I use the terms ‘coach’ and ‘personal trainer’ interchangeably. I’m sure I confuse the hell out of members and other coaches too. I don’t know if there’s a difference. I haven’t really tried to settle the question. Generally though, I suspect its more about perception than anything else. There’s perhaps a perception that a fitness coach has a broader skill set and possibly provides a more in-depth service? But then there are some pretty awesome personal trainers out there too who find success for their clients everyday.
To be honest I don’t think there’s a decent answer to that one. Maybe the better question is to ask whether it matters? Because in reality, if you’re involved in fitness and have a job that involves getting other people fit and healthy then you can pretty much call yourself what you like. As long as you don’t start calling yourself a rocket scientist or a brain surgeon. It’s all good.
The real mark of a good coach or trainer is not about whether they can go that extra mile for their clients and members. That’s awesome if they can do that though. It’s also not about how knowledgeable they are or what their Fran time is. Coaching fundamentally comes down to one thing, and that’s the ability of the coach to help each person they work with find the best quality of movement they can. With this as the goal, the other things will fall into place. It doesn’t matter whether you’re talking about weight loss, strength gains, building muscle etc. It all starts with movement. And there’s usually plenty for the coach to do in this regard.
So that’s where the coach’s responsibilities start. Beyond this? That’s when the coach becomes a problem solver. The mechanics of any movement can sometimes prove to be more difficult for some to master than it is for others. And it’s important that these basics are mastered. Consistently. Without this, moving to the next level, whatever that might be, is too risky. And so problems need to be identified, potential solutions investigated and issues resolved. Most of the time!
And truly next level coaching can then be built on top of this solid foundation. Sometimes the issue impeding progress is not so much about mobility, mid-line strength or the lingering effects of old injuries. Sometimes the issues stem from other related aspects of the individuals life outside the gym. Maybe their nutritional habits suck! Maybe they’re not sleeping nights because of a noisy neighborhood dog, or maybe they just lost their mojo … aren’t sure when or where it happened … and they need coach to get it back again! Its a legit and important role and it’s something that I do … as a coach … fairly regularly. I help people find their way back. The opportunity to do that is almost as satisfying as helping someone score their first pull-up!
We’ve taken our coaching services on-line in response to the virus. But if training people online was limited to simply watching them do a workout, and then giving them a virtual high 5 afterwards – then our members would rightly be skeptical. They’d probably just tune out completely. There’s no value in that approach. The coaching job shouldn’t change – we don’t just stand around and watch members workout when they’re actually in the gym. We don’t do that online either. We replicate what we do face to face, in the online space.
In fact, it’s arguable that we do more members online than we do week to week in the box. Right now I’m actually helping members design and set up their home workout space. So I’ve taken on a consulting role too by the looks of it!
People think it’s hard to stay accountable when working out from home, and communicating with their coach via email or messenger. The reality is quite different. Coaching online requires the use of a range of tools that will ensure we’re always on the case. We use True Coach but there are dozens of platforms out there. The specific platform isn’t as important as the primary role of the coach though. It’s always going to come down to helping the athlete improve and the key is better movement. Online or in-person. The job is the same.