Like any area in life the more knowledge you have on a given topic, the better the results you will gain. The challenges lie with what information can you trust?
We are living in a time where we have access to all the information in the world, whether it is well or miss-informed, available to us at our finger tips. The jury is out as to whether this is a positive or a negative thing.
So how do we know we are getting the right information?
Well, a great place to start is in finding a coach who has dedicated their professional career in finding the answers and passing that knowledge along to their clients. One with an evidence based view, a results based approach, and a curious yet dogmatic mind. Luckily for you, you have multiple Personal Trainers that fit this description available to you at the Sporting Club of Sydney.
Let me put things into perspective..
You wouldn’t buy property without doing your due diligence on the market & dwelling, gaining expert opinion from your conveyancer and/or lawyer, and seeking advice on your financial position with your mortgage broker. You definitely wouldn’t make the commitment of a purchase without setting a plan that weighs up what the purpose of the property will be, how you will ensure you can service the loan, and what your safety buffers will be in place. Unless you want suboptimal returns.
Just as you wouldn’t start a business without identifying a consumer pain point that has a gap in the market, doing your research into competition and setting up a strategy to get you from point A to point B… and this wouldn’t be done without putting contingencies in place for when the inevitable road bumps come to light. We all know that in business you need a team to help you get the job done efficiently, otherwise you spend your life spinning your wheels. You need an accountant to help you manage your tax and advise on financial decisions, you need an insurance broker to find you the appropriate cover to make sure you are covered in the event of an incident, it would be a good idea to reach out to someone who has done it before to help mentor you, the list goes on..
And as we all know, the right advice comes with a fee.
So why take what is arguably the most important aspect of your life, your health, and leave it to chance? Seek advice and coaching from the professionals and gain the results you are looking for.
So what exactly are you gaining by hiring a personal trainer?
Access to proven results based systems:
Any personal trainer worth their merit, like the premium trainers you have access to at the club, will have worked with clientele from all walks of life.
As a product of this, they would have been exposed to a whole host of challenges and obstacles to their clients progress along the way. To overcome these barriers the trainer would have had to lean on their established knowledge, research and seek solutions to gaps in their knowledge, consult other professionals to help build a better understanding, and package an effective strategy to over come the issue as it stands. I am sure that sometimes these strategies may have needed to be adjusted to become better suited to the individual clients' current situation and needs. An element of trial and error would have occurred until they perfected the strategy to gain the results sought after - and you better believe that once these goals had been achieved, the client would be looking to achieve the next. The process would then continue, repeated for hundreds of clients over thousands of hours, crafted over the years.
Why am I telling you this? In hopes to give you piece of mind that the benefits of knowledge and systems you gain far out weigh the costs. When you enlist the services of an experienced personal trainer you not only gain access to systems to achieve the results you are looking for, you also gain access to the systems that gained results for all of the clients who came before you.
Accountability & Automation:
Let’s be honest - life is extremely busy and has a lot of moving parts. It can be easy put our health to the side as it is “not a priority right now”… but let me assure you, it is! Weeks become months, and months become years.. and before you know it your health and fitness has taken a large decline. Your mood becomes more and more irritable, your mental sharpness becomes … well not so sharp, a good nights sleep becomes a distant memory, and the aches and pains begin to pile up. Doctors visits start to occur more frequently, as do the costs. You have no energy to enjoy the things you love to do, and getting your health back on track seem like an impossible task.
This is where the expertise of a personal trainer comes in.
When you hire the right personal trainer you no longer have to worry about any of this, as it is their job to worry about it for you. All you need to do is book in a session, listen to their advice and follow their instruction during the session.. that’s it. The trainer will consider your goals and needs, put it into the context of your current lifestyle and situation, and formulate a strategy to get you there. You will just need to turn up, do the work, and then get on with your day to day until the next session.
The product you get is Automation & Accountability. Automation being you don’t have to put much effort into the complexities. You just instruct your goals and they do the rest - even if you don’t know what your goals are, they will help you identify them. Accountability being that they will push you to the appropriate extent, help ensure you are following the plan, and troubleshoot when necessary to keep you heading in the right direction. You see you aren’t just paying for an exercise session, you are paying for a long and healthy future… as long as you keep it up!
Strategy:
We have already covered part of this above so I will do my best to keep this part short. As we know, the perfect plan on paper is meaningless if we don’t put it into action. I have had countless “one-off session" clients come to me with the idea of gaining a plan, which I give them, and taking that plan to execute by themselves. I think you know the answer as to how many people follow along with the plan and get the results that are after… not many.
When you hire a Personal Trainer regularly you are gaining access to the strategies to follow through with the plan. Most of the time, unless you ask them, you will have little idea that the strategies are even being employed.
Here are a few of many things that are going on behind the scenes:
Pushing you at the appropriate level of intensity to ensure you are gaining results.
Data collection and analysis to see if the plan is working or needs to be adjusted.
Troubleshooting around perceived fatigued.
Making adjustments around travel and work commitments.
Balancing all the components of health and fitness to ensure steady growth in all areas over time.
Managing and prevention of injuries.
Employing a host of motivation strategies to keep you engaged and working towards your goals.
Adjusting the plan as things come up, whilst simultaneously ensuring you keep progressing.
This is not an exhaustive list. Each personal trainer will have their own approach and skill set. The trick is to find someone who suits your wants and needs - and if you happen to be working with a trainer who doesn’t, please don’t hesitate to find someone who will. We won’t be offended.
My hope in writing the above is not to frighten you away from getting into exercising, even without a trainer. I guarantee you that if you start exercising more today, to any extent, you will see some good results around your health - so get to moving. My hope is to show you the value of hiring a skilled personal trainer that you may not be aware of.
Food for thought.