*Disclaimer: This article is not intended to prove that I am the right coach for everyone. Quite honestly, I don't want to be. If everyone wanted to do what we do, I would probably stop doing this.
Like I always say, "This isn't for everybody."
Nowadays, it seems that every person who is half serious about their health or athletic performance has a personal trainer.
The question is, how do you know if you have the right one?
In order to get the answer, you need to ask yourself the following:
1. ARE YOU GETTING RESULTS?
If you aren't getting stronger, faster, leaner, bigger, or more mobile, than you need to find somebody else. Why waste your time with someone if there are no improvements being made?
(Please note, this point only counts if you are actually showing up to your sessions and performing the prescribed workouts. You can't miss 50% of your sessions and then blame the trainer for your lack of progress.)
At Advanced Training, we track everything to ensure we are making progress.
I have data which proves that, on average, an athlete who trains with me for 6 months will see the following results:
- Bench Press Increase--> 35lbs
- Squat Increase --> 75lbs
- Deadlift Increase --> 50lbs
- Pull-Ups Increase --> 15
If you read the following articles, you will see similar gains in even shorter amounts of time.
Test Week at Advanced Training
Summer 2011 - Huge Gains
2. CAN YOU WALK THE NEXT DAY?
For some odd reason, people judge the quality of their workout by how sore they feel the next day.
If after every training session, you struggle to get out of bed or walk up a flight of stairs - you are doing something wrong.
You should leave your session feeling energized, not destroyed.
I know I wrote a great program when an athlete says, "That's It?" at the end of the session.
3. ARE YOU DOING PRE-HAB?
I am sure you have all heard of rehab, which is short for rehabilitation.
In the strength and conditioning world, this refers to the active recovery process performed after sustaining an injury.
In my world, I don't want to do rehab.
Doing rehab means someone got injured.
I want to avoid that at all costs.
That is why we do
PRE-HAB...
Pre-hab is performing movements in the gym that help prevent injury from occurring in the first place.
At every one of our lifting sessions, there is time dedicated to the shoulders, wrists, hips, knees, ankles, and / or feet.
We work on correcting muscular imbalances, increasing stabilization, and improving flexibility and mobility.
What good is it getting your deadlift up to 520lbs and then blowing out your back running for the bus?
4. DO YOU COMMUNICATE OUTSIDE THE GYM?
Is the only time you ever hear from your trainer while you are standing next to him in the gym?
Does he ever check in to gauge your level of fatigue or soreness?
Does he ever send you a text to congratulate you on hitting your goals?
Does he ever send an encouraging note after you missed a goal?
If not, you have to start wondering if he looks at you like as a person or as a paycheck.
5. HOW DOES HE REACT WHEN YOU FAIL?
No matter how hard you try, there are going to be times where a certain goal is not met, even though you gave it everything you had.
It's at that point that you can tell the true character of your trainer.
Does he blame you?
Does he question your manhood?
Or ... does he try to figure out where
HE went wrong.
I know any time an athlete of mine does not meet one of their goals - I am crushed.
I absolutely take it harder than they do, mostly because I feel like I failed them.
If an athlete is giving all their effort and following the program, I take 100% accountability for their failures.
Its on me to evaluate where we went wrong, and to put a plan in place to help the athlete get to exactly where they need to be.
WRAP-UP
If your answer to any of the above questions was "NO", you need to find another trainer.
If not, you will probably end up weak, fat, injured, or broke.
