Got reprimanded by independent gym for making kid cry (long story, mostly cliffs)

[RyouBakua]

A little about me:
As a NASM trainer, I train using a variety of methods.
Half of my clients are older people wanting greater mobility.
The other half are usually younger wanting to look better.

The owner of the gym asked me to train his girlfriend's son (red flag, i know)
The boy is 18, 160lbs and will be flying off for air force boot camp in a few months.
He plays video games all day and does not exercise.
He is also completely new to the gym.




The owner lets me know that he wants 2 things to be done:
1. Get him familiar with all gym equipment/exercises so he can continue training in the mainland
2. Get him ready for boot camp

I start him slow and access tolerance.
Come to find out his cardio is terrible.
I let him use my running shoes because he says he only has 1 pair of basketball shoes.



Fast forward:
I train him for 2 months (2-3x a week)
He sometimes shows up late...
And will actually stop working out in the middle of exercise (basic kid stuff)
I test him every so often on basic exercises (fail*)
*Say: we're doing BACK today, whats a few back exercises? and have him point to them*
His pushups and situps are good but he's still at a 13 min mile

At the end of his session once, I told him to jog at 4mph on a treadmill for 30 min
Came back to find he ditched




The situation:
It's his last week with me, so I turn it up a notch.
Last exercises was a 95lb x 10 rep bench press followed by a 10 rep ab exercise
He becomes stubborn and barely works out at 50% of his ability.
I ask him if he's joining the military to make his mom or dad proud and he says NO.
I ask him and he says its personal.
Starts to cry
I tell him that I want to see him succeed but if he continues he will get recycled and possibly wash out.
Stops crying and continues training




3 days later:
Get called into the office (i never get accolades so i know its most-likely negative)
Asked me what happened with kid.
I explained the story and told him I was working on his goals.
Owner says Im not concerned about him learning the exercises.
Then says I failed because I was unable to connect with him.
Owner then tells me 10 times in a row that I need to create better relationships with people
I tell him ok and shake his hand before I leave.

Next day, they pull the class I was going to teach




I have been at the same gym for almost 2 years.
Barely a problem. No drugs or injuries (unlike a slew of other trainers)
My testimonial list is a mile long. (tons of great relationships)
I usually put my head down and do my job but frequently observe how the game is played.


Just wanted to share my story so other trainers can learn and grow.




Money-made and "Their" Connections will always be top priority to gym owners/management
(its a given but I felt it needed to be repeated)

[KyleAaron]

The kid is going to find recruit course lots and lots of fun.

[RyouBakua]

The kid is going to find recruit course lots and lots of fun.

Hey Kyle

Talked with 2 military guys (both have 15+ yrs, one is SNCO) and they said "He has no idea what he got himself into..."

[GravityLee]

Read whole thing and don't think you did anything wrong. As an in shape guy I would say be careful with any advice that is direct or blunt. Out of shape people tend to take it 10x worse but a lot of times they need to hear it.

[WoofieNugget]

Kid is going to get a very hard lesson, and you got one too - basically never take any client they offer you again. It sounds like you did all of the right things but the kid is growing up coddled and lazy like a lot of kids in his generation.

Unfortunately after a few sessions you probably should have reported that the kid wasn't trying, couldn't really do anything and told them he was going to have a very tough time at basic even with six months of training. Then they wouldn't have had any reason to reprimand you and they probably would have had him fail with another trainer instead of wasting your time.

[RyouBakua]

Read whole thing and don't think you did anything wrong. As an in shape guy I would say be careful with any advice that is direct or blunt. Out of shape people tend to take it 10x worse but a lot of times they need to hear it.

very true

Kid is going to get a very hard lesson, and you got one too - basically never take any client they offer you again. It sounds like you did all of the right things but the kid is growing up coddled and lazy like a lot of kids in his generation.

Unfortunately after a few sessions you probably should have reported that the kid wasn't trying, couldn't really do anything and told them he was going to have a very tough time at basic even with six months of training. Then they wouldn't have had any reason to reprimand you and they probably would have had him fail with another trainer instead of wasting your time.

you make good points. but ive also noticed that management can talk to you about whatever they like

(ex: 2 people can be doing something but theyll only talk to 1 person about it)


and i can safely say that he wouldnt have been put with another trainer

[NorwichGrad]

RB,

Next time you see the kid, I got some words of wisdom I learned in the Army that you can share with him:

a) "Maggot! Did your mother have any son that lived? I bet she regrets it!!"

b) "Maggot! You want sympathy?! You can look it up in the dictionary between $heeet and syphilis!"

c) "Maggot! Were you born a fat, slimy, scumbag puke piece o' $heet or did you have to work on it?"

d) "Maggot! It looks to me like the best part of you ran down the crack of your mama's ass and ended up as a brown stain on the mattress."

[twopoundtorch]

Reminds me of a mate of mine that wanted to start coming to the gym with me. 2 years on and he still had no idea what the fck he was doing. I went nc on him a few months ago. Always bitchin and moaning, not what you want to hear while trying to get psyched up for a workout. Should also note that this guy was 26 and was training to be a pilot haha.

