Written by Trainer Finder on 21 September 2010
A healthy and fit lifestyle is its own reward, but don’t think that the road leading to it is an easy one. Whether you’re a beginner, an experienced exerciser, an aspiring bodybuilder, or a professional athlete, there will be times when you will feel less than enthusiastic about the thought of going to the gym. There will be times when you feel like relaxing at home instead of lifting weights, when you’ve simply got so much more to do than put yourself through another grueling session. And there will be times when you’re tempted to give it up for the time being – and to leave training for another time.
Our advice? Don’t give up. Two of the most common reasons why people fall short of their fitness objectives are lack of time and lack of motivation. So, before you even think of canceling that gym membership, you may first want to try out these great ways of staying motivated in training.
- Sign up for a marathon. This will give you the motivation that you need to stick to your training plan. Just imagine crossing the finish line, and the amazing feeling that comes with having worked hard to achieve a fitness goal.
- Make yourself pay. Skipping a workout is taking a step backward. So set up a punishment for taking a step backward. Like surrendering your credit card to your partner, or closing a weekend to perform chores and home repairs.
- Mark the calendar. Need a visual reward for your hard work? Post a calendar on your bedroom wall and mark each completed workout date with a smiley, a huge check mark, or a star. Yes, feel free to use a gratifyingly thick marker.
- Work out with a buddy. It’s not just the social support that you’ll get from training with someone you know and love. Look at it from a psychological standpoint, too – with a view of making yourself more accountable. You’ll feel guilty just at the thought of standing a friend up.
- Blog about it. Why not? It’s the 21st century way of keeping a diary. This way, you get to cope with the challenges that your body constantly has to face. And you get to keep your sanity.
- Find a personal trainer. He’ll be your coach, guide, mentor, friend, judge, and assessor. He’ll stand as the monolith of professional support. Yes, not showing up at the gym while your personal trainer is waiting will also make you feel like crap.
- Just get there. Oftentimes, all it takes to get through another workout session is to get your butt to the gym, no matter how lethargic you feel. Once you’re there, you’ll have gotten over the biggest hump.
- Read fitness magazines. They’re bound to contain plenty of information – as well as inspiration. Looking at pictures alone of those toned bodies and perfect abs may get you all pumped up for the next session.
- Prove yourself to someone. Make a friendly bet with a colleague or a neighbor who thinks you can’t do what you want to do. Tell him or her that you’ll lose a certain number of pounds in a certain number of months, and that you’ll join a 10k race after completing the program. That ought to get your competitive juices flowing.
- Reward yourself. Not with chocolates or Big Macs or anything edible. More like, a new iPhone app or a new favorite mystery novel after each completed workout with the personal trainer. Or a trip to the spa!
- Listen to music. If it takes Soulja Boy to help you get through weight training, Justin Bieber through a half hour at the treadmill, Lady Gaga through cardio, or Queen through a set of stretching exercises, then by all means.
- Sign up for classes. Bored and unmotivated? Sign up for the gym classes you see being advertised on the announcement board. Whether it’s yoga, Pilates, Latin dance, or pole dancing, trying out something new just may give you the extra motivation that you need. And don’t worry about coming in as a beginner; typically, there are personal trainers who’ll help you get off to a smooth start.
- Tie your health to your exercise. Check your cholesterol levels; have someone take your blood pressure. Or measure your body fat percentage. Then set goals based on these numbers. Sometimes all you need to be able to stay right on track is to know that at the end of the program, you’ll have better statistics. And better health.
- Shop for athletic gear. Admit it. It’s pretty exciting to merely think of a new fresh pair of kicks, or a new training shirt, or a new timing gadget. So go ahead, cop that new pair of Air Jordans, and show up at the gym looking as stylish – and motivated – as ever.
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Written by Trainer Finder on 18 September 2010
Overtraining is a mistake that anybody can make. It doesn’t matter if you’re an experienced exerciser, a superstar athlete, or an average American: if you have become too enthusiastic in your quest for weight loss, a toned body, and a healthy lifestyle, such that you’re feeling a lot worse instead of a lot better, then chances are you have been overtraining.
There are signs to look out for, although you must understand that overtraining is a result not of a few days’ worth of rigorous workouts, but rather of months and months of not knowing when to stop. It’s also perhaps a result of working with a personal trainer who is unaware of your limits. Or who simply doesn’t care enough to correct the intensities and volumes of your workout. Whatever the cause is, the result is not good: overtraining risks more than your performance; it risks your health.
So how do you know you’re pushing too hard? Here below are the surest signs that you’re overtraining.
