Does everyone need a personal trainer?
Being in shape can help lead to a long and healthy life, and many boutique gyms and fitness experts are eager to get you there
When it comes to fitness, small is the new big. At least it seems that way, given the presence of new boutique gyms on practically every corner, all offering specialized fitness regimens and workouts designed by personal trainers.
All that personal attention, though, doesn’t come cheap. The first hit on my search turned up a place that charged $95 per hour and recommended two or three one hour sessions a week. Since that’s out of reach for the vast majority of us, I got to wondering: Does the average person really need a personal trainer? Well, I spoke to some experts and, while “need” was perhaps too strong a word, the consensus was that most people, especially those serious about fitness, could probably use one.
“Some people buy a membership to a gym, go once or twice and then don’t go again, so part of it is likely that they’re not confident and there isn’t a level of accountability at the facility,” says Veronica Jamnik, a professor in the school of Kinesiology and Health Science at York University. “Personal training also has value for people who are very busy and are so used to being scheduled that being scheduled for fitness helps.”
Having a firm appointment with a real human makes it difficult to skip your workout, unlike at a big gym, where nobody will ever know you ghosted. For chain gyms, it’s probably better for them if you don’t go since that means fewer people wearing out the equipment. And they’re going to take the money out of your bank every month anyway. By contrast, Jamnik says personal trainers help with accountability and, in addition, could be a good way for people who have been sedentary for years to regain confidence.
“The most effective personal trainers are those who start working with people to help them gain physical competence then empower them to do it on their own and, after that, only see the client every so often — maybe once every two months or once a month,” she says, “If a trainer is making you fully dependent on them, I don’t think that’s a good trainer.”
That’s one of many factors Jamnik advises people pay attention to when deciding whether to hire a specific trainer. She also advises people check references, ask about credentials and experience, whether they’ll accommodate two clients or small groups at a time, and try to feel out if it’s the right personality fit.
Just do some homework about the type of fitness regimen offered, as well as the general clientele the trainer works with. Although CrossFit and Orange Theory facilities have a youth vibe, a lot of personal trainers, including Andrew Barr, a strength and conditioning coach who owns Barr Health and Fitness, have practices where the average age of the clientele skews older.
“I see a lot of older clients and I think it’s because boomers, in general, are a very health-conscious group. A lot of them have the monetary means to be able to enjoy a long retirement,” Barr says. “But that’s contingent on health and so I get quite a lot of folks reaching out to me and saying, ‘Hey, I’m retired, or about to retire, but I want to enjoy it and I need some help just getting stronger so I can maintain a high quality of life.’ ”
That’s the kind of motivation Barr likes to hear from his potential clients. Less so from the people who want “six-pack abs” or a “better booty” because people with short-term goals are sometimes seduced by false promises of six-week body transformations — when they don’t pan out, they’re disappointed. “We have a very high failure rate,” Barr says. “Something around 85 per cent of Canadian adults don’t meet minimum physical activity guidelines, so I think it’s worthwhile to question the way things are done.”
Barr puts some of the blame on fitness marketing and on a general lack of proper fitness training — even the people who do go to the gym aren’t getting the most bang for their buck with the exercise routines from the internet.
“I get why people fail,” Barr says. “Without somebody showing you the way, the odds are that you’re probably not doing the right steps. One of the things I would love to see — I think it would be such a wonderful thing — is if every adult or youth had, at one point in their lifetimes, five sessions with a qualified exercise professional covered by either an insurance provider or the government.”
That seems like a small, smart change that could make a big difference in our failure rate. Maybe we do all need a personal trainer — just to get us going in the right direction. After that, we can handle it on our own.
TRAINERS from E1