I’m sure there are more paradoxical situations in other professions, but to most people, seeing a chubby personal trainer is right up there with a doctor who smokes. Personal trainers are supposed to be a paradigm of the fitness methods and practices they teach, correct? Then why are there so many trainers who aren’t just chubby, but are downright unhealthy in some circumstances?
Christy was ready to make a change. No more get-fit-quick diet fads. No more weak promises to get in shape “next year.” No more fitness disappointment. This time getting healthy was going to happen. To make that happen, Christy went to the local Globo-gym to speak to a “professional.”
Unfortunately for Christy, the term “fitness professional” is thrown around quite a bit these days. Even worse, it’s not a matter of their qualifications; they could have every fitness degree and certification in the world and it STILL might not matter in terms of your personal transformation. The fact is, fitness transformations are as much about mental changes as they are physical changes. They involve emotional, mental, and physical investments of resources, time, and money. The manager of all these aspects is supposed to be your personal trainer.
Now, I’m not going to tell you how to find the right personal trainer, but I will tell you the lies that the wrong one will tell you. Look for these lines and think about reevaluating your investment:
Improving your body is hard, and no matter what secret formula personal trainers may employ, it won’t change that fact. On top of that, even if they could accomplish an unrealistic goal, it probably won’t be healthy or safe. Gradual progression is the way to long term, healthy changes in your body.
While it is true that eating less and burning more calories will result in weight loss in most people, your personal situation may be more complicated than that. Eating less may require changing decades (or possibly a lifetime) of bad habits, and burning more calories involves time, effort, and pain that you may not be willing to contribute, especially right off the bat. The relative difficulty is completely dependent on your personal situation.
Yes, transformations are hard, but don’t get scared into thinking that your workout and diet plan is going to be more difficult than any other thing you’ve gone through. A good trainer should be able to assess what you need to do, what you’re capable of, and what type of motivation will get you the change you’re looking for.
There are some boiler-plate strategies to improving fitness levels, but again, your personal situation is different. If you went to a dentist and he said nothing but, “here’s a tooth brush, use it daily and that pain in your tooth will probably go away,” would you be satisfied? No! Your situation is unique, and while the basic aspects may be similar to other people, you came to a professional to get personalized advice and guidance. There should be some form of assessment and personalization to your plan.
If your personal trainer is worth his or her salt, they have taken fitness to heart. This means that they probably dedicate more time to exercise and proper diet than the average person, and they should! They get paid for it! Thinking that you’re going to be able to look or perform like your personal trainer using a minimal investment in time and effort is naive, and they shouldn’t lead you into believing that. Even if they are able to minimize their time working out, it’s probably because they’ve exercised for years and years, allowing them to enter a “maintenance mode” that allows them to maintain a certain level of physical performance without that much effort (you are not there yet, so don’t even think about it).
