Overweight personal trainers
Replies
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On US insurance tables, body builders fall in "overweight" quite often. So, it sort of depends on your definition. (not casting stones here, just noting.)
Huh. I just calculated it and my trainer is obese, according to the BMI chart. He is also a giant mountain of muscle, so yeah. I do see a trainer who is "technically" overweight, but I probably wouldn't have hired him if that was fat and not lean mass. On the other hand, my mom had a tennis pro who was 350 lbs, and he was both a good instructor and a good player, so I think it probably depends on your goals and their skill.
There was an article on an overweight aerobics instructor - here: http://articles.washingtonpost.com/2012-02-27/lifestyle/35445428_1_black-women-white-women-african-american-women
It's pretty interesting. If I had a dollar for every time someone on here posts "but I'm too fat to go to the gym!" I could pay my own gym fees for life. If seeing someone who looks more like you makes you feel more comfortable and actually get in there to do the workouts, then that's an overall net positive.0 -
I don't have a personal trainers but all the ones I have seen on websites/gym advertisments always look really fit and in shape, so this made me wonder if there are any PTs out there that aren't fit and well proportioned. And would any of you use a PT that was obviously overweight/obese? And if not why not?
Then I had another thought, there seem to be a number of professional coaches who are overweight/obese, at least the ones that I have seen on tv - however that is quite a small number and prob mainly rugby orientated (I live in NZ) as I don't watch sport on tv so only catch it on the news occasionally.
If it is acceptable for coaches to be overweight is it ok for PTs to be overweight?
Food for thought....
Just because someone is overweight, it doesn't mean they aren't healthy or fit. Looks can be deceiving. Another thing, just because a personal trainer looks to be in shape, it doesn't mean they aren't overweight.
I disagree. Overweight people are not healthy or fit. Our perception of healthy has changed in the last generation.
Define overweight though... someone you think is "overweight" could just have extra skin.
Oh please!!!!!0 -
I wonder if judging a trainer based on their body might be a little like judging a barber based on their hair.
Maybe you should look at their clients instead.0 -
To be 100% honest and tell the the truth - even when it's an ugly truth - I'm going to say what I DO and not what I should do.
To me, if I'm going PAY you to coach me in how I workout and eat, I want to see that YOU are also able to do it. I think as a trainer you're also sort of selling yourself, you know? I feel like if even you can't do it, a certified trainer - than how the heck can I?
Fair? Maybe not. I realize that they may also be out of shape and still have the knowledge I need - but again, I'm being honest about what I actually do, not what I should do.
But I'm all about results based fitness.
I love the honesty. And feel the same way. I wouldn't go to a hair dresser with bad hair or dentist with bad teeth. Just being honest. :-/
Let's play a logic game.
You live in an isolated town that has two dentists. You are unable to go to the next town in order to access their dentists.
Dentist A has extremely straight, and exceptionally clean and strong teeth.
Dentist B has crooked, and otherwise marginally better than average looking teeth.
Which one do you go to?0 -
I wonder if judging a trainer based on their body might be a little like judging a barber based on their hair.
Maybe you should look at their clients instead.
That would be logical.0 -
Put two side by side, one is ripped and has 7% bodyfat, the other is obese with 32% bodyfat. What would you pick not knowing anything about them?
I would pick neither, as neither would appear functional to me.0 -
This was a concern for me when I decided to become a certified trainer, as I started at well over 400lbs I may never look like the typical "trainer" who has been fit their whole life. What I do offer is I look way better than I did and I am always going further, I can offer a "I know what your going through" mindset that is lost in many trainers. I can tell someone all the correct things to do, but honestly weight gain is never about not knowing, but finding that breakthrough which is usually a mental block
If they are obese I think I would steer clear, the idea is for someone to teach you to improve your life and I for one would want someone who walks the walk. Being Obese is easy, not so easy going the other way.
That being said I have heard/been involved with other trainers who look super fit but dish out some of the worst advice I have heard. I had a fellow "trainer" tell someone to go 3 days without eating![:\](https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/resources/emoji/confused.png ":\")
(found out later they weren't actually certified by any reputable organization, just a gym) 0 -
I wouldn't hire a PT who was overweight or obese. They don't need to be overly muscular, but they do need to be fit and lean.
