Overweight personal trainers

ajaxe432

I am a personal trainer and do not have the typical ripped look as many do. I pride myself on being on being a trainer who has walked in my clients' shoes. I have lost 80 lbs, gained 20 back, lost again, struggle with binge eating disorder, and fight with my fat girl demons every day. I am a trainer because during my weight loss I encountered so many trainers who are blessed with amazing genes and I found that it was hard to come by those who actually knew and had EXPERIENCED the struggles of being fat. It is sometimes intimidating for me to say I am a personal trainer.. I wear a size 10, not a 2.. I always fear judgment as I do not fit the mold of your typical trainer. My business has been very successful though. I find women are more trusting of me due to the fact I can actually respond to their concerns using my own experiences, success, and failures.

Totally respect that because I come from the same boat....well very similar boat! Congrats and way to lead by example!

ttippie2000

Maybe I'm going against the grain here, but when I think of trainers (not necessarily 'personal' trainers) I tend to prioritize knowledge and experience over current physical condition. My mind goes to people like Angelo Dundee. He wasn't much to look at, but he produced Mohammed Ali and Sugar Ray Leonard. He knew boxing inside and out, and he knew how to bring out a person's talent. Does anybody really care if he didn't have a 40-0 record himself? Another example, I have a stick fighting teacher who is 94. He is no longer an impressive figure, but in his day he was an undefeated 104-0 champion in the death match stick fights that go on in the Philippines. Who cares what kind of shape he's in? (Actually, he's in great shape for being 94). The man is a fighter of historic significance.

When I add the 'personal' to trainer, I'd still like to see experience and knowledge. If I need help pursuing a 500 lb deadlift, what I ask about is, "How many people have you trained to deadlift 500 lbs?" If their answer is zero, they probably lack the knowledge I seek. Does it matter whether they have ab definition?

I wonder whether having a personal trainer who is in shape is a proxy for not being able to parse the actual training knowledge/skill a person has.

christasierra

So I have been looking into becoming a personal trainer when I get get down to my goal.weight. I started in late febuary and I've been super successful with diet and excersise I've dropped 105+. Plus I have had many set backs through this time so.I could have lost more.... I feel that I will have an advantage being that I once was morbidly obese. I wish I had someone to.show me the right way to.diet and the right way to.excersise.... But obese people are afraid of judgement... Because people do judge us....I had to get over that. I didn't want to.go do.cardio.bc ppl would stare then it got to where people were lk daaaamn shes doing that. In the beginning I was told by so many people " don't lift heavy bc you will get real bulky" so I was scared to.lift.... Barely started lifting 2/3 months ago I wish I had someone to show me the right way from the get go. I believe I can be a successful trainer bc I've been here I'M DOING IT RIGHT NOW....I know have have felt the.struggles... People just sometimes need someone there that understands ....I will do this.

Bry_Fitness70

I would have a hard time paying a PT that wasn't fit looking. It seems like a pretty fundamental expectation that a physical fitness expert should follow his / her own advice!

lithezebra

I have no problem with a personal trainer who exercises being overweight. I think that our standards of fitness arbitrarily assign overweight status to a lot of people who are at a very healthy weight. I'm more concerned that a personal trainer actually trains than in how his or her body is proportioned.

dazzer1975

I don't care what my hairdresser's hair is like, or my dentist's teeth, if their hair or teeth are bad I will avoid the people THEY go to.

I care about substance, not style.

cats847

It all depends on what your goals are and how you define "fitness."

For instance, If you want to learn to squat 500 lbs, you might choose a powerlifter to train you, and those guys are quite often on the chubby side. They're strong as hell though, far stronger than the typical "fitness model" types you see prancing around at the gym.

If, on the other hand, your goal is to achieve a certain type of "look" then I suppose it would be best to choose a trainer that most closely resembles the look you're after -- although this strategy can backfire.

badbutcherboy

One of my best friends and research partner from school was an amazingly fit and knowledgable personal trainer, as well as being an extremely thorough and methodical researcher. After returning from a long term research project in Canada he was late-diagnosed with Lyme disease which left him in almost constant (though thankfully now manageable) pain, especially his knees, and extreme chronic fatigue.
Long story short; he gained about 30 lbs, and would no doubt be considered to look "soft". He still works part-time as a trainer for a the football team of a Big 10 school, and though you might not get it from looking at him, the man has forgotten more about fitness than most will ever know.
I have met MANY very fit trainers who really didn't know anything about the science of fitness beyond the last article they read, and of course many who knew a great deal. The point is; interacting with them would be the only way to find out. My friend and I have another mutual friend who looks like the cover of every fitness magazine on the rack. He got that way by having drive and will power and by listening to the first friend mentioned and following his instructions like a recipe, not by some great understanding of the science behind it.
Like many have posted, don't judge a book by it's cover.