Increased effort during normal workouts: You’re failing to lift the weights you’re used to lifting. You can’t run the distance you’re used to running. You’re unable to complete normal workouts, or at least it takes you so much more effort than you’re used to exerting. Your endurance levels are lower. These are signs that you’re overtraining: you’re getting weaker instead of stronger, slower instead of faster. What was once a walk in the park is now a grind.
Stress and agitation: Running on short temper? Having difficulties concentrating? Annoyed by the littlest things? You might be overtraining. Don’t take it out on your personal trainer. It’s the hormones reacting to your overtraining. Your body just needs rest; it needs enough time to recover in order to stabilize your moods and sharpen your focus once again.
Heavy legs: “Heavy legs” is a feeling that comes to define the experience of fatigue. After the workout with your personal trainer, you’re actually supposed to feel the heady rush of endorphins, the refreshing glow that comes from having strengthened your body. If you’re overtraining, however, the post-workout feeling is exactly the opposite: excessive fatigue.
Chronic muscle pain: Sore muscles are supposed to be relieved once you’ve gotten enough rest after workout. But if the pain in your muscles and joints never seem to go away, then you might have been pushing too hard for too long. Or you might have been performing your exercises in bad form or technique, which, if left uncorrected, is also linked to overtraining (and to its related injuries).
Weaker immune system: One of the many great benefits of exercise is an improved immune system. Excessive exercise, however, can do the exact opposite – and make you more prone than ever to frequent respiratory illnesses, infections, coughs, and colds. That’s because overtraining overworks the systems and functions of your body, such that the demands you’re putting on it are actually outweighing what it can give.
Restlessness and insomnia: An overtrained body is typically unable to relax. And sleep. It’s been used to going so fast, pushing too hard, and lifting too much all the time, such that it’s unable to slow down and recover naturally between your workout sessions.
Loss of appetite: No, it’s not a good thing. At all. If your appetite has gone missing, it may be a sign that you have been overtraining, and that there’s been a subsequent increase in the production of the hormones epinephrine and norepinephrine in your body – both of which, among other things, tend to lead to a decreased appetite.
Elevated heart rate: If your heart rate, at rest and during exercise, is higher than normal, if you wake up in the morning and you feel like your heart is pounding – gasping for dear life – then it’s a sign of overtraining.
One of the keys to knowing whether or not you’re overtraining is to work actively with your personal trainer, who should be able to adjust the exercises in your program according to the proper levels of intensity and volume.
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Written by Trainer Finder on 14 September 2010
As you go about your search for a Chicago personal trainer, it’s good to have an understanding of how exercise programming begins. And it begins with what is called a proper fitness assessment, which is typically performed by your certified personal trainer.
The fitness assessment basically measures your current fitness levels, and determines if you are prone to certain health risks that may become an issue in your fitness training. It’s also a means of helping your personal trainer in Chicago gather data about how fit you are, and what your body can take, which will then be used as a basis for developing an individualized program, identifying training goals and objectives, and maximizing the efficiency of the time you’ll be spending at the gym.
What are the components of a fitness assessment? To begin with, these components are meant to evaluate the following areas of fitness:
- Body composition
- Cardiovascular endurance
- Flexibility
- Muscular endurance
- Muscular strength
- Agility
- Balance
- Coordination
- Power
- Reaction time
- Speed / dynamic mobility
Your personal Chicago trainer will be looking at each of these as he or she writes out the recommendations for the intensities and volumes of your workout exercises. Of course, the fitness assessment is going to be performed more than once: every three or four months, or whatever is suitable enough for your personal trainer to be able to monitor your progress. That way, you will also be able to know if the hard work you’re putting at the gym is paying off.
Here are the other objectives of your Chicago personal trainer’s first fitness assessment:
- To identify strengths and weaknesses that may affect the design of your program;
- To identify potential risks of injury, as well as contraindications before you get on with you program;
- To collect data that will serve in the future as a means of measuring improvement and rate of progress;
- To assist in identifying short-term, intermediate, and long-term training objectives;
- To assist in the determination of appropriate exercise intensities and volumes (That way, you’ll know that your trainer didn’t pull the number of your reps from the air!).
As your personal trainer performs the fitness assessment, he or she will give you certain instructions. These vary from trainer to trainer, but you can typically expect the following:
- Postural assessment, in which the trainer aims to look at the alignment of your body, from head to feet, as you stand up or walk;
- Movement analysis, in which your trainer takes notes on your ability to maintain proper joint alignment while performing, for example, squats, lunges, pull-ups, and pushups;
- Flexibility assessment, in which the trainer looks at which individual muscles or muscle groups need strengthening and lengthening; this is usually done by way of a set of stretching exercises.
