How adaptable do any of you PT's have to be in terms of your clients. What prompted this was, I had a client this morning. I spoke with her over the phone to find some things out. Usually I will do some testing, FMS type stuff, when I first meet a client, to find out what I am working with. I find a lot of times people get bored with this and just want you to babysit them while they do their own workout. People have pre conceived notions of what is effective and basically want the trainer to agree with them, I don't know, to maybe give some credibility to what they are doing.
My thoughts; As a PT the client is paying you for your expertise and to design a safe, fun, effective exercise routine. Do any of you put up with clients who won;t try what you have designed for them and really just want a babysitter while they workout? I am hoping that as a PT becomes more successful/well known around town that the opportunity to be more selective will present itself and that I won;t have to put up with what I think is bullshit.
Did any of you guys put up with this kind of thing when you were starting out?
Also, whats with people coming to see you once a week. Do they think they will get results that way?
Hey Luke,
I think when I first started out I put up with that. I looked at those tye of clients as "they are paying me for nothing" and I let them control the session. As time went on and I had a hand in changing people's lives, my confidence grew as a professional. I stopped "asking" clients and I started "asking of them". I placed demands on them that they had to carry out (ie: performing exercising correctly, eating right, relieveing stress, making time, etc).
As demands grew more critical to changing thier lives, they respected me more and more. As my methods worked on 1, 5, 20, 50 clients...my confidence grew to the point that I would state my intentions and methods in the first consultation. And I wouldl add, "we can do this my way and get fast & effective results", or "we can do this your way and achieve nothing but an empty wallet". My words were filled with conviction that if they were not on board, they had a hunch I would drop them as a client and pawn them off to one of the other trainers. And I've done it.
Sounds harsh...but you don't walk into a lawyer's office and tell him/her "how" to defend you. You give them the fatcs and you let them build a case. YOu sit back quietly and let them do the work and cooperate. If you have a "soft" lawyer, chances are you will not win your case.
As someone once said..." a client is a walking billboard of you and your services" and although it not rocket science...its true.
I used to do that too when I first started out, hell, probably the first year I was training clients. However, as I got more confident through trial and error, learning from my mistakes, reading, etc., I was able to start controlling the clients and qualifying each client on whether or not I wanted to work with them. I think every new trainer goes through this, but it's the good ones that continue to learn and gain more experience/confidence when it comes to controlling their clients and overall training.
I'm not in the trade but John's answer was 'the mutts nuts' (very good)
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I make it my job to convince them that what I want them to do is worthwhile. I am pretty passionate about it and I usually either convince them or drive them away, lol. Only rarely have I felt defeated enough to pretty much give up and let them drive the programming. I try to accommodate them as far as exercises they hate. There's always another choice, especially early on during the persuasion phase. Usually the results do the convincing (if I ever got them even partially compliant).
And you're right that building a good reputation will bring the quality clients to you. Think of this--if you're willing to count reps now and let the clients drive the exercise selection, then how are you going to build that reputation?
Start from wherever they are and try to persuade them to take one step in your direction. Keep gently pushing at it. They'll come along or they'll quit. Either way you stay true to yourself.
hahaha, thats what I am afraid of right now Lisa, is driving them away. Unfortunately I have just moved to the area and I am trying to establish myself at the gym I am at so I can not afford to be TOO selective.
I think John hit the nail on the head. And I'm in the same boat as Lisa; I'm very passionate about training/nutrition so I'm more apt to get someone excited about what I can do for them than to say to their face "It's my way or the highway" so to speak. I've never had someone try to run a session and use me as a rep counter though. If I have I don't remember it off the top of my head.
If a client of mine complains about an exercise I explain to them why we're doing it and make it clear that it's good for them and what I believe they need. I'll usually laugh at clients who complain or refuse to do an exercise but at the same time you've got to recognize WHY they might not want to do something. I've had some clients who were embarrassed to try certain things. You've got to be aware of that and make sure you don't demoralize the person...ahhhhhh the joys of this industry; it truly is multifaceted.
Every so often you get that recalcetrent client that tries to dictate to you what they will and won't do. If they're really a pain in the ass and they try to take over I just get my way about asking them why they are here and why are they paying my fee. Most often I just talk to them about their goals, and then logically connect the exercise to its final product and give them a little education in exercise phys.
