohamed Iqbal: https://www.halotalks.com/episode-341-mohammed-iqbal-founder-ceo-sweatworks/ Connect With Us:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thehaloadvisors/?hl=en Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Integritysquare YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@halotalks Twitter: https://twitter.com/thehaloadvisors LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/integrity-square/ Website: https://www.halotalks.com Loved this episode? Leave us review and rating here: www.ratethispodcast.com/halotalks

Jim Donnelly is the CEO and founder of Restore Hyper Wellness, a company focused on "making hyper wellness affordable and accessible for more people." He is a serial entrepreneur and a highly experienced leader with a passion for helping others. Six or seven years ago he found himself training for a triathlon and, after a friend suggested cryotherapy, he decided to try it out, but was unhappy with the experience-putting it mildly!

He thought he could do it better, and he certainly has! They began adding other medical modalities (they offer 10 currently), have 165 locations open, a corporate office with 200 employees, 700 more stores on a development schedule, and a $140 million dollar investment by General Atlantic partners to top it off!

Part of their success stems from the fact that they've been very selective about their franchisees. They're continuing to aggressively expand with a new store opening every three to four days (as of this recording.)

He states, "We've created a national infrastructure. We do it better than anybody else. We manufacture our own equipment. We're super excited about our place as the leader in this space. And our mission is to make hyper wellness affordable and accessible for more people so they can do what they love to do . . . I'm a much, much better entrepreneur today because of all of those things, including some of the failures. And I would say my superpower is that I'm self aware, I'm pretty egoless and I love bringing in people to help me."

In this episode, Pete and Jim discuss:

1. What strategies they used from the beginning to ensure they had the right franchisees in place.

2. What procedures they've implemented to help them become the leader in the hyper wellness category.

3. How partnering with a private equity firm allowed Restore to make targeted, strategic investments and help them "control their own destiny." Other episodes you'll enjoy around workout recovery:

John Klein: https://www.halotalks.com/episode-373-john-klein-ceo-and-co-founder-pause-studio/

Dr. Jonathan Leary: https://www.halotalks.com/episode-355-dr-jonathan-leary-remedy-place-founder/

Dr. Neil Paulvin: https://www.halotalks.com/dr-neil-paulvin/

Connect With Us:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thehaloadvisors/?hl=en Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Integritysquare YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@halotalks Twitter: https://twitter.com/thehaloadvisors LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/integrity-square/ Website: https://www.halotalks.com Loved this episode? Leave us a review and rating here.

When Donald Kelly, Founder of the Sales Evangelist, attempts to teach a group of businesses how to infuse sales back into their culture, he discovered that the key to success is building genuine relationships with clients (especially during discovery) and establishing a bridge between the value of your solution and their problem. He states, "The most effective organizations . . . they all have the pedigree that everyone is in sales. Even if it's a brick and mortar with a cashier at the front, all the way down to a senior executive, if you can have that sales mentality . . . it's going to be a very successful company. Here's one of the reasons why passion is critical: If you have people on your team who don't believe in what you're doing, then why are they even on your team?"

Donald grew up in Jamaica and shares his experiences around how everyone had to find ways to survive. It was tough going for sure. He went on to develop his skills through years of in-the-trenches experience in business-to-consumer sales, technology, and software. He was rated in the top 29 of the Sales Force Influencers of 2022. As he continued to ascend the ranks in his various positions (as well as being a voracious consumer of podcasts and YouTube videos), he created his own handbook that others can replicate.

In this episode, you will learn:

1. How to infuse sales back into a business culture and make it a part of your company's DNA.

2. How to unlock the secrets of successful sales strategies to skyrocket your business profits!

3. The importance of passion in sales and how to evoke it in order to make a genuine connection with customers.

4. How to prepare for a sales call or visit, including researching potential clients, asking the right questions, and focusing on the customer's needs.

Click here to download transcript.