The only one I give a pass to is one of my yoga instructors, she's still got a few pounds of baby weight to lose, but her baby is only six weeks old, so I can certainly understand the 10 extra pounds at this point in the game. A year from now--different story.0 -
I don't have a personal trainers but all the ones I have seen on websites/gym advertisments always look really fit and in shape, so this made me wonder if there are any PTs out there that aren't fit and well proportioned. And would any of you use a PT that was obviously overweight/obese? And if not why not?
Then I had another thought, there seem to be a number of professional coaches who are overweight/obese, at least the ones that I have seen on tv - however that is quite a small number and prob mainly rugby orientated (I live in NZ) as I don't watch sport on tv so only catch it on the news occasionally.
If it is acceptable for coaches to be overweight is it ok for PTs to be overweight?
Food for thought....
Seriously, a good coach can take an athlete to the next level, they don't have to be the athlete themselves. A lot of top coaches for olympic athletes are pot-bellied old men. What of it?
Seems pretty shallow to me - if you want to be good, you need someone with knowledge rather than a nice pair of pecs.
This is not to say that a top flight coach can't also be in low bf % shape (or wasn't previously in shape in an earlier incarnation of their career) - just that it's not a requirement for being a good coach.
Of course I'm talking about real coaching here, not the guy who shows you how to use the machines on your first ever visit to a gym and then goes and chats up the girl in reception.......0 -
In my experience, a personal trainer who is in excellent shape does not mean in the least that they are someone I would benefit from working with.
When I was pregnant I had a nurse who saw me for gestational diabetes. The first thing she said to me was that she was obese with type two diabetes. After I got past that, I found that she was very helpfu. The day my baby was born she visited me to tell me very sternly that if I don't keep my weight down I'll have type two diabetes before I turn 40. She made a difference; she gave me a good reason to take care of myself.0 -
This is a pet peeve of mine to see a personal trainer who is not fit. At the gym where I attend there are a couple and I don't have as much respect considering they're not practicing what they're preaching themselves. On the other hand a couple of the trainers also train at the gym and when I see them I greet them.0
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Personal trainers come in all shapes and sizes. They're all in good shape, because it's their job...but that doesn't mean they all have the same kind of physique. At my gym they all have different specialties and different ways of training...some of the guys are skinny and really into cycling/mountain biking/climbing, etc...that's also the kind of stuff their training revolves around. Other guys have training regiments that focus on explosiveness and power...they tend to be skinny too and have incredible vertical leaps and what not...while others are most definitely body builder types and there is one power lifting trainer at my gym who definitely has that kind of physique with the round belly...be he can squat and dead lift like no other and is in perfect health.
I think it's different when you're talking about a coach. A coach's job really isn't to get anyone in shape...a sports team is going to have professional trainers that do that..a coach is basically a manager of whatever the game is and the people playing that game...they don't really need to be in shape for that...it's more about strategy, etc.0 -
To be 100% honest and tell the the truth - even when it's an ugly truth - I'm going to say what I DO and not what I should do.
To me, if I'm going PAY you to coach me in how I workout and eat, I want to see that YOU are also able to do it. I think as a trainer you're also sort of selling yourself, you know? I feel like if even you can't do it, a certified trainer - than how the heck can I?
Fair? Maybe not. I realize that they may also be out of shape and still have the knowledge I need - but again, I'm being honest about what I actually do, not what I should do.
But I'm all about results based fitness.
This!
Just like if you are a hair dresser and your hair looks like crap, you aren't going to touch mine.0 -
If I hire a trainer I want someone who not only knows what he/she is doing but also implements that in his/her own lifestyle. I know knowledge and physique are two different things but I want to the person to have the right mindset for me, otherwise I will, with some exceptions, not find them helpful. That said, I do not currently use a trainer as I don't need the motivation and I'm not quite ready to go the direction where I will need to find one.0
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This is Dan John. I would crawl over a few dead bodies to be coached personally by him. Don't be so hung up on looks.
This is Mark Rippetoe. You would be a fool not to heed his advice when it comes to the mechanics of lifting.
Looks =/= knowledge
Both these guys are former (not really former in the case of Dan John, he's still competing in Discus and Highland Games) athletes who have become extremely successful in their respective fields. Are they on the cover of Mens Health? No. Does that vacant-eyed cover model that occupies the cover have anything to offer when weighed against these men? No.0 -
To be 100% honest and tell the the truth - even when it's an ugly truth - I'm going to say what I DO and not what I should do.
