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A Personal Trainer is Not A Miracle Worker
By Christina | May 31, 2009
Personal trainers are often elevated to deity status among the clients that hire them. I asked the woman who does my hair recently how business is doing in this economy and she said that it’s doing great. “Beauty is the last thing to go.” For many, so is a personal trainer. Someone the other day said her husband was replaceable, her personal trainer on the other hand was a keeper.
What fascinates me is what people hope to accomplish by hiring a personal trainer. A personal trainer can be an invaluable asset in your fitness program or s/he can be a source of disappointment because of failing to live up to unreasonable expectations. The key to being happy with your personal trainer is to know why you want a trainer in the first place and to set realistic goals you intend for your personal trainer to help you meet.
If the reason that you want to hire a personal trainer is to have external motivation to exercise, this may prove to be a waste of time and money. In the short run, paying money to exercise and having a set appointment time with someone expecting you to show up, will help you commit to exercising. But, unless you intend on having a personal trainer forever or you have a limitless supply of resources, you will one day need to develop the motivation to exercise intrinsically. A personal trainer can get you in the habit of exercising and help you create an exercise program specifically tailored for your needs, but a trainer can’t always be right beside you. Ultimately, you will be disappointed in your personal trainer if you hired him under these pretenses because the minute you are left to your own devices, you will go back to your sedentary habits and wonder why your personal trainer failed in changing your body.
If the reason you want to hire a personal trainer is because you want him to help transform your body from what it currently looks like into a cover model for a fitness magazine, you will also become disenchanted by your personal trainer. A personal trainer is excellent for helping you get out of your comfort zone and showing you new ways to challenge your body. A personal trainer, unfortunately, is not a miracle worker. Together, by setting realistic goals and training hard toward meeting them, your body will become leaner, stronger, and more defined. Will you grace the cover of the next Sports Illustrated Swim Suit edition because suddenly you hired a personal trainer? I highly doubt it and so should you.
If the reason you want to hire a personal trainer is because you want him or her to be your personal therapist, you will also be disappointed by the limitations inherent in your training relationship. A personal trainer is hired by you to inspire you, motivate you, and teach you how to make real, lasting changes to your body when it comes to fitness and exercise. A personal trainer is not there to be your shrink. He should not be spending the hour chatting with you about the deficiencies in your marriage or about issues involving your children. The only focus, for the full hour you are with your personal trainer, should be about kicking your butt into shape. Your trainer may be a lovely person and listen to all of your trials and tribulations, but the reality is s/he does not care about you in a non-professional way. You will be upset with your personal trainer when your body stays exactly the same as when you started if you hired him for these ulterior purposes. Do yourself and your personal trainer a favor and save your money. Hire a therapist instead.
A personal trainer can be invaluable to you if you set reasonable fitness goals and use a trainer to help you achieve them. You will learn creative new exercises, challenge your body more intensely, and be injury-free because you will be taught proper form. The sign of a really good personal trainer is not how your body looks while he is training you, but on how you look long after your personal training relationship has ended.
Topics: Exercise, Personal Training |
