Would you hire an obese trainer???

What about a mechanic that drives a beater car

Yes, because they can keep it working!

Seriously, the part of the brain that knows what to do and the part that does it are different things. That said, it would probably depend on whether by 'obese' you mean according to BMI or what we think of as obese (ie, biggest loser contestants). A little extra weight would be ok. It just depends.

Depends. Did they use to be much more obese? Are they now underway to becoming obese - overweight - healthy? They may know more about my struggle than some one who has never overeaten in their life.

<--- 10lbs ago I was considered obese, high BMI... There's not a huge difference in my appearance between those 10lbs either.

It depends on who it was. Just because somebody is obese doesn't mean they're not knowledgeable, it just means they're not practicing on their self. If John Meadows or Shelby Starnes suddenly took a break and grew a little beer gut I would still solicit their personal nutrition and training services.

An intelligent and experienced obese trainer is better than a lean trainer that doesn't know ****.

I weigh in around 280. My friend is about 140. I'm obese, he's normal. I sit at a desk most days, he is on his feet. Now which of us is Fitter?
I can do a two day hike (not setting speed records) no problem. My friend runs into trouble at the 2 hours in.

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A different factor: I learned how to clean a house, and am quite good at it, but can't keep my own place clean.
A different friend has moved 12 times in 29 year, and can't pack for moving worth a crap. I've moved three times in 30 years, and my friend thought I had pro training in how to move.

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Point one is: as several people have said, It's the knowledge that is important.
Point two is: The best looking book was probably never read.

An intelligent and experienced obese trainer is better than a lean trainer that doesn't know ****.

But an intelligent and experienced lean trainer is the best of all.

Why is that really? The intelligence is the only thing that benefits YOU; the physicality is just eye candy.

I saw this at the gym once. A fat person being trained by an even fatter person. It was like the blind leading the blind.

I'm actually amazed by these responses, especially since a good portion must be coming from overweight/obese people themselves? It saddens me that so many people can't find the motivation within themselves and need some 'dream vision of perfection' to kick them into gear. That isn't motivation. It's a cop out.

So, out of curiousity. If faced with two trainers, one who was overweight but considered the best in their field, and one who was slim but not as good at getting results, who would you choose?

What if your slim, lean trainer puts on weight (for whatever reason); would you fire them? What if they were still getting results?

No, I had a very overweight zumba instructor once and never went back to her class. I was a fair amount bigger at that point than now and I thought, no one bigger than ME should be instructing me on getting fit.

I've actually seen where people will teach zumba classes To lose weight.. That I don't see a problem with.. unless you get there and they are whining and passing out/ half assing it, not doing it. .etc.

I'm actually amazed by these responses, especially since a good portion must be coming from overweight/obese people themselves? It saddens me that so many people can't find the motivation within themselves and need some 'dream vision of perfection' to kick them into gear. That isn't motivation. It's a cop out.

So, out of curiousity. If faced with two trainers, one who was overweight but considered the best in their field, and one who was slim but not as good at getting results, who would you choose?

What if your slim, lean trainer puts on weight (for whatever reason); would you fire them? What if they were still getting results?

I would choose a lean, qualified trainer. If the only good trainers were fat I would not hire a trainer at all. I would also avoid bodybuilding trainers, someone who I knew had an eating disorder, someone who smoked or someone who I knew hit up McD's 3 times a day. If I'm going to someone to be taught I expect them to live it.

For me, it has nothing to do with "eye candy". I want someone who is living a fit healthy lifestyle to teach me how to live a fit healthy lifestyle. I want someone I can take seriously, so when they tell me to give it everything I have I know that they do the same thing. I don't need someone I can relate to because they're fat too, to hold my hand and talk about my feelings. I want someone to push me hard.

If my slim trainer gains weight and appears to have lost control of themselves, hell yeah I'd fire them.

I'm shocked anyone is REALLY offended that some people don't want a fat personal trainer.

I'm also shocked by how easily we judge a book by its cover. Yes I understand that a slim trainer gives us extra motivation to push harder since we all want a slim body right? However we shouldn't just based everything on the outside. Remember that being fat & out of shape are two different things. You can be slim & out of shape at the same time OR be fat & fit at the same time (perfect examples are those power lifters or some rugby players). I've seen some slim trainers at my gym who seem out of shape, easily gets tired while catching breath & couldn't perform the workout properly while on the other side, I encountered an overweight dance instructor who seems full of energy & he never gets tired.

Exercise doesn't have anything to do with being fat. The biggest factor is in the diet. No matter how many hours you're putting in your workouts but if you compensate it by eating more than you burn then you will still gain weight & remain fat. That is the reason why there are some athletes or trainers who are fit & fat. Now if you ask me if I should take an obese person's advice on cutting calories then that's the time that I will be hesitant.

I'm actually amazed by these responses, especially since a good portion must be coming from overweight/obese people themselves? It saddens me that so many people can't find the motivation within themselves and need some 'dream vision of perfection' to kick them into gear. That isn't motivation. It's a cop out.

So, out of curiousity. If faced with two trainers, one who was overweight but considered the best in their field, and one who was slim but not as good at getting results, who would you choose?

What if your slim, lean trainer puts on weight (for whatever reason); would you fire them? What if they were still getting results?

I would choose a lean, qualified trainer. If the only good trainers were fat I would not hire a trainer at all. I would also avoid bodybuilding trainers, someone who I knew had an eating disorder, someone who smoked or someone who I knew hit up McD's 3 times a day. If I'm going to someone to be taught I expect them to live it.

For me, it has nothing to do with "eye candy". I want someone who is living a fit healthy lifestyle to teach me how to live a fit healthy lifestyle. I want someone I can take seriously, so when they tell me to give it everything I have I know that they do the same thing. I don't need someone I can relate to because they're fat too, to hold my hand and talk about my feelings. I want someone to push me hard.

If my slim trainer gains weight and appears to have lost control of themselves, hell yeah I'd fire them.

I'm shocked anyone is REALLY offended that some people don't want a fat personal trainer.

I'm also shocked by how easily we judge a book by its cover. Yes I understand that a slim trainer gives us extra motivation to push harder since we all want a slim body right? However we shouldn't just based everything on the outside. I've seen some slim trainers at my gym who seem out of shape, easily gets tired while catching breath & couldn't perform the workout properly while on the other side, I encountered an overweight dance instructor who seems full of energy & he never gets tired.

Exercise doesn't have anything to do with being fat. The biggest factor is in the diet. Now if you ask me if I should take an obese person's advice on cutting calories then that's the time that I will be hesitant.

I'm not hiring an accountant here. It is completely reasonable to expect a fitness trainer to look FIT. The fact that you know a crappy thin trainer has nothing to do with what I would want in my trainer. I'm sure there is no shortage of thin people who are qualified and experienced as personal trainers.

I'm shocked that there are even fat people trying to make it as personal trainers, the idea never occurred to me.

That's because it is easy to get a certificate to be a certified PT. As long as you pass the center's exam, can perform the workouts properly & pass the medical test then boom you're now a PT regardless what your waist line is. No wonder crappy people like Tracy Anderson became a trainer despite her warped mind on weight lifting for women and the result: just look at what happened to her client namely Gwyneth Paltrow. Which is why it is a must to look into their credentials first & how knowledgeable they are before putting everything in their hands.