Overweight fitness instructors

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  • Zaftique
    Zaftique Posts: 599 Member
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    I've had several heavy bellydance dance teachers who were truly gifted dancers and had more endurance and cardio fitness than most of their slender students, and a friend who's on the plump side who climbs mountains and does triathalons. So yeah, I'd give a heavy instructor a chance. You can be "fit" in some ways and still heavy.

    ^^ This.

    The Level 3 bellydance instructor I went to was heavier than I was at the time, but unlike me, she could put her forehead to her knees during the warmup stretches. And after 30 minutes of me wheezing through choreography, she hadn't even broken a sweat.
  • trmndsblndtte
    trmndsblndtte Posts: 82 Member
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    This thread is pretty discouraging. I'm getting ready to start studying for my ACE test (personal training) and I'm currently still overweight. However, I was once 80 lbs heavier, I've committed to a healthier lifestyle and my habits and coping skills are BY FAR better than they were 5 years ago. I've run a marathon, 4 half marathons and I can lift.

    It makes me really sad that I feel like I'd have to give my entire history in order for someone to give me a chance. I'm human just like everyone else. I'm not perfect. I deal with binge and emotional eating and depression. If anything, I think it makes be BETTER equipped to work with certain types of people. I believe in people feeling strong and capable -- no matter where they are starting.

    Don't get discouraged. I go to a turbo kick class and my instructor is overweight and she shares her weight loss journey with the class. She keeps us informed on her progress, whether she losing or not, and encourages us to stay focused and look to her class for inspiration. We all love her for it. I was skeptical at first, but the class and her instructions are helping me get in shape even though she may not be losing as quickly as she would like to but she's still inspiring because she's trying and sharing her story.
    This is great!
  • Gingerspice45
    Gingerspice45 Posts: 137 Member
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    I've never been to a instructor led class where the instructor was overweight or obese. I would think that would turn off people to coming to take that particular work out. I wouldn't necessarily not go to the class if the instructor was still good at teaching the class. I once had a zumba instructor that continued to teach classes while she was pregnant but the intensity of the workouts continued to be the same up until she went on leave.
  • LiminalAscendance
    LiminalAscendance Posts: 489 Member
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    Kinda like going to a dentist that has bad teeth? Maybe like asking a fat doctor about weight loss?

    You live in a town with two dentists.
    One has good teeth, the other has bad teeth. Which one do you go to?

    The one with the bad teeth because clearly the one with the good teeth is a crappy dentist.

    Think about it. There are only two dentists in the town. The one with the bad teeth is doing all the work on the one with the good teeth (and he can't work on his own, obviously). The one with the good teeth is doing the work on the one with the bad teeth (and obviously not an acceptable job).

    The one with the bad teeth is clearly the better dentist.
  • paulawatkins1974
    paulawatkins1974 Posts: 720 Member
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    Personally, it says to me that the trainers can't even get fit with their workouts. How do they expect participants to get fit? Nope, no overweight trainers.
    I totally agree. Some would say that's discrimination but I can't help it. It'd be like me going into my local hooters and applying for a waitress position. I have huuge boobs. Alas, I am 80-90 lbs overweight and would look hideous in their outfits. I do have over 15 years experience serving. So I can imagine if I went in there & cried discrimination because I'm qualified but they won't hire me.Ridiculous!
  • dbmata
    dbmata Posts: 12,950 Member
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    Personally, it says to me that the trainers can't even get fit with their workouts. How do they expect participants to get fit? Nope, no overweight trainers.
    I totally agree. Some would say that's discrimination but I can't help it. It'd be like me going into my local hooters and applying for a waitress position. I have huuge boobs. Alas, I am 80-90 lbs overweight and would look hideous in their outfits. I do have over 15 years experience serving. So I can imagine if I went in there & cried discrimination because I'm qualified but they won't hire me.Ridiculous!

    Not even close, the comparison is what's ridiculous.

