Working With a Personal Trainer – Part of the Problem or the Solution?
If you like working with a personal trainer, one important piece of advice – learn to listen to your body. Only you know what you are feeling. A trainer who asks for three more reps (especially one who doesn’t monitor you to insist that you execute those reps with precise form), is doing you a great disservice if those last three reps cause pain (anything besides mild muscle fatigue). Just say NO! If the trainer insists, find another trainer!
Many personal trainers look healthy and fit. Most have a pleasant personality and talk a good game; they sound confident and can snow you if you don’t have the knowledge to identify the gaps in their knowledge and skills. But, you may say, if you did have that knowledge, you wouldn’t be consulting a trainer! True. That is why it is so important to vet prospective trainers. Perhaps you might even ask a reputable sports/orthopedic physical therapist for a referral. Some trainers are very knowledgeable, but I caution you, MANY are not. Passing one or more certification exams doesn’t connote good fitness judgment and even multiple years of experience is not an indicator of expertise. There are good and bad in every field, and a field with as little policing as there is in personal training is prone to skew the wrong way. Choose those in whom you place your trust carefully!
On the flip side, if you don’t have the training to design your own safe and progressive fitness program, do get some help. That doesn’t mean you have to work with a professional each week. It means you should work with someone initially to assess your abilities and areas of concern. Then follow up with a few more or intermittent sessions to get assistance devising a program and monitoring/progressing it. If you are motivated, can follow directions and make the time, you can avoid injury as you train independently thereafter. For now, suffice it to say that you have to develop a foundation of strength, flexibility and cardiovascular fitness. Don’t rush; be sensible.
Get Fit To Play Sports Rather Than Play Sports To Get Fit
Whether you are picking up a new sport, renewing your participation in one that you played in college, or are just a seasonal athlete, BEWARE! Too much too soon is likely to cause overuse injuries. For instance, if you’ve only played an hour of doubles once each week in recent years, you aren’t ready to suddenly try singles on consecutive days. That day of serving for two hours in tennis camp will also likely put you over the limit (particularly dangerous due to the repetitive overhead motion we will get into in a later piece). Likewise, the repetition of driving a few buckets at the range may be more demanding than playing a round (during which you would also chip and putt much of the time). Whatever the sport, get fit to play. Build your tolerance to avoid overuse.
Work for a Specificity of Training When Preparing to Play a Sport
Lastly, break down each sports skill into its component parts and develop the strength, speed, flexibility and mechanics for each. That is referred to as a specificity of training. But, specificity also means that if you want to be a better runner, you have to run. If you want to be a better golfer, no amount of weight training and flexibility exercise will improve the skill components of your game. For that, take lessons from seasoned professionals and practice! Stay fit, injury free, and use good mechanics when playing your sport. With all three, you will enjoy the benefits without the pain.
So, as you embark on the road to fitness, do so cautiously. Otherwise you may reach a fork in that road leading to injury.
