It’s Never Too Late

When I meet with different folks and explain to them how I’m a little different than most of the other personal trainers around, there is never a shortage of excuses about why they wish they could hire me but can’t right now.

One excuse I get on occasion comes from some people in town is that they are too old for exercise.

Too Old to Exercise? I Don’t Think So!
Photo by The City of Marietta, GA via Flickr

I absolutely hate this excuse because my older clients have seen some of the most dramatic health improvements of any of the clients I have. And new research shows that regular exercise by seniors is vitally important.

Research published in Nursing Older People showed that in a study where residents in a senior home were encouraged to exercise regularly by the nurses, gains in strength and power were seen rather quickly. The study also reports that the participants maintained their new exercise programs for many months after the conclusion of the study, and that much of the continuation seen in the study was due to an increased awareness of the benefits of exercise for seniors that the nurses shared with the participants.

What Are Some Benefits

There are many benefits of regular exercise for members of any demographic. For older folks, some of the biggest benefits include:

Improved Balance–One of the biggest fears of my older clients is that they will lose their balance and fall at some point. Regular exercise, and the incorporation of some balance activities, is a great way to improve stability and decrease the risk of injury from falling.

Improved Bone Density–Osteoporosis is a real worry of many older folks, especially women. By performing resistance exercises and walking regularly, seniors are able to continue strengthening their bones and limiting the likelihood of osteoporosis.

Improved Posture–I have a client that makes jokes about some of the old folks that live in his neighborhood, and how they walk all hunched over all the time. Strength training and regular physical activity can help you to improve your posture, and that improved posture can take a lot of stress off of your body as you age.

As people age, obviously the exercises they should do change as well. But regular physical activity is still important for maintaining your health and enabling older folks to live life to the fullest in their later years.

Just Do Something Physical Every Day

As my 82 year old neighbor says after he knocks out 8-10 miles of running a couple of times a week, “I might be old, but damnit, I’m healthier than a lot of people 20 years younger than I am! And I’m going to keep running til I can’t anymore, because there is no better way of feeling young that I’ve found.”

The man’s a machine. But you don’t have to run 20 miles a week to see the health benefits of regular exercise when you’re in your 70s or 80s, just get outside and get moving.

You might be surprised at how quickly you see the difference.

What Defines a “Good” Personal Trainer?

If you’re going to spend the money to hire a personal trainer, you might as well hire a good one, right?

But what qualifies a personal trainer as a good one?

Does the specific certification define the quality of the personal trainer? No. Does the physical condition of the personal trainer determine if they are good at their job? No. Is the personal trainer that yells and screams the most the best personal trainer? Not really.

So how can someone  say that he or she is a good personal trainer?

“Good” is VERY Relative

It depends.

In my opinion, there is about an even split between good personal trainers and bad personal trainers in most areas, and it’s impossible to tell just by looking at them which is which. In truth, you can’t know for certain if a personal trainer is right for you until you start working with him or her, but there are a few things you can look for to help you pick the right trainer for your needs.

Talk to Current Clients–Do you know some of your potential personal trainer’s clients? Ask them what they think of their personal trainer. Find out how the personal trainer works, what their personality is like, and what the current client thinks the personal trainer’s strengths and weaknesses are.

Observe the Personal Trainer at Work–If you are thinking about hiring a personal trainer in the gym you go to, watch the personal trainer you are thinking about hiring as he or she is working with other clients. This way you can see how the client/personal trainer relationship works in action, and you can determine if you think that relationship would work well for your personality.

Hit the Internet–These days, most personal trainers will have a website, blog, twitter, facebook page, or something similar for them to promote their services. Check them out! (You’re on my blog/website, and you can connect with me via Twitter and Facebook with one click in the sidebar!) I would also encourage you to interact with them a little bit on the internet, perhaps via social media, and see how they respond. Do they seem overly aggressive? Are they laying on a heavy sales pitch? Do they just ignore you? How they respond online can give you a bit of an idea how they’ll treat you once you go from a “potential” to a “regular” client.

