What Makes a Good Client?
As you trawl through the various glossy magazines and other supplements whilst sitting in a waiting room or browsing in WHSmith, you will, without a shadow of a doubt, stumble across an article entitled ‘How to Select your Personal Trainer’, or ‘What makes a Good Personal Trainer’.
Of course, awareness like this can only be a good thing for the quality of our personal training and will surely wash away the rubbish and set truly high standards in a vocation often underestimated by many in terms of the required level of expertise.
Good Client Criteria
Ok, this site should established what makes a good trainer, but what on earth makes a good client?? And no, I’m not talking about good looks and Christmas presents, we’re not that shallow! Here at DrivePT, we asked our trainers what makes a truly great client. They came up with the following:
Drive towards your Goals. Many clients are disillusioned about what they can achieve in a given time whilst maintaining good health and staying free of injury or illness. If a long term goal is set then a client must appreciate that this is what it is, a goal for the long term and not something you can achieve in a 3 week exercise stint before a holiday.
Don’t be a Sceptic: If your trainer has the relevant qualification required then you should have no reason to question his/her level of expertise or judgment. If you do doubt your trainer’s opinion with regard to your health, I suggest you sack them and get one that you do take notice of.
Make the Change: a personal trainer should act as a catalyst by providing clients with the knowledge expertise required to gradually change their lives as a long term solution to health and fitness issues.
Get motivated: Most people can’t afford four or more personal training sessions per week, so it is imperative that you carry out further exercise sessions yourself, if not you will never realize your aesthetic goals. It is all too easy to blame your trainer for your own lack of commitment and motivation.
Find a Balance: Good clients appreciate health as their number 1 priority. If you’re in poor health, your work, social life and possibly even your family may suffer. So address the problem from the root and never underestimate the importance of your health.
Get a Sweat Up: A client who is willing to get the hard work done is always a pleasure to work with and always the most successful with regard to getting results.
Open your Mind: Too many clients have clouded media influenced views on training methods. New training methods save us from getting ‘stuck in a rut’ your trainer should have the knowledge and skill to prevent this.
Family Support: The client should encourage their friends and family to get on the ‘fitness bandwagon’ to help generate a healthy and motivated environment within the home.
Nutritional Discipline: Your trainer cannot oversee your eating habits 24h hours a day! The only person who can control what you eat is you!! Exercise and nutrition must go hand in hand if you are ever to truly achieve, which requires both honesty and discipline on the client’s behalf.
Get Educated: At DrivePT our priority is to provide education and health solutions, therefore we love nothing more than to see a client who is excited by the prospect of a new nutritional or exercise program and will actively further their own knowledge on the subject by following up the information provided by their trainer. Knowledge is power!
So before you book your personal training consultation, just consider this checklist, if you can tick each point then we’ll be shifting the pounds faster than you can say ‘love handles’!