WORKING OUT
Stop! The 3 Feeble Excuses Personal Trainers Hear Every Damn Day
Some folks are beyond help. Don’t be one of them.
I’ve been training folks for over 15 years, but sadly I still cannot change the laws of thermodynamics so you can live on take-out, Pringles, and wine and still lose weight.
I also do not know any Magical Exercises that are genuinely fun, don’t cause an uncomfortable burn in your muscles, yet burn 2,000 kcals/hour.
And yet there are still folks out there who torture their personal trainers daily with demands for huge pay-offs from minimal effort.
By now I know which questions to ask up front to avoid taking on these clients in the first place. But ask any personal trainer for client horror stories and each of the following 3 excuses will feature prominently.
If you ever hear yourself making any of these excuses, please stop.
#1 - “I Had a Good/Bad Day So….”
Ah yes, the “so…” that just trails off, as if what preceded it needs no more explanation.
Essentially all roads lead to sloth — choosing the indulgent, inactive option when given even the smallest opportunity to do so:
- I had a workout scheduled but work had been nuts that day, so…
- I’d planned to ‘be good’ at lunch, but it was Mary’s birthday, so…
- I wanted to go booze-free this week, but my son got great exam results, so…
You get the drift.
If nothing genuinely pressing comes up that helps you avoid doing the thing that will help you get in shape, you will find something that feels at least legitimate enough to allow you to tell yourself it’s OK to eat/drink/do what you want at that moment.
And of course, this is OK, you’re a grown adult. You’re just not getting in shape any time soon.
#2 — “But I Had A Salad on Tuesday!”
It is great to get started on the road to getting in shape, but many people make the mistake of expecting a pat on the back and an immediate pay-off for even the lowest levels of effort.
- “I had a salad on Tuesday. Why haven’t I lost weight? What’s the point?”.
- “I had no wine on Thursday. You said I’d debloat if I drank less. I still feel bloated”.
- “I went for a 20-minute walk on Monday lunchtime. I don’t feel fitter. How long do I have to keep exercising until I can stop?”.
These are all excellent things to do and to build upon, but in isolation, they are a drop in the ocean compared to the volume of:
- calorie-controlled meals
- workouts and
- non-boozy nights
that you need to get things moving in the right direction.
And absolutely, your trainer must set realistic expectations for you at the outset.
However the sooner you lower your expectations of what happens when you take one step in the right direction, the sooner you’ll understand this is all a marathon rather than a sprint.
#3 — “I Don’t Like That Exercise, It’s Uncomfortable”
Exercises, workout styles, diets, specific foods — we often find fault with one thing in isolation when it’s the very idea of doing anything that we’re not happy with.
As a coach this takes some detective work, often having to go Full Columbo to understand the main issue…
“Lunges hurt my knees. Squats hurt my hips. Steps make my ankles feel weird”
Actual Issue: “My legs are weak and I hate the feeling of them being tired so quickly”
“I don’t like those breakfast options. Or those. Nope, not those either”.
Actual Issue: “I want Coco Pops, stop trying to take away my Coco Pops”.
Do you constantly flip-flop between training programs, exercise choices, and dietary approaches, never sticking with anything for long enough to get anywhere?
If so, ask yourself: “What AM I willing to do that involves:
- Pushing my body outside its comfort zone a little to get fitter and stronger;
- Restricting calories a little, involving some hunger, to lose body fat
- Giving up daily indulgences (junk, booze, late nights) often enough to boost my health?”
If you can’t come up with anything, then you need to admit that it’s nothing to do with the program, and everything to do with your motivation.
Listen, I Am Not a Nasty Man
I’m generally very accommodating, supportive, and helpful with clients — after 40 I know this sh*t isn’t easy to fit into our lives.
There ARE ways to be flexible with workouts, diets, and lifestyle habits that help you get in shape without making you hate life and everyone around you.
But if deep down your excuses for:
- over-eating
- not exercising and
- not looking after your health
are because you’d just rather not do any of this, then admit that to yourself.
Don’t blame the book, the diet, your personal trainer, the YouTuber whose program you bought, your spin class instructor, your gym’s opening times, your boss for driving you to drink too much…
It’s all on you.
Eat better, work out, and manage stress and sleep because those are the right things for you to do to thrive in life. Getting in shape is just an awesome, welcome side effect.
And if you don’t see the value of any of that, don’t bother. People are tired of listening to your excuses.
