Trainers need trainers?

When I told my clients that I was going to invest in getting a Personal Trainer I got one common response: WHY???

So often, people think that trainers don't need a trainer because they know how to workout and they work in a gym so it must be easy for them to stay fit and motivated, right?

Wrong. Trainers are human. While being a trainer should mean that you know how to put together a good program (sadly, this is actually much less common than you'd think - but that's is an entirely different topic all together!), that's only one small piece of a good trainer's job requirements.

Let's back track a bit. I've worked with 3 trainers in the past - what led me to work with them? Each time was for a different reason.

• I had never been in a gym before - I was lost
• to look good in my wedding dress - I didn't know where to start putting together a program, I didn't know what to eat - simply put, I didn't know what I was doing
• after being physically quite ill for months, I started working with a very knowledgeable trainer to get back into the swing of working out hard and working to rehabilite my damaged metabolism and body

So now that I've been in a gym (obviously), I'm satisfied with my physical appearance and am happy to say I know what I'm doing in regards to nutrition and program design, and I'm healthy, what could possibly lead me to want a trainer again?

This time is for entirely different reasons:

• Fun.
• Motivation.
• Pushing me beyond what I was capable of pushing myself.

Although I love working out, there is something about having someone intensely focused on your efforts that changes the intensity with which you can work.

A good trainer to me doesn't mean someone who counts your reps and puts you through a program (that you could do easily on your own) time and time again. A good trainer to me, is someone who knows how to design a program effectively, based on your specific goals. But more than that, they are someone who can tap into your personal motivation and push you further than you could push yourself - who makes you sprint just a bit faster, who - just by being themselves - make you not want to miss your workout, who - when you are feeling sluggish, or like half-assing your workout - are there to remind you why you showed up to the gym in the first place.

For me, beyond the science of exercise (and yes, it is a science!) the art of being a good coach is centered around one other thing - a connection. A good coach is someone who you feel is tapped into your personal motivation and way of learning. Having a coach means having someone to support you through challenges and encourage you to achieve greater and greater things. That's something that everyone can use in every aspect of life - a mentor at work, parenting groups or your own parents when you have kids or in this case, your trainer at the gym.

So let's get back to how I respond to clients who ask why I need a trainer? I ask them the same question right back - why do YOU have a trainer? It's funny. They list off a bunch of reasons - all of them said 'because I don't know how to design a program - but usually that was their second or third reason. Their first response went beyond programming - what I heard was the following:

• 'because you make me do things I wouldn't do without you'
• 'because you keep me on track - you're in my head when I'm making healthy choices throughout the day because I know we'll talk about it - you make me accountable'
• 'because I wouldn't get here as often or with the same intensity without you'
• 'because you push me way harder than I could push myself'

It's funny - my clients answered their own question because those are my reasons for getting a trainer too. They are why I think anyone can benefit from a trainer - even us trainers :)