Helpful hints onpersonal trainers and what they are good for

The doctor has said that exercise is a key to a healthy you, but getting off that couch gets harder and harder when exercise isn’t part of your routine.

That’s where personal trainers can help.

Choosing a personal trainer though can be a daunting task because there are so many in town.

How do you know who is good and what do you look for?

Here are some tips from experts in the field that one needs to know about trainers before one sets out to talk to them.

Local Lean into Life fitness instructor, Paula Callahan, recommends that people interview a trainer that has experience.

“All trainers need to be able to show their certifications,” Callahan said. “Make sure they are training for your goals and needs. There are a lot of online certifications which can be OK if they are good ones, such as ACE and ISSA.”

She says good trainers will ask the client their goals and be able to tailor the program to those needs. In other words, one program does not fit all.

She added, “A kinesiology degree is great, but expect to pay a lot,” she said. “Experience and references are key in making a good selection.”

In the case of fitness instructors, looks count too, said longtime valley fitness instructor George Arceo.

“To find a good trainer you gotta look for a couple of things, like how they look, and how the instructor trains,” Arceo said. “Check them out and ask, is it intense enough? Because how they train is how they will train you.”

Arceo believes that not everything can be done through exercise.

“Ask some questions like, ‘How long have they been a trainer?’ and then ask them, ‘What exercise to do to take the belly fat off or the muffin top?’. If they give you an exercise regimen, then they can’t help you,” he said. “It’s a rookie mistake. Things like sit-ups won’t reduce belly fat like people think.”

Arceo said the only way to get rid of that belly fat is through eating habits and cardio.

“It’s a misconception that specific exercise will reduce fat in one area,” Arceo said. “Exercise helps but there is nothing like spot reduction. When you exercise, you burn fat everywhere.”

Callahan agrees with Arceo that looks help, but she says to exercise caution in this area.

“The biggest mistake I see all the time is people come to the gym and take advice from others working out who may look the part but are not qualified,” Callahan said.

How do you know if you need a fitness instructor?

Callahan says personal trainers exist to keep people safely exercising and they hold people accountable.

“A good question to think about, ‘When learning to fly, you wouldn’t fly a plane without an instructor, would you?’,” Callahan said. “So it’s good to have a trainer teach you so you won’t get hurt and you won’t waste time doing exercises that won’t give you what you want.”

Riley Trombley of CrossFit Land Mine said people need to assess their own situation.

“Being fit takes discipline and not everyone has that,” he said. “My gym is not like others. When you exercise at my gym you are under guidance at all times. I even send motivational emails to my clients.”

With that in mind, all the trainers do agree on one thing and that is nutrition is important.

“You need to put healthy things in your body,” Trombley said. “If you don’t, you can expect poor performance in exercise.”

Arceo agrees, for he talks about nutrition as being the most important concept to grasp if people are trying to lose weight. “Much of getting in shape is eating right,” he said. “If you think you are going to come out here and exercise a lot and then think you can eat anything you want, think again.”

Callahan regularly works with seniors and she said for them it is important to get moving, but they too must watch their nutrition and watch their sugar levels.