How to make (and keep) your Personal Trainer happy

Us Personal Trainers are generally a very happy bunch. It’s all the endorphins we flood into our bodies as we exercise and the mood-enhancing goodness we cram into our nutritional plans (plus all of the lovely clients we get to work with of course!).

Anyway, we keep ourselves cheery by focussing on the amazing progress made by those we work with and by the overwhelming ‘can do’ attitude we see on a daily basis. It’s a career path we have chosen, not only because we’re particularly good at training others, but also because we recognise just how rewarding it can be to help people improve their physical and mental wellbeing.

That said… there are just a few niggling things which I myself see on a fairly regular basis. They really are little things but, 99.999999% of the time, they are the reason why someone fails to reach their ultimate fitness goal. I’d like to take the opportunity to highlight them here…

Small actions to significantly boost your chances of success and keep your Personal Trainer happy

1. Stop skipping meals – it’s unhealthy and seldom results in weight loss
2. Don’t swap meals for bars – a protein bar is a temporary boost, not a meal replacement
3. Don’t try the fad diets – none of them are as good as a healthy, nutritionally-balanced diet
4. Avoid processed foods – if the label is like a chemistry lesson, your body won’t thank you
5. Reduce your alcohol intake – exercising isn’t just a way to justify having another pint or two
6. Don’t cheat in exercise classes – floor work isn’t just an excuse to lie down for a bit
7. Don’t skip warm up or cool down – these are steps in the workout process for a reason
8. Don’t just repeat the same activity – it may be your favourite, but it may do little for you
9. Be open to non-Cardio exercise – Cardio is important, but it’s often just part of the plan
10. Don’t quit at the first hurdle – exercising can be joyous, but not ALL of the time

At first glance you may think that the list above is simply stating the obvious, but every point is one which I see all too often. Human nature makes us look for shortcuts, whether it is in our desire to lose weight quickly or our need to make ourselves feel good when we hit a low point. 

When it comes to fitness and nutrition, there are plenty of ways to maximise the benefits of your training programme or boost the feel good factor - but no way to short-circuit the hard work completely.

I am here to support every single client in any way I can and will always endeavour to enhance the training experience wherever possible, but the one thing I do need to see is a commitment to the programme and a willingness to stay strong!

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