Fat fitness instructors

DeathIsMyGift

What do you think? Would you be ok with having a fitness instructor who was significantly overweight? What about PE teachers in schools? Should they be demonstrating what they teach, or is it a case of do what I say, not what I do? What about a personal trainer? Or do you want your fitness instructor to have a body you aspire to?

The question was "Would you be ok with having a fitness instructor who was significantly overweight?" The short is is No, I would not be okay with it. I feel they *should* be "demonstrating what they teach."

JudoJones

Here's another point of view....

Being an 'elite' athelte, no matter what sport, is extremely hard on the body.

If an individual spends enough time training & competing they will accummalate injuries that will affect them for the rest of their lives. Most of my best coaches & trainers were former olympic level athletes. THey were bent over, limped, etc...and some were overweight due to their injuries preventing them from training any more. Now i'm older, retired from active competition and about 20 pounds overweight. I'm still in the gym twice a day training & coaching but not able push it like i once did.

Just wanted to put another perspective out there. THose who've lived & breathed it and have paid the price with their bodies may no longer be able to still do it. But through their sacrifices have gained some very hard earned knowledge that you couldn't get anywhere else.

katt742

Honestly...I wouldn't take a class if the instructor was overweight. That's just me. I want someone who is toned and fit and in great physical shape teaching me.

Im thinking about getting certified in personal training...but BEFORE I do this, Im going to get in the BEST POSSIBLE SHAPE I can in order to inspire other people.

Its like when I was in college....some of my professors had never held a job in the field they were teaching...that bothered me. I want to learn from someone with experience....someone who I aspire to be like. And in my opinion, overweight people are not going to inspire me to become fit.

katt742

What do you think? Would you be ok with having a fitness instructor who was significantly overweight? What about PE teachers in schools? Should they be demonstrating what they teach, or is it a case of do what I say, not what I do? What about a personal trainer? Or do you want your fitness instructor to have a body you aspire to?

The question was "Would you be ok with having a fitness instructor who was significantly overweight?" The short is is No, I would not be okay with it. I feel they *should* be "demonstrating what they teach."

Right on.

rybo

Here's another point of view....

Being an 'elite' athelte, no matter what sport, is extremely hard on the body.

If an individual spends enough time training & competing they will accummalate injuries that will affect them for the rest of their lives. Most of my best coaches & trainers were former olympic level athletes. THey were bent over, limped, etc...and some were overweight due to their injuries preventing them from training any more. Now i'm older, retired from active competition and about 20 pounds overweight. I'm still in the gym twice a day training & coaching but not able push it like i once did.

Just wanted to put another perspective out there. THose who've lived & breathed it and have paid the price with their bodies may no longer be able to still do it. But through their sacrifices have gained some very hard earned knowledge that you couldn't get anywhere else.

This is an excellent point.

jipper44

I used to believe I wouldn't take a class from an overweight person. However, personal experience has changed my thinking. I think it's another case of "this is my goal, theirs is their goal".

My sister is a fitness instructor and personal trainer. She just had a kid in February. She's just now starting to change up her routine now that the baby's schedule is established, she's getting enough rest while taking care of 2 kids under the age of 3 to think about training herself for races again, and can manage her work schedule inbetween her kids' naptimes, mealtimes, breastfeeding, etc. If someone new came into her class, they wouldn't know that and might make an assumption that she's fat, she's a hypocrite and she has no clue what she's talking about and decide not to take her class.

I remember her telling me about a time while she was pregnant that a man in her class wasn't doing the exercises because she wasn't doing them...this was after she told the class why she wouldnt be doing certain exercises with them. All I can say to that is, this man's stubbornness and attitude about "fat trainers" was only hurting himself.

DeathIsMyGift

Here's another point of view....

Being an 'elite' athelte, no matter what sport, is extremely hard on the body.

If an individual spends enough time training & competing they will accummalate injuries that will affect them for the rest of their lives. Most of my best coaches & trainers were former olympic level athletes. THey were bent over, limped, etc...and some were overweight due to their injuries preventing them from training any more. Now i'm older, retired from active competition and about 20 pounds overweight. I'm still in the gym twice a day training & coaching but not able push it like i once did.

Just wanted to put another perspective out there. THose who've lived & breathed it and have paid the price with their bodies may no longer be able to still do it. But through their sacrifices have gained some very hard earned knowledge that you couldn't get anywhere else.