    Your fallacy is predicated on the sole concept that they only aspect of service is image. Because you're claiming that the only aspect of training is image.
  • pobalita
    pobalita Posts: 741 Member
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    I don't care what the instructor looks like as long as they can demonstrate what they are teaching and they are engaged in teaching it. I've been to way too many classes where the instructors aren't interested at all and actually seem bored teaching. I go to a core workout class sometimes where the very fit-looking instructor doesn't do anything more than stand there with a stopwatch and tell us when to switch exercises. I go to another core class where the instructor is overweight, but he does everything with the class and I find his classes way more motivating and enjoyable.
  • paulawatkins1974
    paulawatkins1974 Posts: 720 Member
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    If mildly overweight, but physically fit (endurance etc.) - yes.

    If “morbidly obese” – no.

    My choice would be someone that was once overweight and out of shape, but has lost the weight etc. and kept it off for 2 years or more. That I personally think is inspirational.
    This would be my choice. Not necessarily someone who is ripped or model material.(not that there's anything wrong with that either) Someone who has been overweight and is close to goal now would be my inspiration. I'd be like show me exactly what you did! (yes diet is first I get that. Still think I would look to them as a role model)
  • SezxyStef
    SezxyStef Posts: 15,268 Member
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    Personally, it says to me that the trainers can't even get fit with their workouts. How do they expect participants to get fit? Nope, no overweight trainers.
    I totally agree. Some would say that's discrimination but I can't help it. It'd be like me going into my local hooters and applying for a waitress position. I have huuge boobs. Alas, I am 80-90 lbs overweight and would look hideous in their outfits. I do have over 15 years experience serving. So I can imagine if I went in there & cried discrimination because I'm qualified but they won't hire me.Ridiculous!

    Who says they aren't fit...perhaps they could "exercise" you into the ground.

    Exercise isn't for weight loss it's for heatlh and fitness. Calorie deficit is for weight loss.

    You have no idea how fit they are or their story.

    When I did zumba my instructor was heavier...but she kicked our butts...she had gained weight after a horrific accident and was finally recovered from it but had gained weight...

    as for weight lifting trainers friggen right I would...are you telling me you wouldn't go to Arnold for weight training advice...paleeeeze. SMH
  • paulawatkins1974
    paulawatkins1974 Posts: 720 Member
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    This thread is pretty discouraging. I'm getting ready to start studying for my ACE test (personal training) and I'm currently still overweight. However, I was once 80 lbs heavier, I've committed to a healthier lifestyle and my habits and coping skills are BY FAR better than they were 5 years ago. I've run a marathon, 4 half marathons and I can lift.

    It makes me really sad that I feel like I'd have to give my entire history in order for someone to give me a chance. I'm human just like everyone else. I'm not perfect. I deal with binge and emotional eating and depression. If anything, I think it makes be BETTER equipped to work with certain types of people. I believe in people feeling strong and capable -- no matter where they are starting.
    You would be the perfect trainer to inspire me!
  • kgeyser
    kgeyser Posts: 22,505 Member
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    It wouldn't bother me. What makes a good group fitness instructor is someone who takes the time to properly prepare the material by thinking about the movements and intensity, has their cues prepped, motivates the class, and shows modifications for people who want to ease up on their workout or increase the intensity. Some are great at it, and others just plain suck, and both groups come in all shapes and sizes.

    The other part of a group fitness class is that it is up to the individual to decide how much effort they are going to put forth during the class. You're the one who decides how much resistance to put on the bike, how many moves you want to make high impact, or how far into a pose you want to go. If you find yourself putting forth more effort for a "fitter" instructor because that person's body motivates you, then the problem isn't necessarily with the overweight instructor. You just need to find something within yourself that motivates you to work hard no matter what the person teaching looks like.
  • LiminalAscendance
    LiminalAscendance Posts: 489 Member
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    Personally, it says to me that the trainers can't even get fit with their workouts. How do they expect participants to get fit? Nope, no overweight trainers.
    I totally agree. Some would say that's discrimination but I can't help it. It'd be like me going into my local hooters and applying for a waitress position. I have huuge boobs. Alas, I am 80-90 lbs overweight and would look hideous in their outfits. I do have over 15 years experience serving. So I can imagine if I went in there & cried discrimination because I'm qualified but they won't hire me.Ridiculous!
    as for weight lifting trainers friggen right I would...are you telling me you wouldn't go to Arnold for weight training advice...paleeeeze. SMH

