Training my first client! What should I keep in mind?

[WannaGetJACKED]

Hey guys! Can you please give me some useful advice on training a client? I have some hands-on training and lots of booksmarts but not too sure what I should expect when I'm actually doing it in real life. I would love to hear any advice from anyone. I am brand new and would love to hear any feedback. I am really motivated and passionate about personal training so I hope that I can have some good replies!!

[Itsalovelyday]

Remember to keep calm, talk clearly and be professional. You'll be fine. Enjoy!

[RevolutionFF]

Be clear, concise and in charge of the session. Remember, you are the professional (the fitness indusrty can be strange in that sometimes a client thinks they know it all already).

Keep cues to the point, and definitely do not overcue.
Show examples of movements if needed.
Keep things as simple as they need to be.
Listen to the client.

[WannaGetJACKED]

Thanks! How do trainers overcue? I think I might have done that last session. I would demonstrate all the exercises that we were doing. Should I have only done this for the difficult exercises?

[rdferguson]

On overcuing, here's a write-up I did earlier in the year on deadlift technique. http://onemoreplate.blogspot.com.au/...-deadlift.html There are roughly 20 technique points in there. I think all of them are good, relevant cues, thus why I wrote them, but that's far too much information for someone to take on all at once. If you need to give more cues than you can count on one hand, you're definitely overcuing, which means one of the following:

1) You need to pick the right cues. There might be 5 things going on in the client's technique that you need to fix, and 1 or 2 cues that will solve all of them. Pick the right cues.
2) You need to break down the exercise into smaller parts.
3) You need to use simpler exercises. This may sound like blasphemy, but perhaps teaching your clients to do barbell squats on the first session will lead to more frustration and less productivity within the workout than teaching them leg presses (where you learn how to position your feet, drive your knees out and drive through your heels while getting a fairly full ROM at the hips and knees), hyperextensions (where you learn to keep your trunk in extension, your core tight and drive with your glutes through various trunk angles) and smith machine calf raises (where you learn to set a weight on your upper traps or rear delts and keep your body tight under load) in the first session. A lot of our favourite lifts require you to be able to do 20 things at once that the untrained novice doesn't know how to do, and they require you to be able to do 18-19 of those things without thinking about it. Using simpler exercises is, consequently, a valuable learning tool.
4) You may need to accept that a lift is done with sucky technique, if suck is a step up from **** (according to Dave Tate, we go from **** to suck to good to great). Ideally, you want your clients to be doing exercises with good technique on the day that you teach them the exercise, but sometimes just being less **** than dog**** is a good goal for the day. If everything is wrong with a client's exercise, then getting a couple of things right and focusing on those two things is probably better than drilling them senseless.

One of the other things to note about cuing (and overcuing) is that once your client has learned how to get into the right position and do the thing you want them to do, you want them to know to do that in response to a single word. You might spend a few minutes teaching a client how to lift their chest. After that, you probably want them to lift their chest when you just say "Chest!"

[LostLlama]

ummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm:

My equilibriums off, must be the lithium. I dun needta buy any drugs man people giv me um.

A fifth a rum and 2 bottles a 151, 51 people r sleepin my damn lvn room.

[LeoneStarr]

Expect client to say yes to everything when you ask her/him a question that requires one answer. Mix open and closed questions to keep this from happening.

Well that's what I've noticed with most of the clients I've trained thus far.

[SCfitness7]

make sure to take your initial measurements! This will be one of the biggest motivating factors as they start to see progress! Also make sure you do the measurements exactly the same as he did them the 1st time. I see trainers that always mess up their measurements.

[JohnSmeton]

I recommend pictures over measurement. Same spot, same lighting , same distance-take every couple months

[health4life24]

Hey guys! Can you please give me some useful advice on training a client? I have some hands-on training and lots of booksmarts but not too sure what I should expect when I'm actually doing it in real life. I would love to hear any advice from anyone. I am brand new and would love to hear any feedback. I am really motivated and passionate about personal training so I hope that I can have some good replies!!