Other episodes you'll enjoy around recruiting, sales, & more:

Ross Lauder: https://www.halotalks.com/episode-333-ross-lauder-founder-chief-energy-officer-single-focus-talent/

Kory Angelin: https://www.halotalks.com/episode-336-kory-angelin-coo-volofit/

Connect With Us:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thehaloadvisors/?hl=en Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Integritysquare YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@halotalks Twitter: https://twitter.com/thehaloadvisors LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/integrity-square/ Website: https://www.halotalks.com Loved this episode? Leave us a review and rating here.

When Jason Moore, an entrepreneur with a background in data, software, and fitness decided to apply his expertise to the body, he quickly discovers a powerful, but ironic truth: The most valuable piece of equipment in the world is his own.

He has developed a technology platform called Spren which uses device agnostic and camera sensing technology to deliver science-backed insights about the body.

He states, "You have this high dollar, incredibly expensive equipment where if it fails, it can literally kill people or waste millions or billions of dollars. Imagine how much effort gets put into preventive and predictive care of that equipment! Eventually, I came to realize the most valuable piece of equipment in the whole world is my own body. So why am I not spending the same level of preventive and predictive care on myself?"

Spren provides guidance and feedback on things like nutrition, inflammation, stress, exercise and recovery. They have been able to collect over 4 billion data points from 700,000 users, and is currently working with an audience of 30 million. The platform can also be private labeled and they are already working with other partners in the HALO space. Jason's ongoing goal is to continue to try to help people understand their body and aid them in making the right changes to improve their health and fitness. In this episode, Jason and Pete discuss: 1. How Jason's background in oil & gas maintenance and prevention intersects with his current work in biometrics and health.

2. How Spren makes it easier for businesses to deliver science-backed insights about the body and has even helped some Olympic athletes win a gold medal!

3. How the platform provides personalized guidance to individuals without requiring them to use a specific device.

Click here to download transcript. Other episodes you'll enjoy around fit-tech:

Dr. Joseph Maroon: https://www.halotalks.com/episode-377-dr-joseph-maroon/

Perry Kamel: https://www.halotalks.com/episode-360-perry-kamel-dna-vibe-ceo/

Dr. Wersland & Ben Nazarian: https://www.halotalks.com/benjamin-nazarian-dr-jason-wersland-therabody/ Connect With Us:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thehaloadvisors/?hl=en Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Integritysquare YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@halotalks Twitter: https://twitter.com/thehaloadvisors LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/integrity-square/ Website: https://www.halotalks.com Loved this episode? Leave us a review and rating here.

In his second appearance on HALO Talks and as the now newly installed President of Stronger U (part of the Self Esteem umbrella), Adam Zeitsiff discusses their Mission of helping people achieve their nutrition goals and build meaningful human relationships with RD's and certified nutrition coaches, challenging the 95% diet failure rate and revolutionizing the way we think about nutrition. Stronger U has now been in business for 7 years and has an incredibly supportive community of 50,000+ strong! "There's no shortage of apps and tools out there that use technology and help drive people to understand [nutrition] education. I think what we've been really successful at doing is humanizing the approach . . . We're unapologetically about the human-to-human relationship, because what's more intimate than what you put in your body? There's not a lot of things that are more intimate than that. And you need another human to help guide you through it and understand not just the specifics about what you're eating, but why you're eating it," states Zeitsiff. Stronger U is direct-to-consumer but also has select partnerships with fitness facilities to provide nutrition support. Generally speaking, the program lasts approximately four to five months and provides education and accountability through a dedicated coach and an app. After four to five months, the user can access a lower price package to remain a part of their extremely vibrant community. In this episode Pete and Adam touch on:

1. How Stronger U is revolutionizing nutrition not by "dieting," but through a human-centric approach and community support. 2. What the differences are between a Registered Dietitian and a certified nutrition coach. 3. How Stronger U uses technology to personalize and sustain nutrition lifestyle changes.

Click here to download transcript.

