Why Smarter Gyms Start with AI

At Zen Planner, we spend a lot of time listening to gym owners, coaches, and operators. And right now, there’s one conversation that’s rising above the noise: what does AI actually mean for a boutique fitness business?

At the recent ATN Innovation Summit, I sat alongside Benji Donhardt, CEO of SupafitGrow, for a candid discussion about AI in our industry. And I’ve got to say—Benji brought the real talk. His perspective was a wake-up call for anyone still sitting on the sidelines.

“Most teams are paralyzed, not because AI doesn’t work, but because they’re afraid it won’t work like them,” Benji told the room. “The brands that win will be the ones with speed, not polish. Playing it safe is the riskiest strategy in the game right now.”

He’s absolutely right. The fear of getting it wrong is holding too many people back. Meanwhile, the operators who are willing to test, iterate, and learn? They’re the ones pulling ahead.

Don’t wait for perfect

If your front desk team is manually following up with every lead, reminding every member about class packages, or trying to re-engage someone who ghosted three weeks ago—you’re already behind.

AI isn’t here to replace your team. It’s here to give them time—to connect, to coach, to build community. That’s what boutique fitness is all about. But you can’t get there if you’re buried in repetitive admin work.

What Zen Planner Engage is doing right now

I’ve seen firsthand how Zen Planner Engage is giving time back to owners and coaches. It’s not flashy—it’s functional. It delivers real results because it solves real problems.

Here’s what boutique gyms are doing with Zen Planner Engage:

• Automating trial follow-ups, the second someone opts in
• Automating 5-star reviews from happy members and magically posting those reviews to social channels
• Reaching out to lapsed members with personalized reactivation offers
• Scheduling win-back messages that feel personal, but run without daily effort

One martial arts studio saw a 34% increase in trial conversions after switching to Zen Planner Engage campaigns. Another gym owner recovering from burnout told me, “I finally feel like I can be present in my business again.”

That’s what this is about. Not buzzwords. Not hype. Impact.

Start small. Move fast.

Benji pushed all of us at the summit to normalize failure and shorten the learning loop. That hit home for me. You don’t need a full-blown strategy to start. You need motion.

Where are you wasting time? Where do you repeat the same task every day? Where are leads falling through the cracks?

Pick one of those—and start there.

Set up one Zen Planner Engage campaign. Automate one message. Give yourself a win.

Because the future isn’t waiting for boutique fitness to get comfortable. And frankly, your members aren’t either.

Start experimenting with AI inside your fitness business. Explore how Zen Planner Engage can help you move faster, automate smarter, and deliver a better member experience.