Since January 1st, we have had around 200 new members join the gym. Now you have to understand, O2 is about 7,000 square feet. Not a huge facility, but clean and filled with top notch equipment. Not to mention the trainers there are awesome ;)
So, we have around 200 members that felt the motivational bug pulling at their heartstrings to get their tales in to the gym and get in shape. Everyone has either a goal, resolution or bet, to get in the shape to lose weight, gain muscle or just tone up their body.
Now that everyone has a goal in mind and is highly motivated to working on that goal, wouldn't you think that everyone would take Free advice from a professional? Wouldn't you think that no matter what magazine, Internet website or friend told them what they should be doing, they still would want to learn something they might not have already known. Honestly, if I were wanting to be the best marathon runner (or anything) that I could possibly be, I would jump at a free session with an experienced instructor in a heart beat!
So many people turn down a free session with a personal trainer that it is quite disturbing. I think that some of these other gym's in the area have ruined for those who really care about fitness. Being the Fit City for three years in a row is prideful, but being the best personal training facility in Wilmington on top that is unbelievable! But it saddens me that no one wants to learn how to tweak their routine to propel them to reach higher goals.
After a tough attempt to get a member to show for his Free Fitness Assessment, his "I don't need a trainer" mentality was quickly reversed to a "Holy Crap!, I can't believe that's all I need to change!" and he left our quick session with a new understanding that what he learned was completely wrong and was preventing him from reaching his goals.
You have to understand people, what you read may be earning money to advertise products or routines, what you see on television is not completely true. Remember I wrote that post on how this world turns with the $Green$ in people's eyes. You need to trust those who are there for your best interest and if your at O2 Fitness, you can guarantee we care. I guess when it is a corporate business, you can expect the training program to be run by salesmen and not personal trainers. O2 is ran by a great family who has their minds and decisions in the member's hearts.
With 9 trainers who have degrees and certifications, why do you think we all chose to work at O2 and why 95% of them still work here from when the gym opened 6 years ago? Makes sense, huh? Take advantage of our Free services because you will be blown away at how much you will learn. I have never met a person in such good shape that didn't learn something new from taking advantage of a Free Session.
The worst thing that can happen is you don't learn anything!
So, I understand that trainers have to make a living, so they can't give away all the details. There is so much to learn, you will never learn years of experience in the matter of an hour anyways. So, without expecting to get a full program written out for you, there are some things you can ask to learn more about you.
Before any trainer can tell you what you should or should not be doing, they need to know all of these things about you first: Goals, Fitness History, Nutrition and Injuries/Limitations. Once they have this important info, you can ask:
1) For resistance training, how many reps and sets should I be completing for my goals?
2) If I am coming 2, 3, or 4 times a week, what would be the best split for my goals? (i.e. Monday - Upper, Tuesday - Lower, etc..)
3) I need to lose body fat quickly, should I do more low intensity cardio or interval training for my goals?
4) There is so much to learn about machines and functional training, so make sure you at least know how to use the treadmill or elliptical before you leave.
5) There are a ton of different opinions about progression when it comes to everyone's fitness program and everyone has their unique goals according to their body types, so make sure you ask what is a good progression increase percentage for your experience, body type and goals.
6) Ask your trainer to do your body fat analysis. Forget weighing yourself on the scale everyday. That number is crap! Look at your body fat percentage to see how much muscle you have gained and how much fat you've lost.
7) Ask your trainer to tell you what and how you need to be eating every day.
8) Ask your trainer if your goals are reasonable. Don't let them sell you on you only needing them to reach your goals when your goals just may be too high to start with.
9) Ask your trainer to assess your Core Strength, Flexibility, Stability and Muscle Endurance. If you lack in either of these fields, it will limit how quickly you can reach your goals and may cause you to injure yourself or quit due to little or no results.
10) This is not a question, but an important tip for you! If a trainer can't or hesitates to give any of these answers to you, they are SALESMEN disguised as a personal trainer!!! RUN!!!!
If you have any questions or concerns, please don't hesitate to ask me as I will be completely honest with you even if it breaks my heart to tell you. If you want a real Fitness Assessment, come to O2 Fitness and you will get one along with a Free Personal Training Session.
Happy Training,
Adam Freeman
Fitness Director/Personal Trainer
Posts
3 comments:
The main reason I have turned down free personal training in the past is because I know I can't afford to keep doing it...so, why would I start something that's going to be awesome and then be discouraged because I can't keep doing it? Maybe twisted, but that's been my reasoning.
Who cares if you can't afford it. If it's free, learn as much out of that session as you possibly can. It is better to learn something new than continuing doing something that might not be working. Also, if something isn't working for you, utilize the time to ask why.
Whether a trainer is there to help you get to your results quicker or you learn a tip that can help you on your own, it is worth every penny or lack there of. I would rather be closer to my goal and discouraged than further away from it and still discouraged.
Twisted? Not at all....but I think you are looking at it as an all or nothing type deal and it doesn't have to be that way. Look at it this way....People read certain verses in the Bible that help them through the tough spots in life, right? You don't have to learn it all to get closer to your goals.
Adam
I have been looking for an "answer" to my weight loss woes.. a new gym opened up a few blocks from my daughters pre-school. I checked it out. On the tour they suggested I meet with the PT director before I join. I was sold. I knew I couldn't go on W/O trying one out! We've only done 2 session, I start my eating plan in a few days and he told me he can take me down to 25% body fat in 17 weeks. I'm hoping I can take what he teaches me and use it the rest of my life. 2 sessions are free but the rest are WORTH EVERY PENNY!!!!!
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