What’s My Coaching Style
Finding a coach can be both easy and overwhelming. On one hand, there are many local professionals to choose from. However, having too many options can also make the process challenging.
I believe the number 1 reason a trainer gets chosen is their personality. The main reason being that you are going to spend 1-3 hours a week with this person regularly in a one-on-one environment. So picking a trainer ends up like picking a date you’re willing to invest some time in.
Setting up the date:
Speaking with the prospective client ahead of time to ensure I can address their needs and accommodate their schedule. This is where I get a sense of where they are coming from, where they are looking to go and what obstacles they have had in the past. You also get to see a bit of their personality and if you’d connect.
Date 1: Consultation
All of my clients receive a free consultation upon booking. This is to build a rapport and see how they move. I get a sense of the type of coach they are looking for rather quickly. But I also let them know what type of coach I am to see if that resonates.
I am an educator when it comes to training. I love teaching my clients to set them up for long term success. I am not the trainer that will yell at you and throw complicated things your way just to make you sweat and feel dead at the end of a session. My purpose is to teach you proper body mechanics and terminology, while motivating you inside and outside of our sessions. This will encourage long term changes to support a healthy and active life.
Future Dates: Building the Relationship
A well-rounded plan is made to address both our requirements. Clients have objectives they want to achieve and as the instructor, I have distinct goals that I hope they accomplish. If we are both committed to the plan we can achieve goals for both sides. I rely on my clients to learn and retain information i provide to them. I do not work with clients who wish to just mimic my movements and check out. I want everyone to take an interest and learn.
The pandemic really pushed this agenda because people were training virtually. My clients had been working with me for years at that point so I put them to the test. I only demoed if necessary, but i pushed them to rely on their years of training to perform the workouts only using audio cues and terminology. Our sessions were dictated. They picked it up quickly and really excelled at this teaching technique which was so fun to see on my end. It demonstrated what they had learned over the years and that they are capable of working out on their own and following a program i’ve written for them.
Now that we are back in person i still try and implement this. I try to only demonstrate if needed and push clients to learn the names of the exercises and the way they are performed. All clients are different so I always have to adjust my cues to see what resonates with them and gets them to perform the action correctly. For one person it could be “fall forward” for a deadlift, but for another it could be “pick the item up off the floor with a flat back” these cues will produce different results depending on the person who hears them. The goal is to find what clicks!
I always encourage clients to provide feedback to what they enjoy, dislike and what’s working/not working for them. This relationship is all about communication; to work together to achieve the most optimal results.
