Hiring a coach (body/muscle building)

My thoughts are yes. Even experienced and already knowledgeable people can benefit from coaching. They offer a fresh perspective without bias. As much as we all want to say we know our own bodies and what we need, we still carry a bias with us.
Knowing as much as you do, you'll obviously search for a coach that fits your needs & goals. I say it will be beneficial.

And yes I've used a coach in the past even though I didn't "need" one. I'm probably going to seek another one out again as soon as my finances stabilize

I train with a personal trainer once a week only. I have learned and he has pushed me harder than I have ever pushed myself. Now I would not pay for it to be more often than that, it's just not worth the expenses since I don't have any specific goals other than to push myself.
I would say try it and see how you like it. It can be worth it, or it can be total waste of money, not every trainer/coach knows what they are doing.

If you were planning to compete, I'd say definitely hire a coach. If your goal is just improved body comp/lifestyle, maybe not necessary. You can at least say you tried it though, and you might learn some new things.

I've worked with a few different coaches, both while cutting. Powerlifting coach - made simple calorie adjustments with essentially just linear programming, and was awful at responding. I could've easily ran this plan on my own.

Then a Bodybuilding coach who was um, "enhanced".. and ran my programming the same way she trains, with slightly less volume. It was too much for me. The diet was much more rigid than I would've liked (a strict meal plan with a weekly "free meal", which I struggled with - I had shared initially that the diet was a concern as I wasn't used to being strict). I was encouraged to push my lifts and weights as much as I could, to failure. By week 8 I had an SI injury (not necessarily related, can't say for sure but I had never had issues with it before). There was also some "bro" theory, like fasted cardio and certain supplements for fatloss. SO much protein. (I'm a 5'1'' female and was eating 190 grams..) I learned a few things and it was in part a great experience, I was honored to be able to work with her, but in the end I was burnt out and didn't even want to go to the gym any more.

At this point I've realized I have no goals of being a serious competitor (strength or physique). I want to improve body composition and do fitness things that will enhance my life and on my own time, and I don't think I will ever need a coach for that. As a natural athlete, I just have to accept that it takes a long time to build! If training/nutrition/rest/motivation is all there, you're basically doing everything you can already. And there really is a lot of free information out there.

Had I never worked with anyone, I think I would have always wondered what it would be like. It's definitely exciting, and it can be good to get a fresh perspective.

I think you are doing great solo and a large number of trainers/coaches are not going to get you any further or give you new perspective. That being said there are some great online trainers out there that could be worth hiring at least for a couple of months to add new perspective. I've been lifting since 2011 and I still find my trainer to be valuable. I am constantly learning from him. I could and I have worked out without him for long stretches of time, but I feel that his many, many years of knowledge are worth what I pay.

sardelsa wrote: »

Thanks everyone for sharing your advice and experiences. Definitely all gave me some things to think about.

As mentioned I probably have a lot of bias as to what I should be doing which could potentially hold me back, and having that new perspective could be beneficial for sure. But at the same time, I am doing really well on my own.. I don't want to pay someone if I know what I am doing (even though I am sure there is room for improvement), if I did go with a coach, it would be one who I would research and is reputable.

Unfortunately we don't have room in our gym for a rack or bench press. Maybe something to look into if we ever move. But ya I definitely understand the importance of having that equipment.

I think I will put it on the backburner for now, and maybe consider it if I ever decide to compete or my goals change, I may still do research though and if I find a really good fit I may go for it.

Thanks again!

Your thoughts are spot on! Keep doing what your doing.

A few years ago, I belonged to a gym and hired a personal trainer. The gym had some sort of freebee program and did fitness assessments. I think at the time I weighed something like 135 lbs. I'm female and 5'5". I looked thin to most folks. However, my fat to muscle composition indicated I was obese. That inspired me to gain muscle. Bottom line is it was well worth it to me. At my gym, these folks hold degrees in exercise physiology. They started me slow - increasing muscle fibers and ultimately had me lifting heavy to increase bulk. They monitored my protein. I was very pleased and it was worth the money. Oh - they monitored and changed my exercises as needed.

I have a trainer that I see maybe once every 6 weeks on average.
It's just enough to keep me accountable, but not enough to get too expensive!
He sets my training plan, sets my macros, and measures my body fat. I can email him or book a session when I have questions or get bored or fed up with what I'm doing, and I find it really constructive.
He works me really hard when I see him, but that gives me a benchmark for what I can achieve when on my own, and I think I end up working harder ALL the time because of this. I'm also doing exercises that I would never have done if I was left to my own devices/left alone with the internet, and they're having really good results.
He also has access to my MFP diary, and occasionally emails me with helpful commentary. Sometimes this is encouragement, sometimes it's appropriate chastisement for misbehavior!

Although he works at my gym (I switched gyms last year to a weights gym mostly to get access to better equipment and better trainers), so I train there all the time, he also has PT clients come to the gym who are not members, and train somewhere else the rest of the time.

So I'd vote yes, and see if there are any trainers who work out of weights gyms near you, where you can just go for your session but don't have to join. The good guys should offer a taster session for free, so really nothing to lose?