A certified personal trainer will also be measuring your body composition (or body fat percentage), which should guide you as you make decisions regarding your diet and exercise program. Don’t worry if your Chicago personal trainer begins to measure folds of your skin using calipers; it’s all with the view of helping you set realistic and challenging training goals.
Other components that may be included as the trainer assesses your fitness levels are:
- Resting heart rate
- Target heart rate zone
- Blood pressure
- Body mass index
- VO2 max (a clinical measurement of how efficiently your body can use oxygen during aerobic exercise)
Given all these details, what can you, as a client, expect from the results of a fitness assessment as conducted by your Chicago personal trainer? One is that you’ll be able to determine if your diet is consistent with your training and fitness goals. The assessment will also let you know if your program is delivering the results that you’re looking for: have you been working out hard enough? Are you right on track, or do you feel like you need more kinds of exercise in addition to your training session? Is your current diet supporting the work that you’ve done at the gym?
The answers to these questions – and more – are not possible without the fitness assessment. So play an active part as your personal trainer works to find out what it takes to help you live a healthy and fit lifestyle.
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Written by Trainer Finder on 11 September 2010
Stretching isn’t exciting. Right? If only we can do without stretching exercises. If only we can skip the boring preliminaries and proceed straight to the more exciting parts of our workout, like lifting weights and crunking it in aerobics class.
Indeed, it’s pretty easy to become averse to stretching – before and after your workout sessions. It’s pretty easy to get kind of peeved at your personal trainer and think, Jeez, what’s this all about? I’m not losing any weight or building any muscles doing these silly poses. But really, if there is only one exercise in the world left for you to choose, then it should be stretching. That’s because, in its most basic form, stretching offers a wide range of health and fitness benefits that allow you to do so much in so little time. You can be sure, therefore, that every good fitness program will include a set of stretching exercises – and that there are actually a bunch of good reasons why.
Stretching is natural. What do you do when you wake in the morning? When you get up from the office chair that you’ve been sitting on for hours? That’s right: stretch. It’s a natural, instinctive activity. And it’s an activity which, once incorporated by your personal trainer into your workouts, prepares your muscles and your body for the more strenuous forms of exercise.
Stretching increases flexibility. Stretching involves elongating an individual muscle or muscle group to its fullest length; if you think this sounds brutal, well – it isn’t. Stretching actually helps you perform more comfortable and fluidly, and it helps you avoid muscle, joint, and tendon injuries that may otherwise occur from tight muscles, slow, restricted movements, long periods of inactivity, or aging. Increased flexibility from stretching, moreover, can significantly improve your exercise capacity.
Stretching promotes better circulation. Here’s something that your personal trainer may never tell you: stretching can actually decrease the risks of coronary disease. That’s because it increases blood flow to the muscles, brings more nourishment to various parts of your body, and prevents the hardening or clogging of your arteries (improving artery function). It also tends to remove more byproducts from the muscles and reduce cholesterol levels and blood pressure – effects, no doubt, that come from improved circulation.
Stretching reduces stiffness. Feeling lethargic and stiff just before your session with your personal trainer? Feeling sore and hot and restless after a workout? Try stretching – both before your workout and during the cool-down period. Not only will this help reduce the stiffness that’s common before and after strenuous exercise; stretching exercises will also reduce tension, thereby allowing you to relax the tightest muscles and tensest parts of your body.
Stretching can eliminate muscle pain. After a grueling workout with your personal trainer, you may just as well expect all kinds of muscle pain and soreness the day after. Stretching exercises – particularly after the workout – can eliminate that. Muscle tightness, back pain, sore quadriceps, hip, hamstrings, butt, and other parts of body that can feel like they’re burning up: if you’re looking for a remedy, count on stretching exercises to serve as the great reliever.
Stretching improves balance. Some people complain about their own clumsiness, and how their joints are badly coordinated and how they seem to catch every dent on the road and trip too frequently. With stretching, this can be resolved. It improves the range of motion of your joints and keeps you in better balance, allowing you to avoid injuries, conquer age-related clumsiness, and be more naturally mobile.
Stretching relieves stress and relaxes the body. Indeed, it’s a great way of clearing your mind; it’s a mental balm. That’s why yoga, which features postures that offer full stretches to all parts of the body, is so effective as a form of meditation. Not only does it promote better flexibility and circulation; it also induces a kind of relaxation such as you cannot get from most other forms of exercise.
