Archive for March, 2010

Stealing Workouts

Mar 27
by Dave
 
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I ran across a forum the other day discussing the legal implications of stealing workouts from some of the more widely known trainers out there. My question is; is it even possible to steal workouts? And the obvious follow-up, who cares?

As humans we all share the same basic biology and therefore we will react in similar ways to the stresses that exercise places on our bodies. Logically there are a limited amount of effective and safe ways to exercise to achieve the desired results. Having worked in a gym with many other talented and highly competitive trainers, I have two responses to the idea of stealing workouts:

1) Why are you here? One would assume (and hope) that a personal trainer is in the business of improving fitness because they want to help people. If I found a program, or a workout that was very effective at helping my clients lose weight, or reduce their risks of injury, or disease shouldn’t I want to share that knowledge? I have seen very talented trainers struggle to get by because they are so focused on their own ideas, protecting what they have and thinking up the newest and best workouts that they have little left over to give to their clients.

On the other hand one of the most successful trainers I knew, both financially and in terms of reaching client goals was somebody who used basic, proven workouts and programs and spent most of her energy connecting with her clients and working with them in the gym.

2) Use what works, there are many ways to get from point A to B, why not find the most practical, efficient and safest way and stick with it? When I was educating new personal trainers on how to design programs for clients I would provide a few template workouts that fit many of the clients they would see. I liked nothing better than to watch a new trainer assign one of these (my) workouts to their clients because I knew the program would be both safe and effective. This in tern allows trainers to focus more on the person, not the process creating more success for both people.

We are constantly bombarded with new and improved ways to make our bodies into what we wish they would be. While most of these ideas don’t hold water, every once in a while one comes up that is an improvement. Taking aspects of, or the idea as a whole and incorperating it into your own knowledge base can only improve your ability to help people. Which is the whole point right?

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Client Adherence: Technique #3

Mar 25
by Dave
 
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While extrinsic rewards will get a client started, and feeling that they are a part of the development and implementation of their program will get them invested, they still need to see that progress is being made.  Using body attributes that can be quantitatively tracked over time is a great way to do this.

During the first 3 months of a new fitness program, huge changes are taking place in the body, but not all of them will show on the scale, or during other assessments, such as body fat percentage. I believe that showing a client their progress can be very motivating, but this can also backfire if not controlled. Retaining extra fluids, time to adjust the clients workout to better suit their preferences and abilities are part of the process that cannot be tracked quantitatively.  Those first months allow the body to adjust to the shock of the new activity and for trainer and client to work the bugs out of the program.  This is why goals related to body attributes, while important to set at the beginning of a program, should not tracked until at least 3 months into consistant training.

At the 3 month point, a re-assesment of the body attributes initially obtained is appropriate as the progress made will be reflected in the numbers.  Comparing this new data to that previously tracked and showing visually that headway is being made is a powerful inspiration.  Tracking and reporting client progress is the proof that the fitness program is working and is a great long term method for helping clients stick with their training.

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A Demo Of The Classes Feature

Mar 17
by Spicer Matthews
 
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One of the most exciting features for me, (outside of our program builder), is our classes interface. The idea behind classes is to allow gym managers and personal trainers to use technology to interact with current and potential students. Our classes interface allows you users to browse all the offered classes and enroll or un-enroll in them. They can also communicate with the instructor using the messaging board. Instructors have the ability to limit the number of students that can enroll in a class.  Check out the video below to learn more.





As of this posting Elevation is still in private beta. Sign up for our private beta here.  Let us know what you think of this simple yet powerful feature. We are always looking for feedback on how to make our product features better.

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Client Adherence: Technique #2

Mar 15
by Dave
 
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While there are any number of fitness programs that will be effective for a specific client, if they dislike what they are doing, or feel that a routine is being imposed upon them, it will be very hard to get the kind of commitment necessary to see success. By engaging actively with clients during the planning phase you can create very effective programs that clients can stick with.

