Houston Personal Trainer : Mandy Fonville A personal trainer is an exercise professional with the knowledge and experience to offer advice and guidance in the areas of exercise and fitness. These professionals can assist you by designing a safe and effective exercise program to help you reach personal goals. A personal trainer can assist with weight loss, exercise performance and improved wellness. As a client, you need to recognize the importance of guidance and teamwork in order to truly reap the maximum amount of benefits possible from your trainer. The old adage “you get out of it what you put into it” is definitely applicable in this situation, and the following five steps will show you how to make sure you’re getting the most out of your personal trainer. Step1 Clearly outline your fitness goals. Come to your first session with a list of short-term and long-term goals that you would like to accomplish with your trainer. Set deadlines to meet these goals and make sure that your trainer knows which goals are of highest priority for you. This will help keep both and your trainer on track and accountable. Step2 Prepare your body for the workout. Hitting the bars the night before your training session is not on the list of “ways to maximize your workout.” Get plenty of sleep, eat a healthy breakfast, get to the gym early and complete your warm-up 15 minutes before you meet your trainer. Preparing your body for the workout will insure that your trainer can focus on pushing you beyond your comfort zone. Step3 Prepare your body for the workout. Hitting the bars the night before your training session is not on the list of “ways to maximize your workout.” Get plenty of sleep, eat a healthy breakfast, get to the gym early and complete your warm-up 15 minutes before you meet your trainer. Preparing your body for the workout will insure that your trainer can focus on pushing you beyond your comfort zone. Step4 Drink water. Staying hydrated during a workout is your responsibility, and waiting in line for the water fountain between sets is a huge waste of time and money. Bring your own water bottle and carry it with you during the session. Step5 Stretch on your own after the session. Many trainers use the last ten minutes of a session to stretch their clients, and this is a great service to take advantage of if you have chronically tight muscles. If, however, you do not have flexibility issues then tell your trainer that you’d like to workout until the end of the hour and stretch on your own afterwards. Every additional minute counts. |