Be relaxed and and confident in what your doing. Be kind, friendly, and make the person feel comfortable working with you.

[WannaGetJACKED]

Thanks good advice as usual! Usually I will perform the exercise and then I will talk about two key points while doing the exercise. I make sure to tell the client what muscles they are using and how it fits into their long terms goals. Is this fine?

[WannaGetJACKED]

I recommend pictures over measurement. Same spot, same lighting , same distance-take every couple months

Good idea! This might sound silly but how do I go ahead and ask for pictures? It might make the client feel uncomfortable. Do you word the questions in a way that will make them more comfortable with showing there stomach, etc.

[health4life24]

Thanks good advice as usual! Usually I will perform the exercise and then I will talk about two key points while doing the exercise. I make sure to tell the client what muscles they are using and how it fits into their long terms goals. Is this fine?

That's good, but what are you doing for motivation? I always like to offer words of encouragement that helps boosts my clients morale.

[WoofieNugget]

Good idea! This might sound silly but how do I go ahead and ask for pictures? It might make the client feel uncomfortable. Do you word the questions in a way that will make them more comfortable with showing there stomach, etc.

Unless they are going specifically for contest prep don't approach pictures until at least a couple of sessions in once you have rapport built. Even then it is only if they want it. Many people are really not comfortable with this in my experience or they just don't care. Measurements give you tangible numbers to work with as long as they are consistent but even this is something you need to approach with discretion.

[Danmacca]

Keep in mind PTs are cawk heads, so don't be one!!

Also power cleans aren't an arm exercise...
Why do pTs who have no idea how to clean try and teach them?

[WoofieNugget]

Keep in mind PTs are cawk heads, so don't be one!!

Also power cleans aren't an arm exercise...
Why do pTs who have no idea how to clean try and teach them?

Last I checked you use your arms to do power cleans.

[Danmacca]

Last I checked you use your arms to do power cleans.

You hang on to the bar, but it shouldn't in any way be an arm exercise

[WoofieNugget]

You hang on to the bar, but it shouldn't in any way be an arm exercise

Just because it shouldn't be, doesn't mean it isn't. If you knew anything about the body rather than just lifting stuff you would realize that if your arms move, then they are involved. In fact, for most people the amount of bicep involvement is rather significant depending on how much power and momentum they can generate to move the bar.

Let me guess, you thought a power clean only worked one muscle?

[sonti]

Just because it shouldn't be, doesn't mean it isn't. If you knew anything about the body rather than just lifting stuff you would realize that if your arms move, then they are involved. In fact, for most people the amount of bicep involvement is rather significant depending on how much power and momentum they can generate to move the bar.

Let me guess, you thought a power clean only worked one muscle?

Nah, it's an explosive power exercise. Therefore, it works your power, not your arms silly.

[Haydarfit]

Don't sound too fancy, keep it simple, keep it professional and take control.

[Danmacca]

Just because it shouldn't be, doesn't mean it isn't. If you knew anything about the body rather than just lifting stuff you would realize that if your arms move, then they are involved. In fact, for most people the amount of bicep involvement is rather significant depending on how much power and momentum they can generate to move the bar.

Let me guess, you thought a power clean only worked one muscle?

Nope it works everything from you're legs through you're back up to shoulders, if performed well the arms should be as relaxed as possible, not to say that an individual may not cut the lift with their arms, but I'll guarantee if they do they won't make the lift.. My point being PTs seem to all want to coach it these days, when they don't have the first clue about the lift

[Ronin4help]

The best advice is to be yourself. You will come off as phony or nervous if you try too hard to bond. Listen to the client and feed off their energy. If they are nervous, be funny and make them relax. If they are all business, show them you know your stuff and bombard them with knowledge. If they are clueless, then explain everything in a way that shows how much you love what you're doing and how important it is to you that they understand. So on and so forth...