What If Your Trainer SUCKS?
I did that thing that makes me crazy again.
Yup, off I traipsed to a commercial gym this morning with a client.
And as usual, I was seeing red within minutes.
Usually if someone were to ask me what they should do if they’re just starting out and want to make sure they’re getting their form right so they’re not setting themselves up for an injury or being ineffective with their new workout routines, I would tell them to hire a Personal Trainer, at least once.
But what if the trainer they hire SUCKS?
And what if the trainee is so new at working out that they have NO IDEA that their new trainer sucks?
What then?
So what DO you do if your trainer completely SUCKS and you’re too new to know it?
I dunno!!
YouTube-ing stuff MIGHT help, if you know what you’re looking for …
Trainers!! Let’s hear from you!
What would YOU tell someone in this circumstance, who isn’t even aware that they’re IN ‘this circumstance’?
Oh, and let’s have a vote:
Should I call the manager of that gym and fill her in on what I saw? Or just mind my own damned business?
What do YOU think?
Have a fit, fun and fantastic day.
Girlwithnoname
12702
May 28th, 2011 at 6:00 am
I couldn’t let this one go. It’s a touchy subject, but I’m discovering that the industry won’t change unless we get vocal and we get visible.
Ok, first: If the client is shopping for a product or service they have never used, and nobody they know has ever used, there is a responsibility to be an educated consumer. My advice to the client? Find out what the credibility indicators of our industry are (education, experience, and most importantly, testimonials). Not to sound mean, but if you’re trying to price shop vs quality shop, I have no sympathy for what happens to you as a consumer. My wife and I simply call that natural selection.
Second: The trainer has to be spoken to before they hurt their client and become a liability for the gym that you would like to go to from time to time. If you don’t do it, nobody will. Fast forward a couple of stupid situations later and you have no gym to go to because it’s been sued or shut down.
If it’s driving you that crazy, stop holding your piece. If it’s not your business now, it can become your business later. If the management doesn’t care, make their names public and use your video platform to expose them so they have to straighten up. Enough is enough.
May 28th, 2011 at 12:17 pm
Thanks Jaime… I am starting to lean more towards giving a quick phone call just to fill them in that this guy needs more training before he should be allowed to touch a client again. I don’t want to mess with the guy’s livelihood but more than that I don’t want him messing with people’s physical well-being. thanks for the comment.
May 28th, 2011 at 3:24 pm
What a touchy subject. I think you nailed it Jackie. Shop around. Try a variety of different trainers. For a novice or anyone for that matter, most trainers can promote themselves in very appealing ways and the client can get caught up in the excitement for change.
I love taking lessons from expert teachers but have also found some benefit learning from new instructors too, they can be super cautious, however, can sometimes get carried away wanting to use all the tricks in their bag. But having said that, not all experienced trainers are cautious and forget about establishing a supportive foundation, wanting to make the client feel it for days, so to speak. I’ll give a teacher a fair chance to teach me, but after a period of time it becomes obvious whether I’m making progress or not. It’s ok to have many teachers for the same subject. When I taught Pilates, I encouraged my clients to have lessons with other instructors. In Pilates we use a lot of similies and visual cues. Sometimes a different teacher can deliver an A-HA moment in one session whereby it can take months for the other.
May 28th, 2011 at 3:39 pm
Thanks for the comment YAAM… my biggest concern is if perhaps someone wants to workout at home like I do or on their own at the gym, but wants to learn some stuff correctly before doing it on their own and they hire this trainer ONCE to ‘learn’ and the trainer totally gives them TERRIBLE advice and they go off thinking they’re doing everything right when in fact they might be working their way towards traction instead. Ya know?
thanks again for the comment.
J
June 6th, 2011 at 5:46 pm
I would definitely tell the management. What they do with the information is up to them, but at least you brought it to their attention, right?
June 6th, 2011 at 5:51 pm
Yah, I wound up giving them a quick call. Funnily it only added to my rage cuz they didn’t seem to give a shit. sigh…