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John Izzo · 09-29-2008, 07:45 AM

This weekend I traveled up to New Hampshire to attend the Symposium of Strength being offered by Next Level Performance, LLC. I thought the guys did a great job with this seminar and I can definitely see it rival other 1-Day Learning Seminars in the Northeast in the years to come.

One a side note, I want to thank those of you who came up to me and introduced yourselves: Bobby, Brian, Chris, and Devon.

Connecticut-based Chris Blake did a great presentation on Backward-Chaining the Olympic Lifts. I thoroughly enjoyed all the presentations, but I got alot out of Chris's because I need to progress my knowledge of OL lifts a bit more and his presentation definitely helped. Great job, Chris!

Okay...now on to my rant in regards to what I saw in the audience. There are things that I witness in this field that bother me. I have been in this field for 10+ years and it is the only thing I know. Therefore, I am very passionate and "protective" of my profession because I want to see it represented with respect and dignity--just like law and medicine. Where we ever get to that point? Not anytime soon, but we are making headway. However, there are still some in the field that "just don't get it".

It bothers me that many young trainers I see look to simply "copy" new exercises; and not fully understand the concepts behind them.
It bothers me that many of the trainers I see look like they have never stepped foot into a gym.
It bothers me that many trainers like the "coolness" of being a trainer; but don't look at it as a career--just a pit-stop in life.
It bothers me that some people still don't know the difference between a concentric and eccentric contraction. I mean, that's biomechaincs 101!
It bothers me that some trainers attend these workshops and simply absorb the info....they don't process it. (Trust me, there is a difference.)
It bothers me that at the age of 34, I can out-perform a 24 year old trainer at medicine ball throw-down drills.
It bothers me that most of these new trainers simply want new ideas to bring back to their clients on Monday, and don't want to simply learn.
It bothers me that most of these trainers are concerned with just getting their CEUs.
It bothers me that most trainers don't know the difference between "coaxing their clients" and "coaching their clients".

09-29-2008, 07:45 AM	#1 (permalink)
John Izzo Trainer.Author.Lifter. Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Hartford, CT Posts: 1,233	*It Bothers Me...Another Rant This weekend I traveled up to New Hampshire to attend the Symposium of Strength being offered by Next Level Performance, LLC. I thought the guys did a great job with this seminar and I can definitely see it rival other 1-Day Learning Seminars in the Northeast in the years to come. One a side note, I want to thank those of you who came up to me and introduced yourselves: Bobby, Brian, Chris, and Devon. Connecticut-based Chris Blake did a great presentation on Backward-Chaining the Olympic Lifts. I thoroughly enjoyed all the presentations, but I got alot out of Chris's because I need to progress my knowledge of OL lifts a bit more and his presentation definitely helped. Great job, Chris! Okay...now on to my rant in regards to what I saw in the audience. There are things that I witness in this field that bother me. I have been in this field for 10+ years and it is the only thing I know. Therefore, I am very passionate and "protective" of my profession because I want to see it represented with respect and dignity--just like law and medicine. Where we ever get to that point? Not anytime soon, but we are making headway. However, there are still some in the field that "just don't get it". It bothers me that many young trainers I see look to simply "copy" new exercises; and not fully understand the concepts behind them. It bothers me that many of the trainers I see look like they have never stepped foot into a gym. It bothers me that many trainers like the "coolness" of being a trainer; but don't look at it as a career--just a pit-stop in life. It bothers me that some people still don't know the difference between a concentric and eccentric contraction. I mean, that's biomechaincs 101! It bothers me** that some trainers attend these workshops and simply absorb the info....they don't process it. (Trust me, there is a difference.) It bothers me that at the age of 34, I can out-perform a 24 year old trainer at medicine ball throw-down drills. It bothers me that most of these new trainers simply want new ideas to bring back to their clients on Monday, and don't want to simply learn. It bothers me that most of these trainers are concerned with just getting their CEUs. It bothers me that most trainers don't know the difference between "coaxing their clients" and "coaching their clients". __________________ John Izzo, NASM-CPT, PES www.IZZOSTRENGTHtraining.com \| Blog: "A Day in the Life of a Personal Trainer" : Aspiring or Entry Level Trainers: Find out what the secret skills of personal training are and see if you have them!