…that I don’t do now that I’m qualified
Horsham-based female personal trainer, Becky, first qualified in January 2021. When coaching clients, she draws on her own experiences as a beginner gym-goer (and she only started doing that in 2017!), as well as her continually increasing professional knowledge. And there are some rules she enjoys breaking…
Before I go any further, there’s something I’d like to point out. As well as helping them to achieve their goals, my priority for my clients is that they’re happy, safe, and comfortable. Sometimes, that means doing things by the book. And at other times – particularly when it comes to their emotional safety, it’s about ignoring the book and trusting my gut.
It’s often said that you properly learn to drive once you’ve passed your test, and are out on the roads unaccompanied. I’d say it’s similar as a PT… except that, when it comes to PT, there are no laws. Well, other than paying my tax bill and not harming anyone… you get my point. Let’s get into it with things I was taught to do, but don’t…
Routinely measure clients
This could probably be a standalone post, I have that many thoughts. Being measured – meaning my body, using scales and a tape – was something that terrified me before I had my first ever PT session. It was something I didn’t want, so when it didn’t happen, I was grateful.
When I looked at qualifying, one of the earliest things I knew was that I would never measure people as standard. If it’s right for a client’s goals and their mental health, I will help them with that process. I also have a policy of them changing their mind on that at any time, for any reason, and that the only situation in which I would challenge their decision were if I thought they were unsafe.
Have clients complete food diaries
My own experience of this was utterly miserable. One of the compulsory elements of my training was to submit a food diary – either my own or someone else’s, and doing my own seemed easier. I found it tedious. And upsetting.
Quite frankly, I don’t care what my clients eat. If I enjoyed giving recommendations about food – beyond amazing restaurants that you must try – I’d be a dietitian, not a personal trainer. My love lies in coaching exercises, not forkfuls. The only thing I care about is that you’re arriving fuelled for a session. Beyond that, you do you.
Insist that clients use mirrors in the gym
Nope. Some of them just can’t handle it. And that’s fine, if they’re training supervised. As a personal trainer, it’s your job to ensure that an exercise is being performed correctly, so as long as you can see what the client’s doing, they don’t have to.
The nature of the demographic I attract is that they’re often self-conscious, and putting them in front of a mirror actually forces them to perform an exercise incorrectly as I watch them studiously attempt to avoid their own image. If you can’t step away from the idea of critiquing yourself and merely witness yourself, you’re not going to achieve the benefit. So we won’t do it.
Explain exercises in technical detail
This is both tedious and time consuming for many clients. The majority don’t want to learn the names of their muscles, they just want to build them. It’s worth having the knowledge in the locker so that you can share it with the one client who is interested, or the person who’s had a specific injury, or undergone surgery. Most people are really happy to just perform correctly, and would rather chat about reality TV or what they’re doing at the weekend between sets, rather than anatomy and physiology. Save your newfound knowledge of levers for the pub quiz.
Plan clients’ training in cycles
This point is laboured quite heavily during the PT course. And it’s something I don’t do for myself, never mind anyone else.
It has it’s place. If you’re working with someone who’s targeting a competitive or challenge goal – for example, they’re running a marathon, or working towards a physique competition – which involves peaking at exactly the right time, a training cycle is relevant. For everyone else, there’s far more benefit in simply seeking consistency.
Liked what you’ve read and want to train with someone who knows which rules to break and how to make sure you leave a session happy rather than bamboozled? Get in touch and we’ll chat!