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As promised in Friday’s post (Turns Out It’s a Journey After All), the next three morning posts will delve into a few things I’ve learned about myself when it comes to getting in the best shape of my entire freaking life.
The first thing I’ve learned in this journey is that friends are way more important to the process than personal trainers are.
When I started this journey, I committed myself to do it with the aid of a personal trainer. I thought, if anyone can whip my butt into shape, this dude with biceps that can crush steel pipes certainly can.
My trainer was a near perfect specimen of physical health. I’m pretty sure his six-pack muscles had six-packs of their own and he benched 300 lbs. with the same effort it would take me to lift a tissue box.
Three times every week I made the long 35 minute drive to a fantastic facility to be trained by one of the best.
He. Worked. Me. Hard.
And when I say hard, the guy worked me into the ground. Literally. At the end of most of my sessions I would lie face down on the gym floor, unable to move while my facilities searched for any ounce of energy to kneel up again.
For nearly two months I trained with this personal trainer, and there was no doubt I was getting leaner and stronger after every session. But something strange happened. I began to lose motivation.
Admittedly I have never been properly trained how to use a gym before starting the training. Part of the real excitement of personal training was learning how to do all the different exercises that would build the muscle in all the different parts of my body. One reason it killed me so much was because I was working muscles that had never been worked.
But then I learned it all. Or at least enough. And the sessions started getting monotonous. I was paying all sorts of money for something I could now do for myself.
Errr… at least I could do most of it myself.
There are two things a trainer does that you or I will probably never do. First, he’ll be there to help you with that last rep of whatever you’re doing. After all, it’s that last rep that really rips your muscle for maximum growth and without someone else there, it simply doesn’t happen. And second, he pushes you to keep going in any exercise, even when you think you’re at your limit.
He’ll use fancy words like, “oh, come on. Don’t wuss out.” Or, “one more, you baby man.” And as it turns out, he’s always right. There was always a little more to give than I thought I had.
For those reasons, and the simple reason that you’ll gain lifelong valuable education for how to work out, I really recommend every person hire a personal trainer, at least for two or three months. It’s money you’ll never regret spending, and you’ll learn exactly what you’ve been doing to shoot yourself in the foot any time you’ve worked out in the past.
But then… once you’ve been thoroughly educated, and you’ve called your trainer a sailor’s word or two for the horrible things he has made you do, and you have been pushed to the point where it feels wrong not to workout…
Ditch the personal trainer and find a dedicated friend to workout with instead.
I’ve learned that friends are much more important than personal trainers if you’re in it for the long-haul.
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My two faves for sticking with it are group exercise classes at the gym. If you go regularly you always get to know a few people! and I connect with people on Facebook doing similar workouts like TurboFire or P90X2! Group support, one on one support...there is nothing more likely to help you get the job done! Love your posts on getting healthy!
I have been overweight my entire life. It took me until I was 42 to finally find something I could stick with. I hate the gym, I have tried it for years feel stupid and lost every time I go. Then I met a personal trainer who runs bootcamps and although that sounds like the most intimidating thing in the world, I love going. The group of people who show up are not always the same, and most of them are in great shape and run circles around me. But they are always so encouraging and make me feel good for just showing up and giving it my best shot. Since last August I have lost 50 lbs and still have at least 100 to go, but every day is a step in the right direction. And that personal trainer is no longer just my trainer; she is my friend.
I have a couple of friends who I walk with, but we're not nearly as committed to it as you and your pals. My husband and I go to the gym, but we alternate days, so we can stay with the kids. I do go to a Zumba class sometimes, but not with friends, because I don't know anyone who's a member at my gym who can go with me. I suppose that's always why I chat it up with the other people in class while we're waiting for it to start- so I have a companion. So I can look at someone and we can either give each other the thumbs up, or roll our eyes because the teacher's playing terrible music.
Valuable advice! I lost more weight when I joined a program with my sister and some co-workers and we put money in a pot for each week. We would get money for who did the most workouts or lost the most at weight watchers. I also have had a personal "Nazi" trainer at the gym, but she was actually so great so told me I didn't need her anymore and set me up with some other girls so we could push each other. Then she would check in with us from time to time to see if we were slackin. Proud of you Dan! You are very inspirational.
So true! My workout buddy is the reason I keep going. When unfortunate circumstances arise and she needs to cancel, I always seem to make an excuse (in my head) to not go because I am not motivated to go alone. Doing cardio and chatting also makes the time fly by! :)