Future Fit Group, a leading provider of fitness education, has announced a partnership with television presenter Ben Shephard and Fitness Icons to bring the groundbreaking ‘Instructor 2 Icon’ training course to fitness professionals across the UK. The programme will be available through Future Fit Flex Platform for both individual professionals pursuing career development, and for operators investing in team performance.
Instructor 2 Icon equips fitness professionals at all levels, from instructors and personal trainers to facility managers with essential presentation and communication capabilities. The programme builds professional confidence, strengthens client connections, and improves effectiveness in both one-to-one consultations and group environments.
Led by Ben Shephard, who brings over 25 years of experience in live television presenting, the course focuses on practical, real-world skills including confidence-building, communication, rapport-building, and selling without pressure. The training is delivered in six bite-sized online sessions of 30-40 minutes each, supported by a digital workbook, making it equally accessible to independent professionals and facility-wide teams.
Ben commented: “I’ve been a huge fitness fan all my life. I’ve had personal trainers and taken hundreds of studio classes. Throughout the decades some of those fitness professionals really stuck in my mind. Not necessarily because they were the most qualified, or knowledgeable, but because they were authentic, they had their own personal brand and a delivery that, although it certainly wasn’t, almost seemed effortless!”
He continued: “We’ve created Instructor 2 Icon to help fitness professionals easily level up their own presenting skills. It taps into my extensive experience as a presenter and applies what I’ve learned to the world of fitness. Now, via this partnership with Future Fit, we hope it will be able to support the development of even more fitness professionals.”
Lewis Thompson, Head of Business Development at of Future Fit for Business added: “Technical qualifications alone aren’t enough in today’s fitness industry. Operators consistently tell us that soft skills – the ability to connect and communicate with members – are what truly differentiate exceptional fitness professionals. By bringing Instructor 2 Icon to our Flex platform, we’re giving facilities access to world-class presentation training that will directly impact member retention and team performance.”
The course is designed to improve member experience, boost team confidence, and support staff retention, critical factors in today’s competitive fitness landscape. Unlike theoretical training programmes, Instructor 2 Icon contains practical tasks, relatable examples, and real-life insights, including the occasional celebrity story, giving fitness teams actionable tools they can implement immediately.
The six-session curriculum covers:
Cheryl Hersey, Co-Founder of Fitness Icons added: “Fitness Icons is on a mission to bring credible, engaging and most importantly, enjoyable training to the fitness industry. We’re thrilled to be partnering with Future Fit to reach more operators via their Flex platform. This is the ultimate ‘soft skills’ course, delivered by one of the UK’s best loved TV-presenters, and master of his craft, Ben Shephard. It unlocks TV secrets and presenting tricks of the trade to help fitness teams to gain confidence, improve delivery and connect with clients on a whole new level.”
Learn more about Instructor 2 Icon here – Instructor 2 Icon – Future Fit for Business.