Tuesday, May 1, 2012

Secrets Your Personal Trainer Should Be Telling You

by Kris Pitcher

If you work with a personal trainer there are certain things they should be telling you. This is a special kind of professional relationship built on trust. When it is, sales gimmicks and flashy programs won't be necessary.

I'm honest with you, and today's topic is simply my philosophy. Take it, or leave it. Your relationship with your trainer should be one of communication and information. These are five secrets your personal trainer should be telling you.
  1. There is no "right" way. There isn't one magic formula or a workout or eating plan that is going to work for everyone. If they have one "right" way of doing things and they believe everyone else's way is "wrong" that should be a red flag. A well educated professional is going to use every tool in their educational arsenal to get you the best response. If your trainer is only using one tool...I'd be worried.
  2. You need to be compliant in order to see results. There is a reason your trainer is asking you to do certain things. It's because they are trying to elicit certain responses in you. They are trying to make changes. Your trainer should be sharing this secret with you. In other words, they should be telling you why they are asking you to do things...you're more likely to be successful when you know why.
  3. You don't need those supplements. This might be a broad statement. But the truth is, you must have the base of a solid eating plan and be doing everything right with that plan before you add supplements. The supplements won't make up for poor eating. If your trainer is selling you a bunch of supplements that you must take...they might be selling you a line.
  4. I could get you EXACTLY to your goals if I could get you to eat right. Many personal trainers know some about nutrition, but there is a science here where others might have a gap in knowledge. Putting the right nutrition plan with your exercise plan would get you to your goals. And your trainer is thinking "if only!" because they wish they could get you to eat right.
  5. You don't need me. The final secret your trainer is not telling you is that ultimately, once armed with information...you won't need them any more. At least you won't need them for a little while. In all fairness, this is a very loaded statement. Many people benefit from the on-going long term relationship with a personal trainer. Others, need to learn how to workout, how to eat properly and they are on their way for a while. When it's time to make some changes...they'll come back for some more refinement. The point is, you should not be dependant on your trainer - you should be learning from them.
These are five secrets your trainer isn't bothering to tell you. They may not have the guts, or the heart to tell you that you need to be compliant in order to see results. They may be required by their work place to sell a certain quota of supplements every month. It may be their personal style to make you dependant on them so you never leave them.

I believe there is enough in this world to go around. I think that happy clients tell other potential clients how much they learned and how great an experience they had. I'm sure you've experienced that in your work too.

Enjoy your next session with your personal trainer! I hope you are getting everything you need from that relationship. It is an important professional relationship which can take you to incredible places in your life. And I hope they aren't keeping these secrets from you.

3 comments:

  1. Kris, I read your post everyday but I especially like this one. it is some what rare to find a true professional who is more dedicated to your health and fitness then to keeping their job or the money rolling in. I could post something similar about my profession as well. thank you thank you for the job you do! Candi Isom LMP

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  2. Once again you nailed it, Kris! Thank you for your straight forward style. It helps build my confidence in this process of building my body to its potential.
    Thank you, too, for your commitment to this blog!

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