To me, if I'm going PAY you to coach me in how I workout and eat, I want to see that YOU are also able to do it. I think as a trainer you're also sort of selling yourself, you know? I feel like if even you can't do it, a certified trainer - than how the heck can I?
Fair? Maybe not. I realize that they may also be out of shape and still have the knowledge I need - but again, I'm being honest about what I actually do, not what I should do.
But I'm all about results based fitness.
I love the honesty. And feel the same way. I wouldn't go to a hair dresser with bad hair or dentist with bad teeth. Just being honest. :-/
Let's play a logic game.
You live in an isolated town that has two dentists. You are unable to go to the next town in order to access their dentists.
Dentist A has extremely straight, and exceptionally clean and strong teeth.
Dentist B has crooked, and otherwise marginally better than average looking teeth.
Which one do you go to?
I'll play this game. I would go to the dentist that has better reviews. If dentist A has nice teeth but is a jerk, treats patients poorly and does crappy work, then I wouldn't waste my money.
If dentist B has bad teeth but is caring, helpful and takes care of his patients and does good quality work, then I want to go to him.
Can't judge a book by the cover..0 -
I think it's different when you're talking about a coach. A coach's job really isn't to get anyone in shape...a sports team is going to have professional trainers that do that..a coach is basically a manager of whatever the game is and the people playing that game...they don't really need to be in shape for that...it's more about strategy, etc.
I meant coach as in "strength and conditioning" coach, "performance" coach. Rather than the manager connotation of the word....0 -
At my fittest point I was considered overweight. I was probably 85% muscle, played three varsity sports (high school), and could run a mile in >7 minutes. I had abs and guns. But according to that little weight/height ratio chart, I was overweight. I was even trying to lose weight then.
So yeah. Looks can be deceiving. And to think I thought I was fat back then. Sigh.0 -
do you see a dentist with bad teeth?0
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Yea I agree^ Even though I know i SHOULDNT. But it's the first thing that comes to mind.To be 100% honest and tell the the truth - even when it's an ugly truth - I'm going to say what I DO and not what I should do.
To me, if I'm going PAY you to coach me in how I workout and eat, I want to see that YOU are also able to do it. I think as a trainer you're also sort of selling yourself, you know? I feel like if even you can't do it, a certified trainer - than how the heck can I?
Fair? Maybe not. I realize that they may also be out of shape and still have the knowledge I need - but again, I'm being honest about what I actually do, not what I should do.
But I'm all about results based fitness.
I love the honesty. And feel the same way. I wouldn't go to a hair dresser with bad hair or dentist with bad teeth. Just being honest. :-/0 -
Id just want someone from a similar background. What i mean is I dont what Johnny great shape has to tell me about the struggles of weight loss when he has been naturally built his whole life. I want advice from someone who has lost a ton of weight, no matter what shape they are currently in.0
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So to everyone saying that they wouldn't be cause that means they aren't healthy I disagree. I would see them IF they were healthy, and that doesn't mean they aren't over weight. Being formerly in the military I knew plenty of guys who were considered overweight based on age/height/weight ratios, and many of them were perfectly healthy once it got down too it. One was about my age and he did a lot of lifting, so because of his muscle mass he never hit teh proper weight for his height and age. There was nothing unhealthy about him (except maybe the damn ego of his) and his body fat percentage was fine. Unless all of you are telling me you're going to go up to someone who you view as over weight and ask if you can get their body mass index I really think you should stop being so judgemental towards them. I would take a persnoal trainer who was HEALTHY I dont' care if they look over weight...0
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Id just want someone from a similar background. What i mean is I dont what Johnny great shape has to tell me about the struggles of weight loss when he has been naturally built his whole life. I want advice from someone who has lost a ton of weight, no matter what shape they are currently in.
This right here is why I became a trainer, when I started every fit person I had found had no idea what struggles you go through. You know, like little things, fitting into a booth at a restaurant,. movie theater seats, amusement park rides.0 -
At my fittest point I was considered overweight. I was probably 85% muscle, played three varsity sports (high school), and could run a mile in >7 minutes. I had abs and guns. But according to that little weight/height ratio chart, I was overweight. I was even trying to lose weight then.
So yeah. Looks can be deceiving. And to think I thought I was fat back then. Sigh.
