Having a coach who understands what it takes to reach your fitness goals is essential to success.
How do you know if you’ve found the right coach?
This question should be the first thing you ask yourself when looking online for a fitness coach. With so many of us out there, it can be hard to differentiate and decide who to trust with one of the most important aspects of your life – your fitness & health.
Finding someone to work with is a big step and shouldn’t be taken lightly. I’ve outlined below a few key points you should take into consideration before hiring a coach; give them a read and make sure to ask yourself the same questions before hiring someone.
Does your coach practice what they preach?
Finding a coach who not only “talks the talk” but “walks the walk” is an important aspect that shouldn’t be overlooked. It’s one thing if your coach knows how to increase your max deadlift or manipulate your caloric intake to support muscle growth, but if they haven’t practiced their own methods often enough to understand what might go wrong or what the best approach might be, then how can you trust them to do so with you?
Your best bet is to find someone who specializes in the area you are most interested in improving. For instance, if your goal is to increase your overall strength in the major lifts, you would want to find someone who has considerable strength themselves and has worked on improving strength in their clients. You would not go to someone who specializes in fat loss or bodybuilding show prep.
A coach who can identify with your specific goals will be able to tell you what kind of obstacles you might face, as well as the best approach to achieving your goal. This kind of knowledge can only be gained by having first-hand experience in the matter.
Can you connect with your coach on a personal level?
It’s all good if you found a coach who knows their stuff and has achieved some of the goals you wish to pursue, but how well do you connect with them on a personal basis?
You will/should be in frequent contact with your coach throughout your fitness journey, which means this will be someone you spend a lot of time talking to for the next 6-12 months. Finding someone who you can relate to and discuss things other than fitness will go a long way in making your journey more enjoyable and successful.
Does your coach focus on long-term, sustainable solutions?
Anyone selling a quick fix or “amazing” results in a short time frame shouldn’t be considered. Any good coach knows that sustainable, quality results take time and nothing happens overnight. That goes for gaining strength, improving endurance, losing weight & putting on muscle.
Whatever your goal is, taking the long-term approach will almost always ensure you give yourself the best possible chance at success, with the least amount of risk. Rushing into quick results puts you at risk for injury & developing unsustainable habits that will leave you worse off in the long run.
Finding a coach who understands this and who teaches a long-term, sustainable method is essential.
Final Thoughts
So whatever your fitness goal is, find a coach who has been where you are before and understands what it takes to achieve your goal. Whether that is improving your physique, gaining strength, increasing your endurance or prepping for a bodybuilding show – there is a coach out there for every aspect of fitness.
And if you find yourself wanting to become more functional and gain some strength, give me call!
-Ryan