Other episodes you'll enjoy around nutrition:

Dr. Layne Norton: https://www.halotalks.com/episode-328-dr-layne-norton-ceo-founder-biolayne/ Ari Tulla: https://www.halotalks.com/episode-346-ari-tulla-ceo-co-founder-elo/

Connect With Us:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thehaloadvisors/?hl=en Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Integritysquare YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@halotalks Twitter: https://twitter.com/thehaloadvisors LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/integrity-square/ Website: https://www.halotalks.com Loved this episode? Leave us a review and rating here.

Join Randi Eisenshtat, a long-time industry veteran as she shares her story of initially starting out teaching everything from cardio funk and hip hop to getting involved with the fundraising world helping secure hundreds of thousands of dollars for non-profits like St. Jude, Cycle for Survival, the Sunrise Assocation, and others.

She has over 17 years of experience having worked for Lifetime and Equinox, still teaches, and runs a financial planning practice as well. She's recently done a great deal of work with the incredible Sunrise Association, a now international organization that provides a full service summer camp for children with cancer and their siblings. She continues to work tirelessly . . . combining her love of fitness and fundraising. The second annual RISE UP for Sunrise was held September 2022 and raised nearly $14,000!

She's seen a lot of change in the HALO sector, and when it comes to the 'big box versus boutique' question she states, "I find that these big box gyms, because they are providing everything under one roof for a really decent price given what they're offering . . . they're always going to be there. They're never going anywhere. And that's, I think, what is keeping (especially over the last couple of years with the pandemic) some of these bigger businesses a float and some of the smaller ones obviously are no longer in business.

In this episode, Pete and Randi discuss:

1. Randi Eisenshtat's journey in the health club industry, from teaching dance classes to managing group fitness programs in large organizations and her thoughts on fundraising as well as where the industry is going.

2. The psychology of how large clubs think about group fitness, and how they can compete with smaller boutiques offering more specialized services.

3. The Sunrise nonprofit organization, their fundraising events, and how you can get involved.

Click here to download transcript.

Other Episodes You'll Enjoy Around Non-Profits: John Mirrione: https://www.halotalks.com/john-mirrione-owner-of-harmony-by-karate-harmony-power-foundation/ Connect With Us:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thehaloadvisors/?hl=en Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Integritysquare YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@halotalks Twitter: https://twitter.com/thehaloadvisors LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/integrity-square/ Website: https://www.halotalks.com Loved this episode? Leave us a review and rating here.

With the noble goal of creating a calisthenics online brand to help others--especially those just starting out--Hampton Liu remains determined to maintain his freedom and authenticity while attempting to balance the challenges of growing his brand month over month. He is a certified personal trainer, passionate fitness enthusiast, and the founder of Hybrid Calisthenics, an online brand and community dedicated to helping others achieve their fitness goals.With just over 3 million subscribers on his YouTube channel alone, Hampton has made incredibly impressive strides in a very short time period.

He states, "I haven't redefined what success looks like. For me, it's just doing what I like and being happy and helping others be free and happy. That's so cliche. But I can't give another answer because it is true, which is why I've repeatedly chosen freedom, which is one of the parts of the brand sponsorship things over money and people having leverage over me. Another thing that early entrepreneurs have issues with . . . is they rapidly trade their freedom for some extra money and then they have to do all these other things while trying to keep the brand authentic. That's harder when you owe someone $500,000 and they're like, 'hey, you need to push this thing that we agreed on.'"

Liu has always been passionate about fitness, particularly martial arts and calisthenics and in 2020, he began recording his "blatherings" about calisthenics and posting them online. This quickly gained traction and connected him to a community of people that he could help. He learned to say no to offers that didn't align with his values and has continued refining his message and building his brand, all while staying true to his core ideology. In this episode, you will learn: 1. How Hampton went from taking care of his mother 24/7 to building a successful online brand and community around calisthenics.2. What the two things are that brick and mortar fitness club owners must be doing on social media. 3. How entrepreneurs can maximize their return on personal time, while remaining passionate and loving what they do.

Click here to download transcript.