This is not what is implied by overweight. many of us are considered overweight or obese by numbers on a chart. No one sees that or knows that unless you tell them. What I mean and Im guessing many here do as well are the people who are overweight/obese and its written all over them by the way they look. Potbellied men and women who are about 30plus overweight..0 -
So to everyone saying that they wouldn't be cause that means they aren't healthy I disagree. I would see them IF they were healthy, and that doesn't mean they aren't over weight. Being formerly in the military I knew plenty of guys who were considered overweight based on age/height/weight ratios, and many of them were perfectly healthy once it got down too it. One was about my age and he did a lot of lifting, so because of his muscle mass he never hit teh proper weight for his height and age. There was nothing unhealthy about him (except maybe the damn ego of his) and his body fat percentage was fine. Unless all of you are telling me you're going to go up to someone who you view as over weight and ask if you can get their body mass index I really think you should stop being so judgemental towards them. I would take a persnoal trainer who was HEALTHY I dont' care if they look over weight...
Ok again let me add. BMI of a fitness guru is NOT overweight. The chart says it is. But no one is going to be foolish enough to say Vin Diesel is overweight. NO! But Susie Q who is 30 plus overweight and is huffing and puffing as she shows me how to lift IS overweight and unfit and I don't want her training me. Not judgemental. But I need someone who is gonna take me to where I want to be. I look at them and I want what they have. If I don't then they don't need to be training me. If I want someone who is fat like me that I can relate to, I'll work out for free with a fat friend. I'm not paying for it.0 -
Personally I think that a trainer should try to be a good example. I've met trainers who know quite a bit and were out of shape, so if we're speaking of knowledge, then it doesn't matter about their physique.
But it does speak volumes if a trainer asks you to do a burpee, then you ask them to show an example (say they aren't physicially hampered with an injury) and they can't do it themselves. Now it doesn't mean they are a bad trainer, but if they harp about how "good" it is of an exercise, then why can't they do it themselves? Because it's not good enough for them?
It's just more valid to the consumer if the trainer looks like they practice what they preach. And to me, that's what's important.
A.C.E. Certified Personal/Group FitnessTrainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition0 -
Seriously, a good coach can take an athlete to the next level, they don't have to be the athlete themselves. A lot of top coaches for olympic athletes are pot-bellied old men. What of it?
Like that one dude, Mark Rippetoe. Who would want to listen to someone who doesn't look lean and trim. What could he know anyway?
(Sarcasm, if not obvious.)0 -
To be 100% honest and tell the the truth - even when it's an ugly truth - I'm going to say what I DO and not what I should do.
To me, if I'm going PAY you to coach me in how I workout and eat, I want to see that YOU are also able to do it. I think as a trainer you're also sort of selling yourself, you know? I feel like if even you can't do it, a certified trainer - than how the heck can I?
Fair? Maybe not. I realize that they may also be out of shape and still have the knowledge I need - but again, I'm being honest about what I actually do, not what I should do.
But I'm all about results based fitness.
I love the honesty. And feel the same way. I wouldn't go to a hair dresser with bad hair or dentist with bad teeth. Just being honest. :-/
Let's play a logic game.
You live in an isolated town that has two dentists. You are unable to go to the next town in order to access their dentists.
Dentist A has extremely straight, and exceptionally clean and strong teeth.
Dentist B has crooked, and otherwise marginally better than average looking teeth.
Which one do you go to?
I'll play this game. I would go to the dentist that has better reviews. If dentist A has nice teeth but is a jerk, treats patients poorly and does crappy work, then I wouldn't waste my money.
If dentist B has bad teeth but is caring, helpful and takes care of his patients and does good quality work, then I want to go to him.
Can't judge a book by the cover..
Understood. I'll give you the answer.
Dentist B.
Reason: A dentist cannot perform dental work on himself. So, he must go to his competitor for care. The quality of his work will be reflected in his competitor's mouth. Therefore, within this structure as stated above (only two options, etc.) the better choice is the one with the poor looking teeth, as his work is obviously better than his competitor's.0 -
Of all the trainers in my gym, the one I'd choose if I was going to hire one is a female who is about 5'1. Why? She knows her ****. I personally see her doing heavy compound lifting and showing clients how to do so and she's in great shape. No one else jumps out at me in terms of fitness like her.0
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there was a gym i used to workout at and this employee was huge i mean like fat hanging over the pants double chin and huge arms and legs and she was the lifegaurd at the pool there.......you could tell it exhausted her to walk from one side of the pool to the other i could only imagine how exhausting it would be for her to save somebody0
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