[RyouBakua]

RB,

Next time you see the kid, I got some words of wisdom I learned in the Army that you can share with him:

a) "Maggot! Did your mother have any son that lived? I bet she regrets it!!"

b) "Maggot! You want sympathy?! You can look it up in the dictionary between $heeet and syphilis!"

c) "Maggot! Were you born a fat, slimy, scumbag puke piece o' $heet or did you have to work on it?"

d) "Maggot! It looks to me like the best part of you ran down the crack of your mama's ass and ended up as a brown stain on the mattress."

lol thats exactly what all the other trainers said

kid would break so fast

Reminds me of a mate of mine that wanted to start coming to the gym with me. 2 years on and he still had no idea what the fck he was doing. I went nc on him a few months ago. Always bitchin and moaning, not what you want to hear while trying to get psyched up for a workout. Should also note that this guy was 26 and was training to be a pilot haha.

debbie downer, dont need none of that

[JohnSmeton]

Sorry to hear about the owner got onto you, when you did everything exceptional as a personal trainer. sounds to me you did nothing wrong and everything right as a trainer, the job of a trainer is to help people achieve their physique goals and specific training-they give you, when I have them fill out their forms, on their goals. Anyways, just remember some people dont want it bad, especially the peoples whos mom, dad-whoever pays for it, when a person is paying out of their pocket, most likely they'll put more effort into it- at least from my experience.

when the kid keeps running into the same issues, maybe finally the gym owner will realize the kids just not putting enough effort into it, and it wasnt your fault. Dont feel bad man, some unfair things happen in life, just have patience and keep doing what you love to do

[tinabatinaflc]

i'm laughing out loud at your embedded clips

But, i'm sorry you have to deal with that crap, haha.

[GG249]

strong.

[RyouBakua]

Sorry to hear about the owner got onto you, when you did everything exceptional as a personal trainer. sounds to me you did nothing wrong and everything right as a trainer, the job of a trainer is to help people achieve their physique goals and specific training-they give you, when I have them fill out their forms, on their goals. Anyways, just remember some people dont want it bad, especially the peoples whos mom, dad-whoever pays for it, when a person is paying out of their pocket, most likely they'll put more effort into it- at least from my experience.

when the kid keeps running into the same issues, maybe finally the gym owner will realize the kids just not putting enough effort into it, and it wasnt your fault. Dont feel bad man, some unfair things happen in life, just have patience and keep doing what you love to do

thanks. what you say is true. when there is no value in training, the persons motivation is greatly diminished.

if i was in the mainland, id have my own studio by now. (its insane expensive here)

i love this place too much though. (ill find a way eventually)

i'm laughing out loud at your embedded clips

But, i'm sorry you have to deal with that crap, haha.

lol thanks. and hey, they cant all be good clients

[penafitness]

rb,

next time you see the kid, i got some words of wisdom i learned in the army that you can share with him:

A) "maggot! Did your mother have any son that lived? I bet she regrets it!!"

b) "maggot! You want sympathy?! You can look it up in the dictionary between $heeet and syphilis!"

c) "maggot! Were you born a fat, slimy, scumbag puke piece o' $heet or did you have to work on it?"

d) "maggot! It looks to me like the best part of you ran down the crack of your mama's ass and ended up as a brown stain on the mattress."

:d

lol!!

[camerondex]

2 things op:

I wouldn't take it more to heart than you have to - ok yes they pulled your class. That's bull****. But it's a stupid situation, training his gfs kid? Can't say no shouldn't say yes.. Those feels bro. Live and learn I suppose? Not that there was much you could have done differently.

Second, LOL. That kid is going to have a terrible ****ing time of it in the military with that attitude and those cardio/strength stats. 13 min mile? I run a 12:30 2 mile and I hate my goddamn life every time we run. The af might be a little more lax but if he's not even pushing himself now he's going to be one of those kids I was thankful for in BCT. He's going to be the one everyone loves because he'll be taking the heat off the kids who try. He needs to know how ****ed he is with that piss poor attitude.

Cliffs:
You got screwed sorry brah, he's going to be screwed even worse not sorry brah

[RyouBakua]

thanks man

theres a lot of truth in your posts

stupid situation, training his gfs kid? Can't say no shouldn't say yes.. Those feels bro. Live and learn I suppose? Not that there was much you could have done differently.

he's not even pushing himself now he's going to be one of those kids I was thankful for in BCT. He's going to be the one everyone loves because he'll be taking the heat off the kids who try. He needs to know how ****ed he is with that piss poor attitude

he's going to be screwed even worse not sorry brah

regarding the class

we have 10 trainers

im 1 of the 3 with prior class experience


im rather curious to see what they do now

[shadow9041]

I only hope they don't try to blame you when the kid gets discharged at the end of training. To be fair he only needs to run an 11:57 1.5 mile for the air force but even if he makes it through training I can almost guarantee his first NCO in whatever unit he gets sent to will have him packing in a few months.