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Written by Trainer Finder on 08 September 2010
Going to the gym and working with a personal trainer does not guarantee you a healthy and fit lifestyle. It’s a good first step, of course, since it demonstrates your commitment, but at the same time, you’ve got to be cautious of the fact that some people spend so many hours at the gym with their personal trainer – only to end up staying out of shape, looking less confident, feeling less motivated, and
These are people who make the all-too-common workout mistakes that you should avoid. To find out more, continue reading below.
Wrong form or improper technique: This is one of the most important reasons why you have to find a personal trainer, even if you’re going to work with him for only a month or two. Bad form or technique while working out – with no one to correct it – is one of the surest ways to get injured. With a personal trainer, you’ll learn proper exercise techniques and program-design strategies that minimize the risk – and maximize all the effort you put into your workouts.
Not stretching or warming up: Stretching exercises aren’t just for show; they improve your posture and help your muscles become more flexible in preparation for your workout. Warming up, meanwhile, increases your heart rate and circulation, which in turn helps you progress more quickly while preventing injuries and other risks.
Winging it: This phrase refers to the act of showing up at the gym with no set goals or training objectives; it means reckless and randomly working out on whatever machines and gym equipment that happen to catch your eye; in short, “winging it” is springing into action – without a plan. Avoid this by finding a personal trainer who will help you assess your fitness levels and develop a strategic plan based on your results and feedback.
Same workout all the time: We don’t just speak of variety here. The key is to progress and to continue to challenge your body, no matter the level of fitness you’re on. Don’t go for months – or, heaven forbid, years – before you mix it up, increase your weights or reps, or focus on a different muscle set. With the advice of a good personal trainer, you should be able to change up your workout routine and prevent repetitive strain or overuse injuries.
Not eating: Losing weight does not mean not putting any food in your mouth. Otherwise, what’s going to be the fuel on which your body engine will run? So don’t starve yourself; instead, eat more to burn more. Keep your calorie deficit small so that every time you work out with your personal trainer, you will actually have some calories to burn.
Skipping workouts: Accountability leads to more motivation in your workouts, as well as to a healthier, more disciplined you. You may think that missing one session isn’t going to affect you all that much, but what many people don’t understand is that weight loss, or a toned, muscled body, is a cumulative product of a series of forward steps. Skipping workouts is a backward step. That’s why finding a personal training is so important: you have someone to which you’ll be accountable, and you have someone who will ensure that you continue to stay consistent, disciplined, confident, and motivated.
No balance in training: It’s great to walk into the gym and say to your personal trainer that you want to work on specific muscles, like your abs, your butt, or your chest. This does not mean, however, that you are only going to do exercises that target those muscles. It’s important to have functional balance in training, and to develop, too, the other structures and parts of your body that support your “favorite” muscles. So find a personal trainer who’ll create a program that develops every joint and muscle group, with respect to your training objectives.
Building up too quickly or slowly: A good personal trainer creates progressive and challenging programs so that you’re able to train to the best of your abilities. This keeps you from under-training or overtraining – from building up too quickly or too slowly. With a progressive program, your body is challenged consistently, while also being given sufficient time to adapt and adjust.
Using machines all the time: Machines aren’t necessarily safer; they can actually prevent you from activating more muscles and burning more calories than you’ll otherwise be able to if you use free weights under the guidance of a personal trainer. That’s because, unlike free weights, machines don’t encourage your muscles to control the weight and range of motion – everything is “fixed”; sure, they may support your strength-enhancing exercises, but for the most effective results, go for free weights and equipment that allow you to train in real-life movement.
No pain, no gain, and therefore, no rest: Torturing yourself is no way to live a healthier lifestyle. The key is to make you feel better, not worse. So avoid the workout mistake of not giving yourself sufficient time to rest. Let your muscles heal and go back to training only when your body has recovered from your last session.
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Written by Trainer Finder on 05 September 2010
America is a nation that genuinely treasures and looks up to a lot of great athletes, and many fans would indeed consider these sports stars as heroes. Here at Chicago we have had the pleasure of watching a number of legendary figures in sports – in basketball, baseball, football, and hockey, among other fields. What every sports fan must realize, however, is that behind every highlight, every championship, and every stat-filled career is an individual who recognizes the importance of fitness training, and of working hard every day with personal trainers to achieve a level of greatness that people will appreciate.
Let’s read below some of the insights on fitness and training that came from no other than Chicago’s finest athletes.
