Personal trainers are responsible for creating enjoyable and effective workouts for their clients, yet it remains unclear how exactly they develop individualized exercise plans.
Motivational Interviewing provides trainers with a powerful way to discover what motivates their clients. Its Five Whys technique can prove particularly helpful.
Once clients understand their goals, trainers can begin creating a workout plan incorporating basic programming.
Goals
Step one in developing an exercise plan involves identifying what the trainee wants to accomplish and setting specific yet attainable goals with their personal trainer. They help set both short-term and long-term targets so their clients stay motivated throughout their workout plan.
Fitness goals must be set within reachable scope for clients to remain encouraged. A trainer shouldn’t set unrealistic goals such as running a marathon in two weeks. Instead, they could help the client train for it within months with personal training assistance.
Utilizing SMART criteria when developing workout plans helps trainers ensure that their clients are reaching their goals. For instance, trainers could encourage clients to track progress on a weekly basis to measure how their performance has evolved over time and see where improvements may need to be made.
Exercises
Personal trainers rely on exercises with their client as the foundation of any workout plan. Their trainer must determine which kind of training best matches up with their goals; for instance, if a client wishes to build strength or increase cardiovascular endurance, more complex compound exercises such as dumbbell lunges and triceps extensions may be part of their regimen.
As an introduction to resistance training, beginner clients may feel intimidated or overburdened by gym environments. A trainer should provide easy cardio workouts they can complete on their own between resistance training sessions in order to supplement resistance training sessions.
After each workout, clients should complete their program with a brief set of held stretches to aid their recovery. Many neglect taking this necessary step after physical exertion so it’s essential that we remind them to set aside enough time for stretching post-exercise.
Time
Personal trainers with 25 or more clients per week may take up a considerable amount of their time coaching them individually; using templates and pre-made workout plans helps streamline this process so they can focus on spending more time coaching clients instead.
An effective workout template for beginners could include basic calculations like volume and one rep max to help them track their progress and stay motivated and engaged with training, since it shows them they’re part of an overall long term plan and their trainer cares about what they are accomplishing in that workout session.
Fitness professionals often spend much of their time coaching clients on diet, which can amplify the results from gym work. In addition, they may provide guidance regarding larger health and fitness topics to support them on their journeys.
Equipment
Personal trainers rely on various equipment and routines to assist their clients in reaching their fitness goals.
Some personal trainers prefer using software for taking notes during each session, but having a physical logbook also serves the same function and seems more professional. Plus it saves time on filling out digital forms!
Establishing a workout template for clients takes time and effort, but the fundamentals are essential. Top-down planning with movements focused on power and strength is an effective starting point before adding additional prompts that tailor to individual clients.
Nutrition
Nutrition is another integral component of designing workout plans for clients. A trainer must be knowledgeable of basic nutrition principles and when to refer their client for additional advice from dieticians or doctors.
Trainers may opt to utilize an app that creates meal plans and delivers them directly to their phone or computer, providing clients with what they need while saving both time and money. This method offers clients access to what they require without additional hassle or expense.
However, trainers must be certain to clearly communicate that they are only providing general guidelines for healthy meals and should not be seen as experts in nutrition. Otherwise, they risk misguiding or endangering their clients.
Does the Wayne YMCA Have Personal Trainers? We thought our article might interest you.