Yesterday I had the privilege to attend the Perform Better! One day seminar and Coach Mike Boyle was one of the speakers. His topic was ‘Success in the Fitness Industry’ and while there were many other great points made by Coach Boyle, this one stood out a bit more. He mentioned that for trainers who just start out, it is wise to be a “cook” and use programs written out by other more experienced trainers. This is what I did years ago when I became a trainer. Every fitness book/DVD I bought had programs written out and I used them all with clients. This wasn’t a bad thing since the programs I used formed my training philosophy. It was after reading and watching these coaches talk about program design that I went to being a “sous-chef”.
Being a sous-chef is actually a great way to learn more about programs. Not only are they written out for me, but I can now add/delete/modify certain exercises based on the client I am training. I feel a trainer needs a full year of work being a cook before going up to a sous-chef. In my opinion a full year equals about 2000 sessions. I still feel, even after 5 years of being a personal trainer, that I am still a sous-chef. I always refer back to my books, DVDs, etc. and I am still finding out new things.
One of my long-term goals is to hit 10,000 sessions and it looks like I will hit it next fall. I won’t consider myself a “chef” until I achieve this number. I say this because I hope to gain more experience in designing group training programs and keep up my one-on-one sessions. I think a chef has a full understanding of ALL program design components and I am almost there. Am I over-scrutinizing my programs? Maybe, but it’s the path that I’ll continue to take for the rest of my career.
(Source: mboyle1959.wordpress.com)