[RyouBakua]

I only hope they don't try to blame you when the kid gets discharged at the end of training. To be fair he only needs to run an 11:57 1.5 mile for the air force but even if he makes it through training I can almost guarantee his first NCO in whatever unit he gets sent to will have him packing in a few months.

my choices were:

1. push him, he complains/quits and i get blamed

2. dont push him, he drums out/quits boot and i get blamed

[RyouBakua]

Update:

1 week rolls by
I show up bright and early 6am to train my regular clients
A few girls ask if I'm running class later
Sorry I made a kid cry, so no... ?
Ask why and it turns out the other guy no-showed on them




GM calls my phone and asks if I could train them
Im training others at that time so he has to come in to do it (for 2-3 hours)
Talk to him after and he says the class is mine
Ask if its "okay" with the boss and he reluctantly nods




Have kicked off 2 classes so far

[BootneckBrah]

Op is embed genius.

Would read huge story again for excellent interval gifs

[BubsNBean]

The universe makes everything right

[JoeCannonMSCSCS]

Did you ever meet with the mom? Even though this guy is your boss, the kid (man) is the son of his GF. Id like to speak to the mom beforehand but nevertheless, take this as a sign that its time to move on to better opportunities. The owner is penalizing you by cancelling your classes - which is inappropriate. Things happen for a reason. look for a new place or consider going self employed.

I agree with Kyle on this. This guy is going into the military. What you did is nothing like what they will do with him.

Has the owner of the gym ever been in the military?

[RyouBakua]

Op is embed genius.
Would read huge story again for excellent interval gifs

oh stop

The universe makes everything right

it could work a little faster

Did you ever meet with the mom? Even though this guy is your boss, the kid (man) is the son of his GF. Id like to speak to the mom beforehand but nevertheless, take this as a sign that its time to move on to better opportunities. The owner is penalizing you by cancelling your classes - which is inappropriate. Things happen for a reason. look for a new place or consider going self employed.

I agree with Kyle on this. This guy is going into the military. What you did is nothing like what they will do with him.

Has the owner of the gym ever been in the military?

i met the mom once.

and the first thing i did was offer to contact her but owner said not to

dont think owner has been in the military

[Kedoren]

Welcome to the working world, friend. I have a couple of suggestions/points of advice for you:

1. Even if you don't want to play the game (Politics), play it anyways. You'll eventually cave and play it, or you'll end up underpaid or unemployed.

2. Remember life's golden rule: Life isn't fair.

There are going to be no-win situations. Do the best you can with what you've got. Don't make excuses, don't tell your other clients about bad experiences. Find a good friend or girlfriend/spouse to vent to. I've learned the hard way multiple times that you can't trust the people you work with. People talk. Whatever you say to a co-worker, expect it will be said to your boss.

[RyouBakua]

Welcome to the working world, friend. I have a couple of suggestions/points of advice for you:

1. Even if you don't want to play the game (Politics), play it anyways. You'll eventually cave and play it, or you'll end up underpaid or unemployed.

2. Remember life's golden rule: Life isn't fair.

There are going to be no-win situations. Do the best you can with what you've got. Don't make excuses, don't tell your other clients about bad experiences. Find a good friend or girlfriend/spouse to vent to. I've learned the hard way multiple times that you can't trust the people you work with. People talk. Whatever you say to a co-worker, expect it will be said to your boss.

fair points to your post


however i share my experiences with most of my clients.

that way they get mad for me.

co-workers on the other hand. only a select few know.

[Kedoren]

fair points to your post


however i share my experiences with most of my clients.

that way they get mad for me.

co-workers on the other hand. only a select few know.

I'm really glad you didn't take my post the wrong way. After I posted it I thought it might come across in a way I had not intended. I am saying it for a suggestion and moral support. Been there. It sucks, man.

[RyouBakua]

I'm really glad you didn't take my post the wrong way. After I posted it I thought it might come across in a way I had not intended. I am saying it for a suggestion and moral support. Been there. It sucks, man.

naw. i read through it and saw what you were saying.




im fairly calm and level headed.

which is why i told my clients since it was pretty funny watching them say "he couldn't handle you!? that kids going down!"

[Barbelleater]

The kid is probably going to end up working out on his own and the only thing he's going to do is bench press, bicep curls, and quarter squats in the Smith machine.

[codybiggs96]

I mean I'm doing something similar to him, I'm getting ready to go into the military as well. Instead of the Air Force, I am doing the air national guard so I can finish school. If he gets upset and cries about that then the military will be a living nightmare for him. He probably won't get through on MEPS, if he does I would be very suprised. Either way if he can't push himself, has not motivation, get his feelings hurt easily then the military is no place for him

[RyouBakua]

I mean I'm doing something similar to him, I'm getting ready to go into the military as well. Instead of the Air Force, I am doing the air national guard so I can finish school. If he gets upset and cries about that then the military will be a living nightmare for him. He probably won't get through on MEPS, if he does I would be very suprised. Either way if he can't push himself, has not motivation, get his feelings hurt easily then the military is no place for him

pretty much