This process starts with the initial interview. When asking a client about their goals, I also ask about their likes and dislikes, and practice active listening. I often find that there are some very basic, but not necessarily obvious barriers, or frustrations a client might have. Once identified, these obstacles can be addressed with input from both trainer and client. For example, learning that a client hates to jog or is very uncomfortable using free weights means I leave these exercises out when planning their program.

This is not to say that a client should dictate their entire program. As the trainer, you are the expert. The client has come to you to help them design a program to reach their goals.

Work with your clients and engage them actively in the planning and implementation of their programs. Doing this will help your clients feel more invested and in control of their fitness program, which will help increase intrinsic motivation and program adherence. New

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Client Adherence: Technique #1

Mar 8
by Dave
 
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Client adherence is one of the major challenges a personal trainer faces. The following blog posts cover a few techniques I have found helpful in keeping clients on track.

Technique #1: Rewards

Some of us (the lucky ones) find exercise to be its own reward; however, this is not the case for most people.  While I believe the goal should be to have clients intrinsically motivated to work out , it is not necessarily a reasonable expectation, especially when first starting a program.  The first six months of a new program are critical, as this the period during which 50% of people who have begun a program will drop out.  If you can keep a client engaged and successful through this time period, their chance of reaching their goals and the trainer’s chance of establishing a return client begin to improve.

In this instance, I use a visual tracking and rewards system. Literally, a calendar where each day a workout is completed is marked off. Having the client display this calendar in a high traffic area of their home serves to both remind them to exercise as well as reinforcing the success of workouts already completed.

At the start of a new program, simply incorporating structured exercise into their lifestyle is an obstacle for many people. While the visual calendar serves as a reminder to exercise, I also include a “reward” the client can earn if they complete a specified number of workouts over a given time period. This reward must be something chosen by the client, something that they enjoy and want to work towards. Examples from past clients have been dinner out, trip to a movie, or simply a day off where physical activity is not even on the radar.

When starting a new program that will challenge the body as well as the mind, it is important to see success early and often. I will often set up the first reward to come just 2 weeks into the program. It is incredibly important that this first reward be earned easily.  If I have set up a program that is intended to be completed 3 days a week (6 times over the first 2 weeks of training) I will require that the client complete the workout 4 times to earn their reward.  This is the most important principle and often overlooked when setting up an exercise program.  There has to be room for the client to take a day off, or miss a workout without feeling like they have failed.  By allowing them to “burn” a few days of exercise each month a client can fall off the exercise wagon without feeling discouraged, or that they can’t get back on track with their program.

Rewards Calendar.pdf

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Basic Principles of Spotting

Mar 4
by Dave
 
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As a personal trainer, I feel that spotting technique is equally as important as form cues, especially when working with a novice weight lifter, or a client who is using heavy weights.  From being pulled over backwards during a squat with 500lbs on my back, sitting with an 80lb dumbbell on the back of my neck when my spotter ran off, or having a 45lb plate dropped on my ankle when the lifter next to me panicked and dumped their weight because they didn’t have a spotter, I’ve come to realize the importance of teaching spotting to others.

The Role of  a Spotter

An effective spotter should be able to help the lifter accomplish the following:

1.  Complete extra reps.

This is the main reason why most of us ask for, or are asked to spot.  A skilled spotter will allow the lifter to continue past what would normally be the point of failure on an exercise.  This allows further damage to the working muscle group as well as recruitment of additional motor units thereby engaging additional muscle fibers to complete the lift.

2.   Avoiding injury.

Keeping the lifter safe and free from injury is the spotters #1 job.  When a new exercise, or new weight is being used, chances are the lifters form is not going to be spot-on.  This is because in these circumstances our brains are more concerned about protecting us from injury than achieveing proper form and using the target muscle groups.  Unfortunately this is usually what gets us in trouble in the gym and can lead to injury.  A skilled spotter will make the lifter feel secure, allowing them to feel comfortable using the proper form and muscle groups.  If there is trouble, the spotter should be able to safely rack, or drop the weight while protecting both parties.