Other episodes you'll enjoy around different modalities:

Layne Norton: https://www.halotalks.com/episode-328-dr-layne-norton-ceo-founder-biolayne/ Sue Hitzman: https://www.halotalks.com/episode-372-sue-hitzmann-melt-method-founder/ Sam Miller: https://www.halotalks.com/episode-378-sam-miller-proteus-motion-discovering-the-future-of-strength-testing/

Connect With Us:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thehaloadvisors/?hl=en Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Integritysquare YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@halotalks Twitter: https://twitter.com/thehaloadvisors LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/integrity-square/ Website: https://www.halotalks.com Loved this episode? Leave us a review and rating here.

Adam Molda is a former college tennis player-turned-fitness entrepreneur from York, Main. He's the founder of Spark Fitness & Tennis Club and has a passion for creating communities and fostering relationships through the sport of tennis. Since COVID, America has seen 5 million new players come to the game and the opportunity to promote the sport is bigger than ever. He talks about transforming a big box facility into something with a more "boutique feel" with the overarching mission of building a heavily focused, tennis-based community. On the operations side he states, "All our tennis is based around being social, being competitive, and just getting better. Our most popular tennis program is our own type of cadio tennis. I'm not a big fan of the 'traditional' cardio tennis, so we've created our own, and it's our most popular program. Starting Sunday morning for example, we have four courts and 32 people coming to do our version--Sparks version of cardio tennis. And then the next hour and a half, we have another 32. We're satisfying over 100 people in 3 hours on the court, and we do that throughout the week. What we're trying to do here is to create a community that's a fitness class, they're having fun, they're improving their skills, they're meeting new people, and they're getting fitter. We're checking all the boxes." Adam goes on to discuss his background and how it has been a linchpin for his career journey. He talks about the importance of the team aspect of tennis, the social aspect, and the fitness part of it. He discusses the rebirth of tennis due to COVID and how it has given people a socially distant option to compete, connect, and learn life skills. Adam also talks about the importance of accountability and having the best people on your staff in order to help create a space that truly sets itself apart.

In this episode, Adam and Pete discuss:

1. The "rebirth" of tennis in the age of COVID: How the sport adapted to the pandemic, and what it means for the future of the game.

2. Building a community through tennis: How the game can be utilized to foster relationships, and what life skills it can teach.

3. Utilizing data and technology to enhance the member experience: What software solutions are available to facilitate better connections with members, and how can they be implemented. Other episodes you'll enjoy around mental strength/motivation:

Benj Ecker: https://www.halotalks.com/episode-323-benj-ecker-general-manager-college-park-athletic-club/

Rebecca Schonfeld: https://www.halotalks.com/rebecca-schonfeld-mental-health-advocate/

Matthew Richter: https://www.halotalks.com/matthew-richter-thiagi-group-president/

Click here to download transcript. Connect With Us:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thehaloadvisors/?hl=en Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Integritysquare YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@halotalks Twitter: https://twitter.com/thehaloadvisors LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/integrity-square/ Website: https://www.halotalks.com Loved this episode? Leave us a review and rating here.

Arnab Raychaudhuri is an engineer, tech entrepreneur, and former field organizer for the Obama campaign. He is passionate about fitness and is currently working to revolutionize the virtual fitness industry with his company, ZOMO Fit.

Arnab was an engineer living in New York City when the pandemic hit. He noticed local gyms quickly took to running live Zoom classes to help keep things alive while they were shut down. This gave him the initial idea to create a platform--specific to the fitness industry--using his tech background. He created Zomo Fit, a platform which, among many other things, now gives customers access to every single instructor at SoulCycle for $34 classes. He believes that virtual fitness is an $8 billion opportunity that is projected to increase to $60 billion in the next couple of years.

Prior to jumping into entrepreneurship though, an opportunity with his friends came up to work for a then, relatively unknown Senator Obama. He later hustled hard to later land a job in his administration ("I took it as a challenge!") and learned the in's and out's of lobbying and getting things done on the Hill. And it isn't pretty!

