A proven plan

I’d like to address two points this week.
The first is the topic of personal trainers and whether or not to hire one. This will include a discussion of whether or not you’ll benefit from hiring one.
The second is the question ‘What’s the point of this blog, anyway?’

So you’re thinking of hiring a personal trainer. Or maybe you hadn’t been thinking of hiring a trainer…

In deciding to seriously pursue your fitness goals by making them SMART goals, you have taken action. If you are not already going to the gym or doing some form of activity, NOW is the time to begin.

NOW is the time to also create a plan for your success. Begin thinking of this goal in terms of it being one you will achieve. Not one that you are going to try to achieve or one that you might achieve, but one that you will achieve.

The next question then, is ‘how?’

This is where the personal trainer comes in.

It is the role of the personal trainer to create a plan for you; a plan that will take you from where you are now to where you want to be. This is what they have studied and trained for. They know what needs to be done in order to get you to where you want to go.

The majority of people do not know how to create an exercise plan that is appropriate for their current level of fitness, nor do they know how or when to change it so that they will the most progress. A commonly used analogy is that when your car requires either a tune-up or some major work, you take your car to a mechanic. Mechanics specialize in car repairs and maintenance. Personal trainers specialize in ‘repairs’ and ‘maintenance’ for your body. It follows then, that if you are seeking to improve the functioning of your body, you should see a personal trainer.

In this regard, the question of whether or not to seek out the aid of a personal trainer becomes a no-brainer: if you are serious about achieving your fitness goals and don’t know how to achieve them, then the most effective thing you can do is to find someone who does know. Hire a personal trainer.

The key distinction here is this: do you know how to achieve your fitness goals, or do you just think you know? If your plan is to go to the classes, do some cardio and try to eat less junk, then it’s not going to happen. You don’t actually know how you’re going to achieve your goal and your plan amounts to little more than wandering along without a map, yet still hoping to get there.

Specific goals need a specific plan. This is what personal trainers do.

What personal trainers have to offer you are many things: a proven plan to get you where you want to go, a coach to guide you along the way and the motivation to keep you going. That being said, hiring a personal trainer is not the only option. You could also find a friend who’s already done it—lost the weight, put on the muscle, and/or transformed their health—and find out how they did it. Chances are what worked for them could also work for you.*

(*An important caveat: this is a generality. In some cases, what works for others may not work for you. You, or your friend, may have certain unique health concerns that would necessitate a professional exercise or diet prescription based upon the collaborative efforts of doctors, physiotherapists and/or personal trainers. Check with your doctor before beginning any exercise or diet program.)

The bottom line here is that if you are serious about achieving your goal, you need a plan that’s been proven to work. Working with someone who has already experienced the kind of success you are seeking will ensure you get to where you want to be faster and more efficiently.


Now then, what’s the point to all of this anyway?

Ultimately, this blog is meant to be a resource and support tool for my forthcoming e-Book: The BodyMind Workout. When this book is released later this year, the regular blog postings here will supplement the material contained within the book.
The BodyMind Workout will be a guidebook for Whole-istic fitness and personal transformation. For the premise behind the book, see my first posting: I AM this.