Client programs and recording information

[ekpt]

I know this has probably been discussed a million times but im eager to find out how many of you actually record information during sessions?

I replied to this topic a while back and my stance on it was, it down to personal preference. for example, the gym i train out of is highly respected and has a few of the best top amateur bodybuilders, holding UK, Ireland and Britain awards, speaking to these guys they hate numbers, they hate recording info and simply lift as much and as hard as they can depending on how they feel (lets not get talk about heavy days/light days deloading etc) but that's the general idea.
Also i haven't seen a PT in ages with a clipboard and pen.

In my opinion progress is measured on how intense the workouts are, and knowing you change them up everyday/week and month always offering new exercises and changing training principle i.e. endurance, hypertrophy, strength etc and whether the client is visibly making gains/progress

Are you a perfectionist? do you get caught up in numbers? % of 1rm, training volume, sets/reps etc are you one who does everything the way its meant to and think those who dont are simply being lazy??

everythings all good and well on paper, but simple fact is.....you bust your ass in the gym each and everytime results will come.....

i've considered it time and time again and im always open to the idea of recording progress, but the mirror will never fail :P

[KevFit]

I'm with you. I record my workouts daily. But to track progress, I also record my 1 rep maxes, my 1 mile, and 5K times. But if you're just going for aesthetics then pictures will do the job, I guess.

[KyleAaron]

Yes, I record everything.

This is important for progress. Remember that most PT clients are not bodybuilders, their aim is not to come in and smash themselves every time then go home and eat a whole boiled chicken and a pound of broccoli so they can get teh gainz brah. Most simply want to be leaner, healthier, and improve their strength, mobility and endurance. For the meathead bodybuilder numbers aren't needed, for the typical PT client they are.

I would also suggest that the people you're talking about are most likely young and healthy and have never had any serious illnesses or injuries. Throw in an impinged rotator cuff or a herniated disc or a knee reconstruction, and programming becomes more complicated. Thus, a personal trainer's job extends beyond yelling, "two more reps brah! pain is just weakness leaving the body!" This more complex job requires some thought, planning and adjusting as you go.

As a trainer you must also consider liability. Let's say I have a 65yo woman deadlift 90kg at her bodyweight of 60kg, and she pulls a muscle in her back and she sues me. If we go to court and her barrister says, "he had an elderly woman lift one and a half times her bodyweight!" then the judge and jury - who do not lift and never have - will say, "that sounds crazy, we find for the plaintiff, defendant to pay all court costs." But if I can show that I started her with unweighted hip hinges, then a 5kg dumbbell, then a fortnight later a 7.5kg dumbbell... and so on, and that only after 18 months was she pulling 1.5x bodyweight, well now that doesn't look so crazy.

Records of assessments and workouts, with gradual planned progression of load and technical difficulty, these show that you as a trainer know what the fck you're doing, and thus help protect you from liability in the case of an incident.

[WoofieNugget]

Like Kyle, I do every set, rep and make notes on other things. It also helps the client to feel that you are really there the whole time and keeping track of things. When I'm putting together a workout I can ask them about what we discussed in the previous session, how things are with something they were working on or just remind them after six months of where they were before. The liability thing is huge as well.

[ekpt]

Yes, I record everything.

This is important for progress. Remember that most PT clients are not bodybuilders, their aim is not to come in and smash themselves every time then go home and eat a whole boiled chicken and a pound of broccoli so they can get teh gainz brah. Most simply want to be leaner, healthier, and improve their strength, mobility and endurance. For the meathead bodybuilder numbers aren't needed, for the typical PT client they are.

I would also suggest that the people you're talking about are most likely young and healthy and have never had any serious illnesses or injuries. Throw in an impinged rotator cuff or a herniated disc or a knee reconstruction, and programming becomes more complicated. Thus, a personal trainer's job extends beyond yelling, "two more reps brah! pain is just weakness leaving the body!" This more complex job requires some thought, planning and adjusting as you go.

As a trainer you must also consider liability. Let's say I have a 65yo woman deadlift 90kg at her bodyweight of 60kg, and she pulls a muscle in her back and she sues me. If we go to court and her barrister says, "he had an elderly woman lift one and a half times her bodyweight!" then the judge and jury - who do not lift and never have - will say, "that sounds crazy, we find for the plaintiff, defendant to pay all court costs." But if I can show that I started her with unweighted hip hinges, then a 5kg dumbbell, then a fortnight later a 7.5kg dumbbell... and so on, and that only after 18 months was she pulling 1.5x bodyweight, well now that doesn't look so crazy.

Records of assessments and workouts, with gradual planned progression of load and technical difficulty, these show that you as a trainer know what the fck you're doing, and thus help protect you from liability in the case of an incident.

Very well put mate, cheers
Your right, most people i train are female who simply come in and train for the fun of it, to get them out of the house for an hour, to give them a social release from the home. I have yet to come across a client with a history of serious injury but when the time comes il be sure to plan and record everything.
I have only been out on my own 6months now, so any advice is appreciated

[KyleAaron]

I'd suggest it's still worth recording the workouts of people you're being an enter-trainer for, since those people can make progress, too. And once you show them progress, you may turn their focus from "just a bit of fun" to "getting stronger" or "getting fitter."

This is important for you because of retention. It's less work to keep a client than get a new one. People who come to the gym for social entertainment may decide to just go and have a coffee instead. They tend not to last long as clients. People who are focused on their health and/or performance will stay longer.

"Six weeks ago when you started you could do 5 pushups from the knees, now you can do 10. You could do 5 burpees in a minute, now you can do 12. You could run 8km/hr at 2% incline for five minutes, now you use 8% incline. Well done. Now, is there anything we do you'd like to become really good at? We could focus on that for the next six weeks."

You then turn the focus to performance. And they'll stay that next six weeks, at least...

[tbrady1pttools]

I'd say 90% of trainers out there have no baseline measurements of anything. no workouts for their clients when their not with them. its sad that people pay some of these trainers the money they do. I personally use a excel program i set-up that has all kinds of crazy calculations and its a good way to organize information

any one else use excel for training?

[UnemployedCSCS]

I write down what workouts they are going to do before a workout and based on previous workouts I will write a goal number weight they should try to strive for and then I write down the weight they actually achieve and take it from there.

I also write down reps and sets.

I don't make it overly technical because I expect clients to take these workouts home with them and do them on the days they're not with me.

[Mayberry03]

I've been training for 4 months now and when I started I thought that's how you did it. I write down what I think are important benchmarks not only to monitor progress but if my client doesn't feel like they're progressing it's nice to look back on it.

[BEYONDTHESWEAT]

Spread sheet is definitely the way forward!