Mike Ditka: Mike Ditka won the prestigious NFL Super Bowl ring several times – as a player, assistant coach, and head coach of the Chicago Bears. Totaling 427 career receptions, 5,812 yards, and 43 touchdowns, Ditka was known as “Iron Mike”, one of the 100 best football players of all time, and a tight end who was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1988.
Among some of Mike Ditka’s insights on fitness and training: “Here’s what I tell anybody and this is what I believe. The greatest gift we have is the gift of life. We understand that. That comes from our Creator. We’re given a body. Now you may not like it, but you can maximize that body the best it can be maximized.”
Also: “I really believe the only way to stay healthy is to eat properly, get your rest and exercise. If you don’t exercise and do the other two, I still don’t think it’s going to help you that much…. Some people are willing to pay the price and it’s the same with staying healthy or eating healthy. There’s some discipline involved. (And) some sacrifices.”
Scottie Pippen: Scottie Pippen of the Chicago Bulls wasn’t just basketball’s greatest sidekick; he was also one of the most versatile small forwards to ever play the game. Teaming up with some guy named Michael Jordan, he won a total of six NBA championships while earning seven All-Star Game appearances, one All-Star Game MVP, and multiple All-Defensive Team honors. Pippen made his mark behind the scenes, too, and came to practice every day with his personal trainer in Chicago, and gave the same level of effort that you would see on a game night.
Here’s what he has to say: “Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard.”
Dick Butkus: Personifying the hard-working side of Chicago, Dick Butkus left the NFL as perhaps the greatest linebacker of all time. He first starred as a football player for University of Illinois, then took his talents to provide extra muscle for the Chicago Bears. A member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Dick Butkus played in eight Pro Bowls before a knee injury forced early retirement. But his legacy of toughness remains, exemplified by his own statement on the type of attitude it took for him to succeed: “I worked hard at becoming a professional football player, just like society says you should. It said you had to be fierce. I was fierce. Tough. I was tough.”
Stan Mikita: This Slovak-Canadian served as the face of the Chicago Blackhawks franchise for more than two decades – and owns records for most goals, assists, points, games played, and seasons. Talk about durability. Mikita also proved himself as a winner when the Blackhawks won the Stanley Cup in 1961. A two-time MVP, four-time league scoring champ, and six-time All-Star, Mikita remained humble about his individual achievements – without, of course, underestimating the value of hard work.
“Some athletes are so great they don’t have to practice,” he said. “Bobby Hull is one of them. He is so good everything comes natural to him. I have to work hard and practice hard. It’s not so simple.”
Walter Payton: Nicknamed “Sweetness”, Payton was the NFL’s all-time rushing leader from 1984 to 2002. He also won a championship as part of arguably the greatest team of all time, the 1985 Chicago Bears. As a player with a unique combination of power and finesse, Payton succeeded primarily because of the workouts with his Chicago personal trainer, and came into training camp in better shape than any of his teammates. He put himself through a lot of challenging workouts in the offseason, so that he missed only one game in 13 years. “I want to be remembered as the guy who gave his all whenever he was on the field,” he said.
Michael Jordan: Perhaps the most famous and greatest athlete of all time, Michael Jordan dominated the game of basketball, and was so legendary that he transformed the sport and took the city of Chicago to greater heights. We won’t talk much about his individual achievements here – there are far too many – and we’ll focus instead at some of the things he said that provided an insight on how much he had trained throughout his career.
- “You have to expect things of yourself before you can do them.”
- “I’ve missed more than 9000 shots in my career. I’ve lost almost 300 games. 26 times, I’ve been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed. I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.”
- “Some people want it to happen, some wish it would happen, others make it happen.”
- “I can accept failure, everyone fails at something. But I can’t accept not trying.”
- “If you’re trying to achieve, there will be roadblocks. I’ve had them; everybody has had them. Obstacles don’t have to stop you. If you run into a wall, don’t turn around and give up. Figure out how to climb it, go through it, or work around it.”
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Written by Trainer Finder on 02 September 2010
The first step to an active, healthy, and fit lifestyle is finding a gym. What, you expected to start working out at home, on your own, with no personal trainer? Don’t sweat it. The right gym – plus the right Chicago personal trainer – makes for a smart investment in a healthy lifestyle, one that can help sustain your efforts much better than a list of New Year’s resolutions would. Recent studies, moreover, suggest that working out at a gym or fitness center you’re comfortable with is a major factor in your ability to achieve your training or weight loss objectives.
How do you know if a gym is right for you? What things should you take into consideration when choosing a fitness center for your training sessions? Read below to find out.
