It’s 2023 and Personal Training has been around for quite some time now. I myself have been in the fitness industry as a personal trainer for 12 years come next month. Wow, hard to believe that I’m already into my second decade in the industry! But I am. In my time I’ve seen trends on personal training come and go (some even come back again), along with the fads of the fitness industry.
Safe to say that we’ve all heard of personal training, and it is widely accepted in society today as a good thing to help you lose weight. Thankfully, Personal Training has become more utilised today and is now more affordable to society as a whole, rather than being exclusive to those driving Mercedes Benz’s, as it was when I first started.
But exactly what is Personal Training?
Contrary to general misconception, Personal Training should NOT be a program to help you lose weight. Yep, I said it! Nor should it be a method of punishment for the chocolate bar or pizza you had last night. If your Personal Trainer makes you, or your aim is to work double as hard in your training session because you had pizza on the weekend, I urge you to re-think your reasons for hiring a Personal Trainer! Any form of negative connotation attached Personal Training or training in any way sets you up for an unhealthy relationship with yourself and your health and fitness goals! Personal Training, rather, should be used as a program to improve your overall health, fitness and quality of life. Sure, it can be used to improve your body composition, of which reducing body fat and increasing muscle mass is a large part of, but it is the fact that we are attempting to improve ourselves, rather than lose something is what makes the difference as to whether you have a healthy and successful journey or not, and keep it. It is the job of Personal Trainers to not only help their clients get the results desired, but to educate and change their mindset and relationship with a training program, and no doubt the broader community will follow suit.
Personal Trainers and Personal Training is no longer what it used to be. In our extensive experience in the health and fitness industry, Personal Training and Personal Trainers have come a long way. We do not yell at our clients during training sessions or call them names. We don’t punish them for drinking alcohol by making the clients run an extra lap of the oval. This is not The Biggest Loser where clients get humiliated if they don’t complete their tasks or adhere to the training and nutrition in its entirety.
In fact, the better Personal Trainers now prefer to use the term “Coach” when referring to ourselves. We prefer to work with our clients and ‘coach’ them to improving not only their body composition, but also lifestyle and overall relationship with health and fitness. Coaches educate our clients on the successful habits and the tasks required to achieve their goals, and help them to understand the processes along the way. See, as most of you would know, there are many highs and lows of a solid training and nutrition program. Working together, getting an understanding of, and building relationships with clients are all key factors in today’s in great Coaches and our programs.
Humans are not machines (although we sometimes feel like it after a great chest pump!) and should not be treated as such. To do so will inevitability be a set up for a long-term unhealthy relationship with your health and fitness journey
So, the next time you are looking for a personal trainer, DON’T! Look for a coach instead!
Until next time, peace, love and bicep curls!
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