You make a great point. And I agree with you. If someone sacrifices their body doing what they love and in turn puts on a bit of weight that shouldn't stop them from teaching. If it is their passion and they are doing the best they can with injuries they have substained then I could definitely learn from them. I guess I should have clarified my original post. I want to learn from someone who has been through it. LIke katt742 says above, you would want the person you are learning from to have experience in that field. Someone who is "significantly overweight" wouldn't have that same drive and passion as someone who has substained injuries and is physically unable to continue the way they had in the past.

katt742

As stated before the question was SIGNIFICANTLY OVERWEIGHT. There is a big difference between being curvy or having some extra weight on you and significantly overweight....

fitbot

i totally posted a topic about this last week and got BLASTED by everyone who was like THIS IS A SITE FOR SUPPORT, STOP HATING.
but honestly i think it is demoralizing to be taught by someone who's PROFESSION it is to be fit and in good shape and they are teaching a class they cannot actually physically do.
if this person was a doctor and didnt know how to give a shot, or stick a tongue depressor in your throat , or a fireman who couldnt actually fight fire we'd be looking at this in a different way, huh?

honestly, NOTHING against people who are bigger. I know it takes all kinds. and in fact i have one instructor who is larger but she is SO energetic and built and kicks your *kitten* in class that its awesome. but if you cant do your job you shouldn't be doing it

njean888

I think fat instructors can be very knowlegable, but with that said i'm still more of a visual being. I can't get motivated if I look better than the person trying to teach me.

foxxybrown

For me it's not necessarily about their size, but about their drive and whether they can motivate me. There is a guy at my gym that teaches a boot camp class. Very fit small guy that has run many marathons but I will not take his class because he does not participate in the class. He just stands there and watches. I'm sure he can do everything that he's instructing the students to do but non-participation from the instructor is a big turn-off for me. So if they are fat that's cool, but you must participate.

fuzzymel

For me it's not necessarily about their size, but about their drive and whether they can motivate me. There is a guy at my gym that teaches a boot camp class. Very fit small guy that has run many marathons but I will not take his class because he does not participate in the class. He just stands there and watches. I'm sure he can do everything that he's instructing the students to do but non-participation from the instructor is a big turn-off for me. So if they are fat that's cool, but you must participate.

That would bug me too.

Sometimes teachers do stop and watch but the whole time wouldn't be nice.

vox23

I believe that one should practice what they preach, but that does not mean that the 150 lb totally ripped 0% body fat instructor is any better than the one that is a little heavier. It all depends on their knowledge and their ability. Should your instructor be able to demonstrate everything they teach? Absolutely. Should they lead a healthy lifestyle? Well, probably, but it's not like I've ever seen my trainer outside of my time with him so I don't know what they do and I don't care. As long as he can continue to guide me and show me proper technique and push me, that's the important part, right?!

As someone who is looking to get into the fitness industry, I personally don't feel I am ready to be an example until I've reached my goals. However, I was looking into certification and came across a very ignorant comment in this particular program by a user who stated that not everyone should be able to teach. That just because someone lost 100 lbs didn't qualify them to lead others in the field because there were reasons they had to lose all that weight to begin with. It made me FURIOUS!!!

So, if you feel like you are ready to teach others, and by that I mean be educated, be motivating and be able to lead your classes or people, then GO FOR IT!!!! Weight should not be a factor as long as you can do the job and what it requires. I would think the same if I was looking for an instructor as well.

Cheers!

fteale

And speaking of gym teachers, you don't really get to choose who your gym teacher is... but I had an overweight gym teacher. I didn't care much about her size at the time. I only cared that she was a horrible, horrible lady who regularly made me feel like crap because I couldn't do a pull-up, or run a mile without stopping to use my asthma inhaler. For gym teachers, it's less about the appearance and more about the attitude. Meanness has no place in a grade-school gym class. If you make exercise torture, then kids have no incentive to continue to exercise as they get older. I'm not blaming her for my laziness, but I do wish she'd made it more fun.

I totally agree! I was cursed with really mean sports teachers at school from 10-15 and consequently I was an overweight child because I HATED PE so I used to hide and refuse to go to the lessons. Also I had asthma, which they refused to take into account, which often made me feel like I was going to die. It wasn't until I was 15 and allowed to take up rowing at school that I realised I wasn't actually naturally fat, I am a mesomorph and pretty sporty. I had just had really bad teachers until that point. No one should be allowed to teach children if they are so cruel they put those people off sport for life.

chellekoren

You never know where they are at in their journey so I don't judge them. If they can tell me and know the difference between the right and wrong move, I'm good with it. I take kung fu from a husband and wife duo. Sifu can do it all and more than anyone I have ever seen and his wife is still on her journey and can still do a lot. Simu (wife) is at a MUCH higher level in her kung fu journey than I am and I have NO problem taking instruction from her, either. She has had three kids smattered along in her journey, do I hold her accountable because she is still losing her baby fat, too? NOPE, not at all. We are all on a journey in life and each journey is different.