Provide Justification For Everything You Do

Provide Justification For Everything You Do



 

Nowadays, everyone wants the most bang for their buck.  They want to train effectively and efficiently without wasting time.  As a trainer, you want to gain your client's trust and respect.  Most clients will come to you wanting to lose weight or "tone up."  And many of them will have underlying issues that training may bring to the surface, such as knee pain, back pain, etc...  It is your job to perform an initial assessment asking your client what their goals are, and if they have any pre-existing conditions that may slow their progress towards meeting those goals.  Once you gather a detailed history of your client, you can begin to "prescribe" goal oriented exercises.  You will combine what you have learned about their "weaknesses" with what you know about their goals and devise a training program based on this information.  Now you will not only be focused on their fitness, but also their wellness.  You will have justification for each exercise that you offer.  The reasoning will not just be "to break a sweat" or "burn out your biceps."  You will be able to explain that each exercise will prevent further injury, while developing their physique.  For example, if you have your client perform diagonal patterns with their upper extremities, you can explain that these patterns are functional in nature and will assist their daily reaching or overhead activities.  Using the plank exercise to introduce trunk control can be used for clients who have a history of lower back issues, as increasing trunk stability will assist in sparing the spine.  This should definitely be your goal as no trainer wants to 'hurt' their client.  Your clients will be impressed and pleased with this training style.  They will respect you for your knowledge and you will probably gain another referral source.