Why You Need a Fitness Coach
I get it, I’m biased. But think about it this way – if I didn’t see the massive value in what I do, why would I do it? The obesity crisis isn’t going away any time soon and costs the US billions every year, not to mention the incalculable toll on individuals and families. Most adults are overworked, stressed out, and feel forced to put their own well-being on the backburner.
Sound familiar?
It doesn’t need to be this way, and a good coach will partner with you to help you find a solution that works with your life and goals. You don’t need to try to do it alone.
If you’ve been working out for a while, you might say, “I’ve been working out for years and know what I’m doing, I don’t need help.” True, you may know more than the average gym-goer, lots more. Many of my clients felt this way at one point. But they found that having an extra set of eyes on their program was invaluable and helped them optimize what they already liked to do. Professional athletes are at the pinnacle of their sports, and all have a team of coaches behind them helping them optimize every second of their training. You don’t deserve any less.
Here are a few of the benefits of working with a coach:
They’ve worked with lots of people like you – this means that they know what approaches work for most people and what approaches don’t usually work, saving you time and frustration.
Zero guesswork from you – social media is not a generally a good place to go for fitness advice. Most popular websites and magazines aren’t much better. A good coach will have at least one professional certification and (should) be keeping up with the latest research to know how to build a fitness program that gets you to your goals and works with your lifestyle. There is no perfect program for anyone, but a good coach will get you closer than trying to guess or throw something together on your own. You’ll save yourself the headache of planning out one more thing you have to do.
Their professional toolbox is bigger – reputable certifications and real-world experience in the gym gives coaches a huge number of tools to work with. I’m not talking about literal tools, like foam rollers or nice barbells. I’m talking about exercise programming styles, exercise selection, motivational styles, and knowing what questions to ask and when. You WILL hit a plateau with your fitness program, or life will get in the way. It happens to everyone, with or without a coach. A good coach has more options at their fingertips to overcome these obstacles.
Your fitness program will be individualized to you and your lifestyle – no program is one-size-fits-all. A good coach will build a program designed specifically for you, and more importantly, be able to adjust the program constantly based on your feedback. This is absolutely invaluable, and will save you from doing too much or too little for your goals.
They will teach proper technique from the beginning – rather than wondering if you’re doing a certain exercise correctly or not, or even worse, ingraining bad habits, a good coach will know how to pick exercises that work for your body type and how to instruct them. Seems very basic, but good technique is the foundation of any successful program.
They can anticipate problems – if your coach has been working with clients for any significant amount of time, they’ve run into all kinds of problems to solve. Injuries, medical limitations, and lifestyle challenges present obstacles for everyone. A good coach will have helped clients work around or through these types of issues, and they’ll know what to expect.
They’ll hold you accountable - everyone needs accountability, myself included. Having another set of eyes on your fitness program will make it more likely that you’ll follow through. If you’re struggling to follow through, a good coach will help you figure out why you’re struggling.
No coach will create results out of thin air for you. That’s YOUR job. If you aren’t ready to take responsibility for your own goals and work hard, no coach can help you. But if you’re ready, a coach is an invaluable resource for your fitness journey.
The longer you wait to start moving toward your goals, the less likely you are to succeed. If you’re looking for a fitness trainer in the Mt Juliet/Hermitage/Nashville TN area, online fitness training, or just need some advice to get your fitness program started, contact me