The most stubborn clients feel much better about doing what I ask if they feel like they understand why they are doing it. If you are a clipboard cowboy/rep counter, then you should be questioned and second guessed by your clients. If you are a decent trainer, you shouldn't have too much trouble because you can generally explain yourself very well, and you build trust with your clients.
How about an observation from a “client?”>
PT is a service business, you have to be as adaptable as your clients require – that is the key to your long term success. You also need to distinguish between a good and a bad client – which has nothing to do with their physical starting point or knowledge – and everything with their determination to succeed.
I’m a member of a large corporate franchise gym. The PT’s keep about 55% of each session they bill. There is a large demand for personal training, so certifications are all over the map. The only thing more diverse, are the styles and methods of the individual PT’s.
One young PT found his career as a result of his self improvement journey. He was an obese kid. Through running and lifting he lost 100 lbs – later he obtained a cert – and now he trains. However, he trains everyone the same way – the way he improved himself. His clients are required to start and end each session with 10 minutes minimum on the treadmill. After that, it is light DB and machine work. Based on my observations, he seems convinced that triceps work is the key to a smaller a$$, as he includes that in every session.
Another PT trains when he is not working as a sports coach for a local high school. He is very knowledgeable, quite adapt at sports linked training and exercise. Unfortunately, he addresses all of his clients they way he would address a group of 14 year old boys who are trying to get out of the weight room early and go pick up their dates. It is a somewhat ineffective technique for clients over 25.
At the other end of the spectrum, we have 5 PT’s who have developed a deep and diverse client base. From teens working on sports fitness, to mom’s looking to tone up and then on the retirees working to stay active – each gets treated as an individual, working toward unique goals. It amazes me that the gym, as a business allows such a wide range of work ethic or standards.
I’m in the service business. I have clients who listen and work closely with me (and then profit), some who don’t and some who only pretend to do so. In the latter two cases, I’ve learned to put aside my vanity and ego and have learned to work with them. However, if we can’t make progress as a team, I have generally found a way to end the relationship on a positive note. I might suggest to the PT’s who insist on “my way or the highway” that there are alternatives that can keep everyone feeling good about how a business relationship ended.
Sorry, didn’t mean to hijack the thread or rant. But I did want to add some perspective from the client side.
I train all my trainers, but you can't make someone else passionate enough to really care about what they're doing. I tell them up front that they will make or break themselves in this industry. Many just come in with this sense of entitlement, expecting me to pack their schedules while they preen around the gym like little primadonnas. They are gone within a month (in most cases... I did have one that had some talent, but more ego than I cared for, but stuck around for a few years).
As a current example, I have one trainer who has all the training... A degree from an excellent local university program, sport specific training with another group for her internship, trained for a month by me personally before I would let her touch a client. She fell right into the typical lazy trainer syndrome, and her clients all quickly found very legit excuses for why they needed to stop training. I'm not giving her any more clients since she doesn't keep them, so she's probably out pretty soon.
If I see a trainer ever put a client on a treadmill for 10-15 minutes they are fired for stealing from me and their client, and I tell my clients the same thing... If I ever put you on a treadmill on your time with me I am stealing from you and you should fire me on the spot. That is typical lazy trainers burning up the clock. I am paid way too much per hour to waste my clients' valuable time making them do something they can do on their own (which I don't recommend all that much anyway).
Wow... your last two posts have really struck a nerve with me!
Many just come in with this sense of entitlement, expecting me to pack their schedules while they preen around the gym like little primadonnas.
Have you been spying on the gym I work at or might there be a few trainers out there like this?
I see some trainers doing such stupid shit every day...a constant source of amazement - but those are the ones that usually end up complaining that this or that client is always cancelling and wondering why.
On the other hand some clients aren't there to get results and it's better to get rid of them. Just last week I had one, the first who really wouldn't stick to any sort of nutrition plan nor care about what he was doing in the gym. I can't tell you how good I felt when he found enough excuses not to buy sessions.
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Working "hard," or the perception of working hard, doesn't really mean anything. Sweating, vomiting, and breathing hard could be a good workout or a tropical disease kicking in.-Dan John
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