Location
You may start off feeling very enthusiastic and motivated about your decision to work with a Chicago personal trainer and live an active lifestyle. But there’s no guarantee that this enthusiasm will last for more than a few weeks or months. So, to ensure regularity in workouts, choose a gym that’s in your Chicago neighborhood. If you can, choose one that you actually have to pass through on your way home from work. If you choose a gym that is too far for a walk or a short drive, you’re just giving yourself an excuse to procrastinate.
Hours
Always take into consideration the operating hours of a gym or fitness center. Find out, too, about the availability of your Chicago personal trainer. This will allow you to trim down your choices – and personal trainer candidates – to those which can actually fit your work schedule.
Equipment
You don’t have to be an expert in gym and fitness equipment to see if they’re in good shape or bad. If you can, find the time to tour the facilities you’re interested in, and inspect for signs of wear and tear, and of faulty machinery. Also, it’s important to keep in mind that a gym with too much equipment can be as counterproductive to your training as a gym that doesn’t have enough. The key is to find a facility that will cater to your training needs – and not confuse you before you even begin.
Cleanliness
Dirty towels? Poorly maintained lockers? A weight room that makes you queasy? These are some of the signs that the place is not for you. Look for a gym or fitness center that provides a clean, safe, and healthy environment for clients to work out in. You don’t want to be discouraged from training just because you feel like there’s so much bacterial residue on those dumbbells – so address the cleanliness issue from the get-go.
Amenities and facilities
A big city like Chicago will have its fair share of the ill-intentioned. So if you’re coming directly from the office to the gym and bringing valuable belongings with you like your car keys, laptop, and cell phone, you will have to find a facility that has enough lockers and storage to keep these belongings safe and secure. You also might want to check out if the fitness center has a sauna or ample parking space, as you certainly don’t want to be inconvenienced before your workout session, or feel restless and uncomfortable after it.
Staff and personal trainers
A gym can only be as good as the staff members that run it. When choosing a fitness and training facility, it’s highly recommended that you first pay a visit to the place and get to know the people who work there, and the roster of personal trainers that are offering their services in the facility. Get a feel of how helpful they are, and whether they will be available in those times when you need to ask questions. Inquire about special classes and the specializations of the staff. Ask around for the certifications and qualifications of the Chicago personal trainers. Remember: just because they have big muscles and sculpted bodies doesn’t mean they are automatically qualified to help and train you.
Clients
Nothing can make an average client more insecure than Mr. Perfect Body or Miss Universe walking in to take the next treadmill. In choosing gyms and touring the facilities, pay attention to the people who work out there, the would-be fellow club members. Studies indicate that if you’re a beginner, you’re more likely to find comfort in training next to men and women of similar age range, interests, and fitness levels.
Reputation
Favor word-of-mouth buzz over glitz and glamour. Get testimonials. Don’t always fall for what is being advertised. As you search for the right gym or fitness center, ask around and consult your friends and colleagues. Gyms that earn their recommendation and enjoy good reputation are gyms that are likely going to be a better fit for you. Ask buddies, too, about Chicago personal trainers, and find out if they’ve worked with someone who truly helped them achieve their training objectives. Remember: it’s better to hear from people you trust than to go around searching gyms and personal trainers on your own.
Trial
Once you’ve narrowed your list, give the gym a try. Don’t sign up for a long-term commitment, unless you want to squander your money on a gym that you might soon give up on. Ask the staff if they have a free trial program, and if they have policies for refund or subscription cancellation. A good gym will have every reason to let you try their product before finalizing your decision.
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Written by Trainer Finder on 30 August 2010
A good working relationship with your personal fitness trainer will make losing weight and staying in shape that much easier. It’s also going to make training a lot more fun. However, there are cases when, instead of motivating you and helping your cause, a personal trainer might actually be keeping you from achieving your training objectives, regardless of whether you’re a beginner or an experienced gym rat. Worse, he may be jeopardizing your health.
How do you know if it’s time to move on? What are the legitimate reasons for firing – and replacing – your personal trainer? Read below to find out the personal situations where you know it’s just not going – pun intended – to work out. Of course, it’s best practice to set up a meeting and talk about these issues first before you make your final decision.
Trainer is always late, or always cancels
Needless to say, your personal trainer should show up in scheduled sessions – or provide a reasonable excuse for either cancelling or showing up late. If the excuses pile up and the trainer seems to be tardy or busy more than half the time, or if he never seems to return your calls and messages, then you might want to start searching for a new guy to help you get on with the program. Trainers are supposed to bring accountability and motivation to your training; if he himself does not exemplify these virtues, you’ll know it’s time to move on.
