First off, it’s a new year so I assume a “Happy New Year” is in order. So here it is – Happy New Year!

Now let’s move on…….

New Year! = New You! (Ugh….Anyone Else Smell Cheese?)

People always assume that because it’s a New Year that we as Personal Trainers will be incredibly busy due to the influx of New Years Resolutioners invading our little iron paradise. While I cannot speak for other trainers, I can tell you that for myself personally, I do not and never have noticed the slightest bit of increase in our business just because the calendar changes years. Perhaps it’s the fact that as a company we don’t advertise “free sessions” or market our services towards people who believe in quick fixes and fall victim to cheesy weight loss gimmicks and phoney fitness fads. I’ve never believed in promoting a product or a service that I don’t believe in, and refuse to compromise my ethics just so that I can make a quick buck at a time of year when people are more vulnerable to spend money on losing weight and building muscle.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for helping people make a positive change in their lives through diet and exercise. I just don’t rely on the beginning of a new year to help me cash in on doing this.

The No-Nonsense Approach 

Every single client that has worked with me and continues to work with me will tell you that I give them 100% of my time, effort and dedication to every single workout that they do with me. Regardless if someone is training privately with me or in a group class of 10-12 people, I always make sure that each individual receives the absolute best service and training experience that we can offer to them.

Therefore we don’t waste time talking about sports or the weather. I care more about my clients’ diets then I do about their personal lives. I want to make sure that when our clients’ sessions start with us, that they’re mentally and physically prepared to give their undivided effort and focus to the entire workout. Quite simply, I want our clients to achieve results. This is after all, the main reason as to why they’re working with us. And for us to achieve those results, we need to work! And we need to work hard!

Disturbing Distractions

The next time you visit a commercial gym or even a private training studio, take a look around at the people who are “training” in the gym with you. I use the word training loosely because for the most part, very few of these people are ACTUALLY TRAINING. Most people I see in the gym these days are more focused on their phones then they are on they’re actual workouts. Whether it be scrolling through their social media news-feeds in between sets, taking shameless selfies in the squat rack, or striking up a 15 minute conversation with their personal trainer or fellow gym patrons, they’re doing everything in the gym EXCEPT TRAINING.

If you’re truly training hard in the gym, then you should care less as to what’s going on in the Cyber World. If you’re truly training hard in the gym, then you should be far too focused on perfecting your next set rather then perfecting your next selfie. And if you’re truly training hard in the gym, then you should want to conserve ALL of your energy for the workout rather then wasting it talking about your weekend or your holidays with others around you.

Knowing Your Worth

When I first started working in this industry almost two decades ago, I found it difficult to promote and sell my services to other people. I had no sales background, I never worked in/or for a gym, and I had no experience working with people with physical limitations or who suffered from chronic and acute injuries. However slowly but surely I was able to build up my clientele base through the numerous referrals that I would receive on a regular basis. With every new person I began to work with, I myself would learn a great deal as well.

I learned how to read people in the gym. I learned how to adjust workouts on the fly if a client wasn’t feeling 100% on a certain day. I learned how to provide alternative exercises when needed. I learned how to create programs that were tailored to each individual’s specific training goals and level of fitness. I learned when to push people harder in the gym, and when to back off. Everything I learned, I learned through experience. The gym was and still is my classroom. No textbook can teach you how to warm-up one person who suffers from patellofemoral syndrome sufficiently in a class of 10, without slowing down that class. No exam can prepare you to design a different plan by the minute for someone whose osteoarthritis begins to suddenly act up due to the weather change outside. And no degree or level of education will help you stay calm when you’re faced with a situation where someone is having a medical emergency.

In my opinion all of these things are learned through experience. And I believe that the more experience you have in a particular field, then the more valuable you are to that field.

Changing of the Guard

So will we get some New Years Resolutioners this year? Sure, we always see a few new faces around the gym come the second week of January. However, although some of these people might be making resolutions to get healthy and fit this year, the majority of them are choosing to work with us because they are looking for the long term solution. They know our track record for success. They’ve done they’re research on our company. These are not your average resolutioners. These are people who want to better themselves for not just 2019, but to also better themselves for life. These are people who want to work with competent and educated professionals that will take their health and fitness goals seriously. These are people who are looking for a long term solution that offers lasting results.

These are people that know their worth.

Do you know yours?

Yours in Good Health,

Nick Cosgrove
Forever Fit Performance