After years (I’m talking close to 10) of dreaming of helping people through general health, nutrition and fitness, my dream finally came true. It’s fun to see it that way, as it felt less like a dream and more like a calling. Growing up the oldest of three children, he had a natural inclination to help people. And since I was pretty good (although still a newbie) and very interested (more precisely) in exercise and nutrition, I thought a great way to combine the two was to initially become a personal trainer and then work my way up from there.
I’m not going to lie, when I finally started taking the steps to become a true professional personal trainer, it was nothing like I thought it would be. That’s not to say I don’t love what I do, but the perception seems so much more glorious than the actual practice. Fortunately for me, I was way ahead of the curve in terms of knowledge, and it has served me well thus far.
I’ve only spent two weeks in the world of professional personal training, but even that time has given me perspective on the nature of the industry, where I think it’s probably headed, and what I’m going to do to improve it. .
According to Jon Goodman, the founder of The Personal Trainer Development Center, the state of the personal training industry is pretty much lost in mediocrity. Although personal trainers are to blame for this, it’s not entirely their fault. A major misconception in the world of health, especially diet and weight loss, is the promise of instant results. With more brands than ever advertising diets, pills and exercise programs to lose weight quickly, many people are falling for the idea and “not living up to” the promise made to them. This has gone on for quite some time, further discouraging people from believing that there is hope for them to achieve their body composition goals.
Why instant is sexy and long term is boring
You are hungry. You’ve been at work for 8 hours and you missed lunch because you were too busy. If someone threw a banana peel at you, you’d probably eat it (or maybe lick the rest of the banana off the peel). The last thing you want to do is go home and wait for your food to cook. I totally get it. Now, when I was crazy, I would spend hours at the end of the week preparing my meals. But that’s beside the point. Snapshot everything has become the norm in today’s society. And this makes sense. We spend about 8 hours a day at work, 8 sleeping (if you’re lucky) and another 8 doing other things, like driving to and from work, picking up the kids from school, helping with homework, showering, going to the bathroom. . .. okay, maybe that last one is just me. The point is that we do a lot of things and cooking to eat better is not fun. It’s possible. But it’s not funny, and it’s definitely not sexy or entertaining, so I get it. That being said, working out is sexy. Especially “Bitch Better Have My Money.”
There is also reason to believe that some of us human-like creatures cannot see a future beyond the end of the week. We don’t like to plan (or if you’re like me, you like to plan, but nothing goes as planned). This sets in motion a negative association with a long-term view. The roadmap only extends so far. The rest is unpredictable. Long-term goal planning is not only hard to predict, but tracking progress can be a chore unto itself, and we all know we have enough of that. That’s why people hire someone like me. “You do the follow up, I’ll do the work.”
Tips for Trainees Looking for a Personal Trainer
Understand first and foremost that any personal trainer is learning about you for the first time. They are learning how you move, what kind of condition you are in, your injuries, limitations, background and personality all at the same time. They are doing it very fast and they need to plan their roadmap in about one or two sessions. That’s a lot to take in, plan for, and predict in a short amount of time. That said, if you’re relatively new to consistent exercise and proper nutrition, almost any start on that path will produce results. So don’t worry (ha!). Okay, so what kind of advice can I give you? There is a lot, but I will summarize the most important.
Your coach should know your limits and work to improve them
If you can’t do a proper squat, say, your trainer should recognize this and work with you to improve that, not avoid the exercise because you can’t do it.
He/She should focus on teaching you multi-joint movements, such as squats, forward bends (deadlifts), lunges, presses, and jerks.
If your trainer spends the entire session teaching you how to do bicep curls, stretches, or foam rolling, you need a new trainer. Those smaller areas should be covered last or first, and not for very long. If he/she is worth it, and her money means something to you, they will send you videos on how to do this, or do it for you for free. No one should have to pay a trainer more than $30 per session to foam roll.
He/she should be concerned about your nutrition, give you recommendations, and ask you to keep a food diary.
It’s probably the most boring thing to hear, and even I don’t like reality, but nutrition makes the biggest difference in weight loss. That’s not to say that exercise isn’t key. But most people won’t be able to lose weight by eating McDonald’s and working out at the gym. You need both, but nutrition is the deciding factor between being a little overweight and skinny and feeling good (especially feeling good).