The Rules of Spotting

The following techniques will make your spotting more safe and effective.

1.  Spotting is a partnership.

Establishing what is expected by both parties before the lift ever begins is essential.  Knowing the lifter’s experience with the exercise, when they want help, and how many reps they expect to complete on their own takes a lot of the guess work out of spotting.  This also shows that as a spotter you know what you are doing and helps to establish trust with the lifter.

2.  A good spotter works with the lifter, not against them.

Spotting is not about forcing the movement to completion, or grabbing the weight away when the lifter becomes fatigued, or stuck.  There is some finess required when spotting.  This comes from evaluating the movement and the joints/muscles involved.  Based on these evaluations, a spotter can assist the lifter in the completion of the movement while still allowing them to remain fully engaged in the lift.

3.   Safety is the goal.

A low level of experience, and or heavy weights, create a potentially dangerous situation for both the spotter and lifter.  A spotter should always be in control of the weight, able to rack, or to lower the weight in a controlled manner if necessary.  For example, the most popular mistake I see is somebody spotting a dumbbell chest press from the elbows.  If the lifter fails, or loses control of the weight, the spotter will have no way to guide the dumbbells down safely.  If the exercise was spotted from the wrists on the other hand, the spotter has complete control over the direction of the dumbbells throughout the exercise.

Understanding the role of and  principles of spotting will also increase the safety and effectiveness of workouts, and is key to avoiding client injuries and other consequences.

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Keys To Goal Setting With Clients

Mar 1
by Dave
 
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Goals are the map that help us get from where we are, to where we want, or need to be.  When a client comes to me, they usually have an idea of what they would like to do with their body, and my job as a trainer is to create that map for the client.  The following are some techniques for setting and achieving goals with clients.

Why is the client there?  This is the first item that needs to be addressed with a client.  ”Digging”, as I would tell my students, is the best and usually the only way to design a program that will achieve exactly what your client wants.  This means asking a client as many questions as needed to get a very specific idea of what they’re thinking.  A client may tell you they want to lose 20lbs, so logically you would suggest a weight loss program. However, if after asking more questions and learning more about the client it turns out they want to lower body fat while increasing muscle mass, a simple weight loss program may not be appropriate.

As the exercise expert, it is your job to educate your clients as to what they can reasonably expect to achieve and how best to measure progress. Once a reasonable goal is set, the process for successful completion needs to be put in place.  This is especially important for clients who are new to exercise, or who have tried and failed to reach past goals.  The first thing I do after establishing a reasonable goal with the client is to discuss obstacles to reaching those goals and strategies for overcoming such obstacles.  Even the most motivated client can become derailed if something comes up that disrupts their plans for reaching a goal.  If it is aknowledged that there will be bumps in the road and a plan to continue despite these, a client is much more likely to achieve success.  Goals, barriers and strategies for overcoming the barriers should be written down with both trainer and client retaining a copy.

A key, but often-missed feature of goal setting, is having a timeline.  A reasonable goal must have a time in which it will be reached with milestones (smaller goals) along the way that lay the groundwork for completion of the overall goal.  These smaller goals serve a dual purpose.  First, they act as a motivator, helping to keep the client going through the hard and often uncomfortable work of transforming the body.  The success of reaching smaller goals along the way makes the larger goal feel that much more attainable.  Secondly, the smaller goals allow safe and controlled progress.  A skilled trainer will set small goals in a specific order, each one preparing the body to reach the next.  This ensures that the client has all the tools they need to continue to progress successfully.

Helping clients set, track, and achieve reasonable goals not only gives the client the tools they need  to be successful, but also allows a trainer to do their job better,which creates return clientelle, and increases program adherence.

Once my clients have reached their goal, I get to ask my favorite question, “Now that we have accomplished what you came here for, what would you like to do next?”

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