MoreBean13

I don't care what my hairdresser's hair is like, or my dentist's teeth, if their hair or teeth are bad I will avoid the people THEY go to.

I care about substance, not style.

OK, I'm with you on the hairdresser's hair.....but you'd go to a dentist with bad teeth? C'mon.......

Ophidion

Has anyone mentioned Mark Rippetoe yet?

If not, then "Mark Rippetoe."

Just because. Oh, and to use one of my favorite quotes from him: "You can't make people smarter. You can expose them to information, but your responsibility stops there. "

QFT^FTW...Thread over, this reply says it all.

HappyStack

Hundreds of thousands of people, perhaps more, use Mark Rippetoe's Starting Strength to begin to get in shape. He's hardly the most athletic person I've ever seen, any more. If the knowledge is good, I doubt most people care, it's up to you to put knowledge into practice.

That being said I've been thinking of getting into personal training & nutrition, and I don't think I'd dare try until I'm in the shape I feel comfortable being in even though I believe the above.

HappyStack

Has anyone mentioned Mark Rippetoe yet?

If not, then "Mark Rippetoe."

Just because. Oh, and to use one of my favorite quotes from him: "You can't make people smarter. You can expose them to information, but your responsibility stops there. "

This is probably why I should read all of the thread before I respond. D'oh.

dazzer1975

OK, I'm with you on the hairdresser's hair.....but you'd go to a dentist with bad teeth? C'mon.......

LMAO sure, I am a brit, bad teeth to you probably look good to us lmao

toutmonpossible

I used to belong to a gym and there was a PT who kept giving me unsolicited advice. She was short, extremely squat, poorly groomed, and a terrible advertisement for her services.

f150fan

I am a personal trainer and do not fit the mold of have a perfect body.. However I have lost over 220 pounds through diet an exercise alone and ive helped many individuals do the same.Ive had clients lose 200 pounds just like myself.. So eventhough I don't fit that perfect body mold you expect, I do know what im doing and ive had much success at it. So never judge a book by its cover..

VeryKatie

Just because a PT is overweight doesn't mean they don't know what they're teaching about. They struggle just like the rest of us with motivation and such. So the best thing is to talk to them and see what they know and what their credentials are.

Same thing with doctors - they know about health, but many have a hard time keeping up with their own.

bugaboo_sue

Just because a PT is overweight doesn't mean they don't know what they're teaching about. They struggle just like the rest of us with motivation and such. So the best thing is to talk to them and see what they know and what their credentials are.

Same thing with doctors - they know about health, but many have a hard time keeping up with their own.

If my PT and/or Doctor has a "hard time" keeping up with their health what makes me think that they would have my best interests in mind?

ETA: I personally would want a PT who knew what they were talking about and had the physique. Same with a doctor. If you're telling me how to be healthy then I certainly expect you to be the poster child for healthy yourself.

jimmmer

Just because a PT is overweight doesn't mean they don't know what they're teaching about. They struggle just like the rest of us with motivation and such. So the best thing is to talk to them and see what they know and what their credentials are.

Same thing with doctors - they know about health, but many have a hard time keeping up with their own.

If my PT and/or Doctor has a "hard time" keeping up with their health what makes me think that they would have my best interests in mind?

ETA: I personally would want a PT who knew what they were talking about and had the physique. Same with a doctor. If you're telling me how to be healthy then I certainly expect you to be the poster child for healthy yourself.

Over the winter I normally eat (well) over maintenance and *gasp* lose my six pack for the purposes of training a particular quality.

If you met me in the depths of January would my knowledge of training be less than if you met me after I'd cut the winter fat and had my abs back?

This whole discussion was ridiculous the first time around and it hasn't improved upon it's return IMHO.

BigT555

Just because a PT is overweight doesn't mean they don't know what they're teaching about. They struggle just like the rest of us with motivation and such. So the best thing is to talk to them and see what they know and what their credentials are.

Same thing with doctors - they know about health, but many have a hard time keeping up with their own.

If my PT and/or Doctor has a "hard time" keeping up with their health what makes me think that they would have my best interests in mind?

ETA: I personally would want a PT who knew what they were talking about and had the physique. Same with a doctor. If you're telling me how to be healthy then I certainly expect you to be the poster child for healthy yourself.

Over the winter I normally eat (well) over maintenance and *gasp* lose my six pack for the purposes of training a particular quality.

If you met me in the depths of January would my knowledge of training be less than if you met me after I'd cut the winter fat and had my abs back?

This whole discussion was ridiculous the first time around and it hasn't improved upon it's return IMHO.

thats bulking, im sure you dont bulk to the point where you have moobs and have a gut sticking out far enough that you cant see your toes

slightly overweight i would be alright with, but a PT is supposed to be passionate about fitness. it may be stereotyping but i think in most cases its fair to assume that someone overweight isnt all that passionate about fitness, even if they do have a knowledge base in the feild

tycho_mx

The best athletes rarely make the best coaches....