Won a free personal training session

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jen_092
jen_092 Posts: 254 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I walked in my university gym last week and they had a fun contest going. I ended up winning a free 30 minute personal training session. Now, I have no intention of buying future sessions, sadly. Even if this goes amazingly well, I just can't afford to do that on top of the price I already pay for the gym.

I am in the beginning of Stronglifts 5x5. I started below Olympic bar weight but after a few weeks I'm squatting 75lb tomorrow so I finally feel like I'm getting good momentum with the program.

My question... Since I'm following a specific program and I'm thoroughly enjoying it, what could I gain from the session if I book it? Would it be an appropriate use of a trainer's time to just check my form on the lifts I'm doing? Or, perhaps, should I ask for recommendations for supplemental lifts? I notice a lot of SL 5x5 women seem to do them, but I've never really thought about it. Basically, I just want to be mindful so I don't waste someone's time, or my own. Any thoughts?

Replies

  • slowbubblecar
    slowbubblecar Posts: 91 Member
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    I'm not sure what the personal trainer would be able to do for you in a 30 minute session aside from go over your goals and try to sell you on them having a plan that would work to meet your goals. I'm sure it would be good to get them to look at your form, but at the end of the day, their goal is really to sell you on more sessions so that could possibly influence their critique as well.

    Personally, I wouldn't do it if you don't plan on doing anything else with it but it is up to you to decide.
  • jen_092
    jen_092 Posts: 254 Member
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    slowbubblecar wrote: »
    I'm not sure what the personal trainer would be able to do for you in a 30 minute session aside from go over your goals and try to sell you on them having a plan that would work to meet your goals. I'm sure it would be good to get them to look at your form, but at the end of the day, their goal is really to sell you on more sessions so that could possibly influence their critique as well.

    Personally, I wouldn't do it if you don't plan on doing anything else with it but it is up to you to decide.

    You make an excellent point. Thanks! I did want to mention that in my OP, that I'm not even sure if I want to do it, and just because it's free is not a good reason to me lol. Maybe I should find out more... Since it's the university gym, I'm not sure if their personal training looks different than a commercial gym's would.
  • slowbubblecar
    slowbubblecar Posts: 91 Member
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    I'm just not sure you would get much out of a 30 minute session when they need to learn about your goals and what you are currently doing. Many gym's offer a free 1hr session with the hopes of signing people up. Not sure how it works there though.
  • pondee629
    pondee629 Posts: 2,469 Member
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    For the cost of 30 minutes you just might learn something useful to you. The worse thing that could happen by taking the intro is you would have wasted 30 minutes. The worst thing if you do not attend is you lose out on something useful.
  • aflane
    aflane Posts: 625 Member
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    Having someone check your form once in a while can't hurt -- especially with all the new machines in the gym. When I recently rejoined the gym, I received 4 complimentary 30 minute sessions. There are so many new machines in the gym, that I didn't know how to use half of them. We focused on learning proper form for the machines that would be beneficial to my workout, and completely ignored free weight workouts (I'm good there). I strongly believe that good form means less injuries in the gym. I also received some interesting (and good) advice on how to structure my workouts.
  • jdhcm2006
    jdhcm2006 Posts: 2,254 Member
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    Getting a free form check wouldn't be a waste of time. I don't really see what you have to lose. Tell the trainer, what program you're doing, and you just need a form check. If the trainer is worth anything, they'll be willing to do that for you with no issue.

    You would be surprised with how much you can actually do in a 30 minute session. Especially if you warm yourself up and cool yourself down. I wouldn't waste any of the session doing any of that. When you make the appointment, explain that you will already be sufficiently warmed up and will handle your cool down as well, so you can make the most of your time. Also, tell the trainer what you want to work on ahead of time so you don't have to waste time on that either.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,874 Member
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    When I started working with my trainer, 30 minutes was pretty much just the intro...discussing my objectives and whatnot and then he ran me through a variety of movements to check my form, identify mobility issues, identify any imbalances, etc...basically getting an idea of where I was at.

    I had already been lifting for a couple of years, but he still needed to identify where I was at for him to put together a good program for me. I had already decided that I was going to use him for awhile though, and I've learned a ton over the last couple of years with him and he has helped with a number of issues that I didn't even know I had.

    All in all, you're probably not going to get a whole lot out of a singular 30 minute session other than the trainer possibly finding some issues with form, mobility, imbalances, etc and maybe giving you some tips on how to address those things.
  • lorrpb
    lorrpb Posts: 11,464 Member
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    Congrats on the win! I suggest you ask him to check your form. He might have a plan and that's ok too, he's giving a free session for marketing purposes, can't blame him for that. If you f onto want to do it, I hope you will give it to someone else.
  • NorthCascades
    NorthCascades Posts: 10,970 Member
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    slowbubblecar wrote: »
    I'm not sure what the personal trainer would be able to do for you in a 30 minute session aside from go over your goals and try to sell you on them having a plan that would work to meet your goals. I'm sure it would be good to get them to look at your form, but at the end of the day, their goal is really to sell you on more sessions so that could possibly influence their critique as well.

    Personally, I wouldn't do it if you don't plan on doing anything else with it but it is up to you to decide.

    That was my experience as well. Got some free training sessions with a gym membership. They weren't worth the $0. The guy was obnoxious and whenever I'd try to get him to step out of his commercial and do something useful, he looked confused.
  • teicu1
    teicu1 Posts: 71 Member
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    Just one persons personal experience, but... Every single time I’ve ever “won” anything from any organization that make its money from returning customers, all I ever “won” was a transparent come-on to get me to sign a contract.
  • SonyaCele
    SonyaCele Posts: 2,841 Member
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    30 minutes is not long, i am sure this free session is to try and sell you on a package , But if you go into it warmed up, ready to go and have something specific like "check my squat form" you may get a good session. make sure you are warmed up so you dont waste any of your 30 minutes on warming up.
  • Cherimoose
    Cherimoose Posts: 5,210 Member
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    jenxbowers wrote: »
    Would it be an appropriate use of a trainer's time to just check my form on the lifts I'm doing? Or, perhaps, should I ask for recommendations for supplemental lifts?

    I'd focus on deadlifts & squats, since those tend to be the riskiest and most technical. Use heavy weight - it brings out form issues better.

    You might have difficulty finding a trainer well-skilled in assessing powerlifting exercises at a university gym. Maybe look for one who competes in powerlifting. :+1:
  • cgvet37
    cgvet37 Posts: 1,189 Member
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    You can do plenty in 30 minutes. My training sessions were only 30 minutes, and believe me, they were effective. Even now my sessions don't last more than 30 minutes, except certain leg days.
  • SideSteel
    SideSteel Posts: 11,068 Member
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    Would it be possible to ask them in advance whether or not you can pick and choose what you do during the session? Could you express interest in having the 30 minute session be focused on squat and deadlift technique?

    I don't think there would be harm in asking. If they say no then you could decide not to do it.

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