Personal trainers

[Shorty]

When I worked in a gym we steared clear of anyone who came from the Australian Institute of Fitness. People pay $8000 for an 8 week course and come away as a fully qualified PT. They walk out knowing a one size fits all type program but are very chirpy and bubbly and make you feel like you can achieve anything. It's just an 8 week sales presentation.

As a manipulative therapist, these trainers keep me in a job when I see people coming in with injuries from training incorrectly!:lol:

They teach these people the basics but then....they have no idea about bio mechanics.
And yeah I'm pretty sure that place is blackballed at any gyms worth their salt.

If you're a beginner then yes, definitely get a trainer for a few sessions....but make sure they are decently knowledgeable otherwise you're better off training with a mate a couple of times who is experienced in the gym.

 

[Patorick]

I had a trainer for a while. Seemed more interested in getting me to continually commit to more groups of sessions than show me good form and so on.

Had much better results just doing it myself.

Yep.

 

[Pete Cash]

First day back at the gym after a hugely embarrassing injury a few weeks ago (mentioned in the injury thread) and I saw a classic.

This fairly small dude with a personal trainer. She had him doing arm curls with no real weight or volume. The dude was literally clueless like wasn't even sure how much weight to use or how to work it out (pick up a weight if its too easy to hammer out the sets go up, if its too hard go down)

he goes will this make me stronger and the trainer was somewhat honest and started talking about tone (doesn't exist) and all that bullshit. The dudes built like a rake he needs to be eating insane amounts of food. Plus he quite clearly said he wants to be stronger. Its not a tricky one. Do large compound movements at low volume but constantly adding weight week to week while eating lots of food.

This advice was not given instead....she had him do some yoga stuff.

 

[Pete Cash]

Also she had him doing partial curls like about half the desired rom. When I'm strength training partial movements are quite useful in the deadlift at lockout (ie rackpulls) and the like but are partial arm curls a thing.

 

[Russell Crowe's Band]

my trainer is really good.

but ive known him from school for years. really gets me to focus on form, posture etc.

ive seen some real bad ones though. they stand there watching their clients do exercises terribly with bad form...
its bad.

 

[Cliffhanger]

As a personal trainer I think I can say with some authority that most PTs are shit, they just don't take on the knowledge and it's pretty hard to test for the skills they need. If you don't know an exercise well enough, you don't prescribe it, it's that simple.

A lot of them get into the industry because they are passionate about fitness without realising it is not enough to just be passionate about fitness, you got to be passionate about changing people's lives and getting them passionate about moving more and eating better.

To be honest I think everybody can do with a good personal trainer, even I need a good personal trainer, they can take your training to another level, they can make you better. A good personal trainer will make you do things with your body you never though you could, good luck finding one though.

 

[Thomas]

My gym is full of trainers in the morning. There'd be about 8 of them doing 1 on 1 sessions. One question, why is it that none of them seem to do large compound work with clients? It's all light resistance stuff. There's one guy who'd be mid-20's and is a "skinny-fat" guy and the trainer has him doing light dumbbell lifts. I just want to take the guy aside and give him a copy of starting strength.

 

[Cliffhanger]

Hearing that Thomas makes me die a little on the inside. We fail our assessments when we put isolated workouts in our program cards. My only explanation is that they took nothing they learned on board and just stick with what they've always done.

 

[Thomas]

But all of them? I've seen one or two guys doing deadlifts and squats with clients but usually it's Kettlebell work or resistance band stuff. Maybe it's because it's a large chain gym and there could be some liability issue. I just don't know.

 

[Cliffhanger]

No because each personal trainer has their own liability insurance. They're just lazy. You will never see my clients doing a curl or a crunch. It will be barbell squats, dead lifts and rows. Some ohp, and bench. Plyo lunges, power cleans etc.

 

[Shorty]

No because each personal trainer has their own liability insurance. They're just lazy. You will never see my clients doing a curl or a crunch. It will be barbell squats, dead lifts and rows. Some ohp, and bench. Plyo lunges, power cleans etc.

Lol please tell me you aren't training everyday people with these exercises? I can't exactly see a 30 Kg overweight chick doing power cleans properly.

Thomas I f**king hate kettlebells, I see ppl doing that lumbar extension all the time.
Lets be clear disc issues come predominantly from extension and rotation under force, and that's a very thin line to walk.
I think a lot of people do things because they're in or cool and they're actually not physically able to do it properly.

 

[Cliffhanger]

Plyo stuff and cleans would be for advanced people only, who have been carefully coached through them. I stick with basic compound stuff for my beginner and overweight clients.

Always depends on the clients, but unless it's a rehabilitation setting isolated stuff have no place.

 

[Pete Cash]

What if they want to become a body builder ?

 

[Cliffhanger]

Good point.

I probably wouldn't train a wanna be body builder though.

 

[Thomas]

Lol please tell me you aren't training everyday people with these exercises? I can't exactly see a 30 Kg overweight chick doing power cleans properly.

Thomas I f**king hate kettlebells, I see ppl doing that lumbar extension all the time.
Lets be clear disc issues come predominantly from extension and rotation under force, and that's a very thin line to walk.
I think a lot of people do things because they're in or cool and they're actually not physically able to do it properly.

I do a few KB swings and such but mainly at the end of my workout. I'll do squats and other leg stuff and finish on 5 rounds of 20 KB swings, lunges and box jumps. I find them great for Turkish Get Ups but can only do TGUs with about 10kg above my head.

 

[Shorty]

I do a few KB swings and such but mainly at the end of my workout. I'll do squats and other leg stuff and finish on 5 rounds of 20 KB swings, lunges and box jumps. I find them great for Turkish Get Ups but can only do TGUs with about 10kg above my head.

Yeah I can see their benefit doing the get ups as that's a great functional exercise but the swings I'm not sold on.

 

[Joker's Wild]

I do dumbbell swings for conditioning, usually as part of a tabata workout. Basically the same as a kettlebell swing but you use a dumbbell (duh!) and hold it by one of the plates so it hangs vertically.

Whats the issue with swings Shorty?

 

[Shorty]

Whats the issue with swings Shorty?

Oh I just don't like the look of them, as stated I think they're way too easy to stuff up and result in injury particularly the swing.

 

[Joker's Wild]

What kind of injury? Just catching yourself in the nads/vag or a hip/lower back?

Serious question btw

 

[Shorty]

What kind of injury? Just catching yourself in the nads/vag or a hip/lower back?

Serious question btw

lol no nads but I wonder...
Disc or lumbar ligament damage.