Sit Down for a Meeting–Ask the personal trainer you are thinking about hiring to meet with you for a little bit to allow you to answer some questions and give you both a chance to get to know each other a little bit before you start working together. I’d encourage you to arrange for the meeting to be anywhere BUT the gym, so there will be fewer distractions for the personal trainer to deal with. If the trainer is hesitant to meet you on his or her own time, that should send off warning bells as well.

It’s NOT All About the Benjamins

The one thing that I would encourage you to not do, is determine who you think a good personal trainer is/would be solely because of the price.

Prices are fickle, and just because one personal trainer charges more doesn’t mean he or she is better, and just because one is cheaper doesn’t mean that will be a better fit for you because you’re saving a few dollars each session.

Too many people just go with the cheapest personal trainer, and if the trainer isn’t the right fit for that client, the person won’t get the results they are looking for. But, if you take the time to research your potential personal trainer BEFORE you hire one, you might figure out that spending an extra $5 per session will be well worth it.

The Only Person That Needs to Think Their Personal Trainer is Good is the Client

After a couple of workouts with your new personal trainer, you should be getting a strong feeling about whether or not the trainer you hired is good for you. If the trainer is creating the workouts specifically for you, asking/listening to your feedback after each session, and encouraging you appropriately then you probably have a good personal trainer.

But if that’s not the case, go find someone else.

There is a good personal trainer for you out there. You just have to find one.

When the Going Gets Tough…

What is holding you back from improving your health?

Sure, making changes can be difficult, I guess.

But lots of things in life can be difficult. Getting out of the bed in the morning to go to work is difficult. Raising kids is difficult. Cleaning the house and doing yard chores on a Saturday instead of relaxing by the pool is difficult.

We all still find ways to get each of these difficult tasks completed, so why can’t we manage to improve our health?

Yeah, But…

Believe me, I’ve heard all of the excuses that are out there.

I’m too busy. I’m too tired. I have to work late. The kids have soccer practice. Etc. Etc.

We all have our own excuses, I promise. I have my share, and mine are no better or worse than anyone else’s. If you have an excuse that prevents you from improving your health, no matter what the excuse is, it sucks but it’s real.

How Can You Get Over the Hump?

Simply, shuffle the deck.

Image by Ralph Unden via Flickr

It is said that the definition of insanity is continuing to do the same thing over and over and expecting the results to change.

So, hoping to improve your health while continuing to do the same things you’ve been doing (diet, physical activity, etc.), is literally insane.

You need to do something different, or nothing will ever change and your health will never improve.

Do Something Different

• Don’t have time? Go to bed an hour earlier and get up an hour earlier. You can get a lot of stuff done, exercise or other things that will help you clear your schedule, before 6 am. Don’t believe me? Try it.

• Too tired? This is a legit catch-22, because it takes energy to work out but working out can increase your energy level. If you’re really too tired, start slow (20 minute walk) instead of diving into the deep end and gradually build up as your energy level improves.

• Have to work late? Don’t head to the phone to call for take out, bring dinner with you from home. A salad. Some left overs. Whatever. But odds are, that if you bring food from home it will be much healthier than anything you can have delivered to the office.

• The kids need a chauffeur tonight? I’m not a father yet, and it’ll take a few years before the baby demands to be driven all over town, so I haven’t personally had to deal with this issue yet. But I know many people that have. In my opinion, this is when you need to be the most flexible with your workouts. Run laps around the parking lot while your kid is at soccer practice. Keep some resistance bands in the car, and knock out a whole body circuit during dance rehearsal. You might get a few stares, but who cares?

Look guys, changing your habits to improve your health is difficult.

But nothing worth having comes easy, so stop feeling sorry for yourself and stop making excuses.

And if you need a personal trainer to help you on the way, I know a guy…