If you put all your clients on podiums and celebrate their achievements, they'll stay longer and you'll earn more.

Today on “Run a Profitable Gym,” Chris Cooper breaks down the in-house competition he’s refined over 15 years: the Intramural Open. The four-week event can be run completely on its own or combined with the CrossFit Games Open.

Two-Brain's signature fun competition is a win for everyone: Clients get podium moments they can’t get anywhere else, and gym owners see measurable improvements in retention and average revenue per member. Plus, Coop has added a special bring-a-friend workout that's an A+ marketing opportunity.

From setup logistics to post-competition revenue boosters, Coop lays out the exact steps for running a successful team competition in your gym. You’ll even learn how to offer pre-event programs and specialty clinics to generate additional revenue before the competition begins.

Chris also shares survival tips to avoid burnout and refresh the open if you've run the event before.

If you’re ready to boost revenue and retention and fill your gym with good vibes to start 2026, this episode is for you!

To download the Intramural Open guide, head to Gym Owners United via the link below.

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8:04 - Setting up the Intramural Open

11:51 - Pre-open activities

18:14 - Points and scoring

23:51 - Results = more money

28:28 - How to refresh the open

In this episode of “Run a Profitable Gym,” Two-Brain founder Chris Cooper explains why gym owners need to stop consuming clickbait speculation about CrossFit’s sale and start working on what actually matters: their businesses.

Stop paying the “distraction tax”—hours spent watching videos, scrolling comments and worrying about things you can’t control cost you opportunities to generate revenue, build client relationships and preserve decision-making capacity.

To give you a concrete plan to improve your business in a time of uncertainty, Coop walks through a five-step process you can use to objectively measure the value of any gym affiliation using real numbers:

✅ Check local search volume for the brand
✅ Track where your leads come from
✅ Calculate marketing ROI with a simple formula
✅ Measure revenue from affiliation programs
✅ Assess retention value among engaged members

If you decide to rebrand, Chris also covers the true costs, from domain changes and social media updates to new signage and content, so you understand what’s actually required.

The key takeaway: CrossFit LLC (or any brand affiliation) has never had less impact on your success than right now. Your coaching, client relationships and business systems actually drive results.

Watch this episode to get the decision-making framework that will help you make smart, data-driven choices about affiliation. Then get back to work.

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Measuring the Value of Affiliation

The True Costs of Rebranding

Gym Owners United

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1:09 - Don’t get distracted

2:53 - Help with affiliation decision

9:31 - A rebranding plan

12:48 - Get back to work

14:15 - The decision to make now

Industry data reveals that 2026 could be the best year gym owners have ever seen.

Revenue is up across every gym model, average revenue per member is rising, and even the lowest-performing gyms are earning more than they were a year ago.

In this episode of “Run a Profitable Gym,” Chris Cooper presents data from Two-Brain’s latest “State of the Industry” report and highlights 10 reasons gym owners should be optimistic for the year ahead.

He explains why personal training and small-group training continue to outperform during uncertain economic times, how predictable competition formats such as Hyrox are driving retention and revenue, and why gym owners are finally starting to charge what their services are actually worth.

He also looks ahead to some of the biggest opportunities for gym owners in 2026: closing the business knowledge gap and using AI as a tool to make human coaching even more valuable.

Tune in for the full breakdown, and to see the data for yourself, download the “State of the Industry” report via the link below.

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State of the Industry

Gym Owners United

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0:25 - Revenue and recession proofing

2:24 - Opportunities with Hyrox and MetFix

7:13 - Success with small-group training

13:59 - Charging more and keeping clients longer

18:05 - Business knowledge and AI tools