Your program hasn’t changed
So you’ve been following an individualized workout program for six months, a program that’s supposed to be customized by your trainer to fit your fitness levels and objectives. You cannot wait to move on to the next level and try out new exercises. Has your trainer changed your program accordingly? Has he responded to your feedback? Has he introduced new exercises to challenge your body and accommodate the physical changes that it has gone through? Are your workouts even any different from that of his other clients? If your answer to all of these questions is “No”, then chances are you’ve ended up with a personal trainer who doesn’t care – a trainer who’s satisfied with implementing cookie-cutter programs. A good fitness trainer responds to his clients’ feedback, and adjusts programs based on what clients need and how they feel.
Your trainer has a roving eye
And by roving eye we mean he’s not paying any attention to your form or your reps. Who knows? Maybe your trainer digs the girl running on a treadmill next to you. Or maybe he’s too busy tweeting on his new iPhone. Or maybe he’s a regular at the gym in which you’re working out, and he needs to stop and say hi to friends throughout your whole session. It doesn’t really matter what it is; nothing can be more unfair to you as a client. Excuse the minor interruptions, but if your personal fitness trainer has an eye on everyone but you, that’s a good enough reason to fire and replace him.
Your trainer is an advertisement
An advertisement for supplements, that is. It’s perfectly all right for trainers to have business partnerships with gyms so that they are able to gently push these products to possibly interested clients, but when your personal trainer starts to annoy you with his hard sales talk and marketing buzzwords, and insists that you will not improve without his products, then talk to him about it and let him know that if you need medical advice, you have a doctor you can consult any time. Health and nutrition will always be an important facet of achieving optimum fitness levels, but a trainer who constantly puts pressure on you to buy is more a nuisance than a fitness guide.
You’re getting injured or fatigued
You may be working with the greatest personal trainer in the world and still get injured. But when you’re suffering from chronic fatigue, frequent colds and illness, constant body aches, and recurrent injuries, there’s a huge possibility that you’ve been working out in a way that hurts your body – and that your trainer has done nothing to correct it. Worse, he may not even be aware that something is wrong. A good personal trainer puts his client’s health at the top of his priorities, and knows how to strike the balance between under-training and overtraining.
Your trainer is taking advantage of you
Advantage can be taken in various ways; among them, financially and physically. If your personal trainer seems like he is only out to make money off of you by cutting your sessions short or overcharging you, if he keeps touching parts of your body unnecessarily, or if his flirtatious advances are getting in the way of your professional relationship, it’s time to move on and go find another personal trainer.
You’re ready to train on your own
Not all reasons for firing your personal trainer are negative. It may be the case that you have simply advanced enough to be able to train and work out on your own. A good trainer will also recognize if and when you are ready, and he will respect the decision should you choose to end your professional relationship.
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Written by Trainer Finder on 27 August 2010
When working towards getting active, healthy, and fit, there’s nothing like having your own personal trainer. He’ll be your coach, your friend, your guide, your motivator and your accountability person. A personal trainer will also be the one who scolds you when you think of cheating on your reps.
Before you hire a trainer, however, you have to make sure he’s ready and committed to fill the above roles for you. How do you know? You can start by asking these all-important questions.
What’s your certification?
The first step to being able to trust a personal trainer is to know that he is certified by a fitness agency or institute. Inquire about his education and credentials. Certification is usually given by associations such as the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA), the American Council on Exercise (ACE), and the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM). There are lots more, and they all set thorough and rigorous requirements to ensure that trainers have the necessary qualifications and credentials. It is also essential to look for a trainer who is certified in First Aid – and who will know what to do in cases of emergency.
Have you got a trainer presenting himself to you without any form of certification whatsoever? Take extra caution if you are considering hiring him; otherwise, you might be jeopardizing your training as well as your health.
Can I request for references?
It’s highly recommended that you ask a personal trainer about past clients before you think of hiring him. That way, you will be able to talk to people who know what it’s like working with him – people who will be able to provide objective feedback. And don’t hesitate to ask for references. If the personal trainer refuses to give references or acts as though it is such a big, inconvenient deal, you may want to look for someone else.
How do you work out?
Don’t expect your personal trainer to have the greatest body in the whole universe. And don’t assume he has never eaten a cheeseburger in his life. What counts, though, is that the trainer has his own fitness regimen – and that he sticks to it. A trainer may be knowledgeable in the technical side of all kinds of exercises, but if he himself is not serious about his health and fitness, if he himself doesn’t dedicate a significant amount of time working out, then you might be better off looking for someone who can actually lead by example.