    Sure, Arnold is an icon. He's a self-made man in the truest sense of the word, and it all started with his dedication to becoming a physical marvel, which was just the beginning of what his motivation could accomplish.

    Everyone knows Arnold.

    But if some old guy walked into my gym, looking like Arnie does now, and started giving me advice, I may be a bit incredulous.

    I guess this is why we should ask for resumes when we're looking for workout instructors.

    Otherwise, don't cry foul when someone rightfully assumes your body is a reflection of your abilities (which is clearly the case the majority of the time, no matter how PC society becomes).
  • mswoodsy
    mswoodsy Posts: 91 Member
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    Even just the title on this thread makes me laugh. Therefore, yeah, I'd avoid that class. When I think about why; I'd rather have somebody that I could see being EXPERIENCED in that type of exercise to TEACH me how to correctly do it.

    I feel like the term "overweight fitness instructor" is quite an oxymoron...
  • sparrowperegrine
    sparrowperegrine Posts: 1
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    I took a pilates class years ago, and that class helped me lose 30 pounds that summer (in addition to diet and bicycling) and for the first time in my life I felt STRONG. The first day of class I walked in and looked at my overweight instructor, and thought, "No way she's going to be able to help me," but she had a really great understanding of how muscle groups work together, and how posture and motion contributes to strength training, and her class DID really help me.

    So maybe she had another reason she was overweight, or maybe she didn't really do her own workout much, but she did know what she was doing, and was therefore able to teach it.

    So yeah, I wouldn't expect a fitness instructor to have nothing to teach me based on what they look like themselves.

    Also, somewhat related, once I had a really old yoga teacher, and with him, too, at first I thought I couldn't learn from him--but then I realized that if he was seventy and still doing yoga, he was probably EXACTLY the person I wanted to learn from.
  • contingencyplan
    contingencyplan Posts: 3,639 Member
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    I know a girl named Christi who used to be a personal trainer. She was good at it too and had a lot of clients. However, her boyfriend (at the time) had a motorcycle. She was riding on the back, he popped a wheelie, and threw her off the back at 45 mph. She suffered injuries (mainly back) that prevented her from being able to keep her fitness level up and did eventually start putting on weight. People judged her on her weight and she had to go back to school to become a dietitian because she could no longer support herself as a personal trainer.
  • fitfreakymom
    fitfreakymom Posts: 1,400 Member
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    For all we know those overweight trainers may have been obese and have lost weight and still working on it and became instructors to help them get there.
  • Derpes
    Derpes Posts: 2,033 Member
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    As much as I hate the Patriots, Bill Belichick never played a down of football in the NFL but is a future hall of famer.

    I guess players should not take advice from him.

    If the instructor possesses the skill to help clients reach a goal, does it really matter?
  • Derpes
    Derpes Posts: 2,033 Member
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    Even just the title on this thread makes me laugh. Therefore, yeah, I'd avoid that class. When I think about why; I'd rather have somebody that I could see being EXPERIENCED in that type of exercise to TEACH me how to correctly do it.

    I feel like the term "overweight fitness instructor" is quite an oxymoron...

    Your logic makes zero sense.

    Being overweight automatically means that they are not experienced?
  • zoeysasha37
    zoeysasha37 Posts: 7,088 Member
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    I'm really not sure what I'd think. It has never happened to me yet, as all the trainers and instructors at my gym are super fit and ripped. So it's hard to give an honest answer without really being in the situation I guess.

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