by Coach Tommy
The very best way to help someone is to first understand them.
When I first started the fitness industry, letting the exercise methodology speak for itself was prevalent.
Just come in and “try a free class” and see if you enjoy it.
While the enjoyment of your exercise routine is crucial, we often miss an opportunity to truly understand why someone is coming to your facility in the first place.
This is why we start all of our new relationships with a conversation.
Within that conversation, we would like to cover a few big topics so that we can best understand you and how we can set up for success at District H.
Your Motivations
This is an opportunity to truly understand your “why” behind the decision to be healthy. Let’s face it, there are going to be times when you fall out of the routine or when being consistent becomes very difficult to balance with life.
The truth is, we ALL have time to prioritize our health and wellness. The question is whether your “why” is strong enough for you to maintain your routine.
Most people I talk to may come in with a basic “why,” like losing weight. But once we start to dig a little deeper, I often find that their true “why” is because they are pre-diabetic and want to be around for their loved ones for many years to come.
THAT is the true “why.” We want to understand it, so we know what truly motivates you to put in the work day-in and day-out.
Your Current Lifestyle
There are many facets to you as an individual that will impact the goals you set for yourself at District H. This includes your daily routine, stress levels, job, kids, spouse, or essential habits.
We must understand that.
For example, suppose your goal is weight loss, and you have a highly stressful job where you travel quite a bit. In that case, we need to consider that when it comes to nutrition and exercise design.
Doing High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) may not be the best prescription for someone who already carries a high deal of stress.
Irregular circadian rhythms due to travel and “eating out” may weight loss difficult, even if we have the calories and macros dialed in perfectly.
Again, we need to understand these nuances so we can expect them, manage them, and prescribe a plan that considers them.
Your Nutrition
Nutrition plays a direct role in seeing results quickly. It is a common misconception that if you come into the gym and just “outwork” the diet you are currently on, then you will see results.
While you may see some results early on just by increasing your activity level, they will eventually plateau.
This is where clients typically tell me that their workout routine “just isn’t working for them.” In all reality, it’s not the workouts that are the issue; it’s the nutrition.
Most people understand what healthy eating looks like, and knowledge isn’t typically the hang-up when working with clients. It revolves around current habits.
- Stress eating!
- Snacking!
- Overindulgence on guilty pleasures!
- Eating out most days of the week!
These are things that are preventing most people from seeing actual results.
Understanding these habits (and we all have them in some way or another) helps us manage expectations around your nutrition, manage them, and prescribe accordingly.
Workout & Injury History
Lastly, we discuss your workout and injury history. I want to know the type of physical activity you have done in the past, so I have an understanding of your current “training age.”
More importantly, if there have been any injuries or surgeries, I need to know that information so I don’t put you in a position to get hurt.
Believe it or not, I am not in the business of getting people hurt. If I were, then I wouldn’t be in business for that long.
Understanding your history also allows me to create a personalized workout schedule based on what you enjoy or what you particularly need.
For example, if you have seen great results with strength training in the past, I would recommend that you come into District H on Monday, Wednesdays, and Fridays as those are our dedicated strength training days.
When you become a member at District H, my entire staff and I want to see you succeed. This is an investment, not a cost. To increase the return on that investment, we want to better understand your motivations, lifestyle, nutrition habits, and workout and injury history to better prescribe what is going to connect your “why” to the results you seek.
Tomorrow, I will go over our On-Ramp Program and how it best integrates new members into District H.
See you tomorrow.
Tommy