What is your exercise or fitness philosophy?
It’s not a trick question, and don’t judge the personal trainer if he doesn’t provide you with a scholarly thesis on the social injustices of the 21st century American diet. What you’re to look for is a proven system for results, and the kind of trainer credibility that addresses all your fitness-related questions. Expect the right personal trainer to talk about how he motivates clients, track progress, and achieve efficiency throughout a workout program. If all the candidate has to say is the trite “No Pain, No Gain” motto, he’s not by any means the right one for you.
What is your specialty?
Not all personal trainers are created equal. Specializations vary, and from a wide selection of trainers you might get one who’s good at yoga, or another who has extensive experience in plyometrics, and others still who are at their best when implementing weight-lifting or bodybuilding programs. Make sure you shortlist candidates by finding out which trainers have experience in handling clients with the kind of training objectives that you want to achieve. In other words, look for a right match.
What’s your schedule like?
It’s perfectly all right for a personal trainer to have multiple clients, but forget it if he’s going to be so busy that you have to revolve your sessions around his schedule instead of the other way around. A good trainer has time to take you on – and will make time for you whenever you are available.
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Written by Trainer Finder on 24 August 2010
The list of people who could afford personal trainers used to be a short one: pro athletes, gym buffs, rich celebrities, and maybe – if they were really dedicated to it – supermodels. Now, however, as a life of fitness and health continues to enter the mainstream, and as gyms continue to multiply throughout the country, the demand for personal trainers has grown. The scope of fitness has also broadened: these trainers aren’t just here to offer bodybuilding guidance; they are also offering average people plenty of help on things like their diet, conditioning, yoga and Pilates exercises, and so much more.
Looking to develop a lifestyle that promotes fitness, health, and well-being? Take a step in the right direction by hiring your own personal trainer. Here are only some of the benefits of having one.
Motivation and accountability
Let’s not forget that fitness training requires significant physical work – work which you, if you were on your own, might be prone to put off. Having your own personal trainer not only gives you the motivation and encouragement needed to stay committed to your program; he or she will also provide a good measure of structure and accountability in your workouts. Believe us: it’s good to have someone who’ll scold you the minute you start cheating on your reps. And while it has gotten so much more affordable to have your own personal trainer, there is still a good financial motivation in showing up at the gym each week for a session with the trainer you just hired.
Program tailored to your individual needs
Personal trainers are equipped with the professional knowledge necessary to tailor a fitness program that’s right for you. Do you have a health condition but still want to stay in good shape? Are you looking to improve a set of skills that allows you to excel at your favorite sport? Training for a marathon? A personal trainer will look closely at whatever your needs are and develop a safe, efficient program based on your workout objectives. He or she might even work with your healthcare provider to ensure that you can reach your goals in training – without posing unnecessary health risks.
Doing it right
Information on how to keep yourself active and fit is best acquired from personal trainers – not from mere “Googling”. That way, you waste no time and effort performing workout routines that don’t do you any good. With the help of a personal trainer, you’ll be able to do things right – right at the very outset. You’ll learn the fundamentally correct ways of using gym equipment. All this will give you the knowledge and confidence you need to keep going. He or she will look at your form, your thresholds, your limits and strengths. A personal trainer, moreover, will also plan for training efficiency, so that every single day, with every single rep, you are able to work closer toward achieving your goals. A trainer is also someone you can count on to give expert advice on basic nutrition, training, and health.
Results-driven training and progress tracking
Sometimes, you may find yourself working extremely hard only to discover that you are not close to seeing the results you envisioned for yourself. A personal trainer can fix that. He or she will look at your diet, as well as other aspects of your life (in and out of the gym) where you can make changes, so that you can perform more effective workouts or set more realistic goals for yourself. A trainer will also track your progress – thus giving you an objective look at how you’re doing while keeping you away from the temptation of cheating.
Safety
We’re not just talking about the freakish things that can happen when you’re doing solo work at the weight room. Personal trainers are there, too, to make sure your workout routine is safe, and to determine whether you’re pushing far beyond your abilities or giving up too easily. He or she will know when to push you hard or when to slow you down.
Refreshing new routines
Bored with the same old workout? Looking for a more interesting routine? You will certainly benefit from having a personal trainer who will introduce new exercises into your workout. Your trainer will also help sharpen your mental focus, as well as come up with new ideas on how to challenge your body and your mind more effectively.
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