He states, "What I learned quickly from being in government is that it's capitalistic, and the country is very capitalistic . . . which is great for entrepreneurs and people starting out. It's a great opportunity creator. But for IHRSA or other trade associations out there . . . the dollars win. For example, the folks that have a lot of lobbying money, they can obviously control what bills kind of get out there. Unfortunately, I think there's a lot of kind of dirty money around. In terms of lobbying, it's about getting as many signatures as possible to the Hill and getting a champion on the Hill to back up a bill and make sure there's money behind it to incentivize that Senator or Congressperson to push it really hard. They need to have some kind of incentive."

"Really what it comes down to . . . in terms of politics and money, is that they need to get reelected, and that's also about how much money you can raise to get reelected. It's like they're all running their own small businesses. Let's say the association can put in more money for someone's campaign . . . that is a driver for these guys. Like it or not, unfortunately, money has to be behind whatever bill you push forward. It can't just be for the 'common good' because there's a lot of common good things out there, but the ones that have the most money behind it? Those are the ones that get the most attention and are pushed forward."

In this episode, Pete and Arnab also discuss:

1. How he managed the transition from engineering to working in politics with Obama's administration. 2. How the fitness industry can and should leverage lobbying and other efforts to more aggressively push forward bills and initiatives. 3. Long-term view on virtual fitness and its potential growth.

Click here to download transcript.

Other episodes you'll enjoy around virtual fitness:

• Flexit: https://www.halotalks.com/episode-320-austin-cohen-founder-flexit-second-interview/
• Burnalong: https://www.halotalks.com/daniel-freedman-ceo-and-founder-of-burnalong/

Connect With Us:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thehaloadvisors/?hl=en Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Integritysquare YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@halotalks Twitter: https://twitter.com/thehaloadvisors LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/integrity-square/ Website: https://www.halotalks.com Loved this episode? Leave us a review and rating here.

When Sam Miller, an industry outsider, took up the "minor" challenge of attempting to revolutionize strength testing and training, he ended up manufacturing a device unlike anything else currently available--something which helps unlocks previously inaccessible insights into physical strength--and launching him into a head-to-head battle for content against existing equipment makers.

Sam is the CEO and Founder of Proteus Motion, a revolutionary strength testing and training device that provides full body assessments in three minutes and unlocks new insights into physical strength and human performance. He got into the HALO sector after enduring years of physical therapy as a young kid. He took a mechanical concept his Dad initially invented at MIT and redesigned it, creating a revolutionary strength testing device that produces two times more muscle activation than a free weight or a cable machine.

Proteus is quickly becoming a standard for human performance, providing trainers with the data they need to diagnose issues, validate results and design highly customized training programs. The product is being used in 43 states, with a focus on sports performance and sports medicine. Customers range from 8-88 years old, with the product being used in retail locations and gyms.

Sam states, "There's a real market and appetite for quantifiable information, especially around human performance. There's a huge gap, though, in physical strength data. There are 24/7 wearables which have created a $30 billion sleep and recovery market, MRIs and X-rays have created a $60 billion MSK market, right? But physical strength? What are we doing to measure it? It's basically like, 'How much can you squat or bench?' That led me to the realiziation that we're evaluating this critical pillar of human performance in, basically, one dimension, which is kind of stunning to think about."

In this episode, Pete and Sam discuss:

1. How is Proteus Motion is revolutionizing the strength training industry with their strength testing device and software products.

2. How their patented technology measures physical strength and power for every human movement.

3. How Proteus can empower trainers and potentially even help transform the physical therapy and sports medicine industries. If you're a decision maker at a facility where resistance training is taken seriously by your members, the Proteus is worth very strong consideration.

Click here to download transcript.

Other episodes you'll enjoy around resistance training:

• https://www.halotalks.com/episode-292-andrew-page-the-axle-workout-co-founder/
• https://www.halotalks.com/episode-327-aaron-laurence-mark-livingston-ybell-fitness/
• https://www.halotalks.com/episode-353-dermot-mcardle-jp-mone-ramfit/

Connect With Us

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thehaloadvisors/?hl=en Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Integritysquare YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@halotalks Twitter: https://twitter.com/thehaloadvisors LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/integrity-square/ Website: https://www.halotalks.com

Loved this episode? Leave us a review and rating here.