So - after months of using the gym for the treadmill, pool and hot tub (and the occasional pick-up basketball game), I got the courage to go to the personal training desk and ask for an initial consultation with a personal trainer. My goal was to see if I could get advice on exercises that I could do to get better in shape and improve my golf performance.
Wow - I really did not know what kind of shark-tank used-car salesman atmosphere I signed up for.
So, the initial meeting started off by me filling out a questionnaire. One of the first questions:
"How motivated are you to achieve your fitness goals?" (on a scale of 1-10)
Honestly? I mean, I could lie and put "10" - but I know that Sausage McMuffins with egg trumps that motivation every time. So I put "4". I think that's realistic.
"What do you eat for meals each day?" I mean, what kind of question is that? I don't eat the same thing for lunch or dinner. Breakfast? I was honest again and said "nothing, or a granola bar". Yeah, yeah, yeah, it's bad.
Snacks? Well, a cookie in the afternoon....
Then I did a series of tests. First was the upper body strength test. They gave me a bar (hooked up to a computer), and asked me to "curl" it like a bicep curl.
He said go - I pulled - and the bar did not move. After 2 seconds of panicing, he told me it was not supposed to move. Thanks for having me think I was as strong as a 10 year old girl.
Next was the flexibility test. I sat on the ground, feet straight out and against the wall, and my back at a 90 degree angle to the floor.
Then, I put my hands straight out. He then instructed me to bend forward and reach as far forward as I can.
I didn't miss a beat. I said "you mean, in addition to what I am doing now?" My arms went forward a good 3-4 inches more.
Next, the fat test. They were supposed to use that caliper thingy and pinch my fat to figure out a body percentage. I have no idea what that is supposed to do, or measure. They tried to get some skin in an area between my nipple and arm pit (would this be called the upper right chest area?)
Well, after 5 attempts at doing this, they couldn't "grab" a good enough sample, so they just took some measurements and said that was good enough. I wasn't sure if I should feel embarrased or thankful.
Finally, there was the heart rate/VO2 test....whatever VO2 stands for. I ran for five minutes on a treadmill without passing out.
The results came back. He reviewed them with me:
- Upper body strength came back as "average". I'm as shocked as anyone about this. I can't believe I am considered as high as average. Well, that's good!
- Flexibility was off the charts bad. Well, I shouldn't say off the charts. On the bar chart that showed where I stood in relation to people in my age group, I saw a slight sliver of the bar on the left. So I guess there is one or two 37 year olds in America that is less flexible than me.
- Body fat? Hoo boy. Let's just say my body fat percentage equals a good 9-hole golf score for me. Is this really right?
- I have average-to-above-average cardio performance.
I mean, you think about the above results - it's like I am four different people. How can I have that high body fat and yet run 6 miles a day?
Now came the hard sell.
"What's your target weight loss?" he asked. Wel, most of you can guess within 10 pounds or so on my weight. I said I would like to lose 20 pounds.
"Well, I think - in 10 months - we can get to you a target weight of 158 pounds".
I just laughed at him.
Next, he stressed the importance of understanding my heart rate and how it affects my workout. "Here are monitors that can give you that infomration during your workout" - starting from $200 to $400. I said no, I'll pass for now.
Now, the final sell.
"As far as a training plan, I can work with you 2 or 3 times a week, where we work on different areas to get you in shape.Maybe even have you run a mini-marathon!"
How much is each session, I wondered?
"Each session with me is $69. So that's a cost of..... $550-$800 dollars per month."
I was literally speechless for 30 seconds as I tried to process that information.
Am I expecting too much if my expectations are:
- to meet with a trainer once a month (or so)
- get some ideas for exercises from teh trainer
- I go off on my own and do them (let's be honest - maybe 8 times a month)
- check in with him every month to review progress
?
Is this not an option in their world?
4 comments:
158 pounds for you or me is ridiculous. I don't know where they get these #'s. People would ask you if you were sick if you weighed that much. I'd think my target weight would be 185, maybe 175 at the least.
I cannot stand personal trainers, I had a similar experience. In an attempt to drop the cost, I suggested splitting the sessions with one or two friends, for a semi-personalized lesson, and was told it was explicitly verboten. Seriously? You now get $0, as opposed to something. I scoffed and walked away uttering how I could get better suggestions on line, gratis.
What I think you forgot to mention is that the only reason why you went to him in the first place is that you don't have a clue about working out and what is best for you. If you can get a plan from say a magazine or another source, why even check in with a trainer each month? I hate to say this, but the Iphone has a really nice app that would take the place of a personal trainer. Specialized workouts and when to do them, along with actually how to do each excercise. It also logs each workout and charts out improvement. Very nice. And the cost savings of buying the iphone for $200 is much cheaper than paying for a trainer.
And I remember Carol used a trainer and I was paying out $200 a week. Carol was bragging about how great the trainer was and how great of shape she was getting in. After 2 months of working with this trainer, I took Carol out for a 3 mile run. She couldn't even run the entire distance. She averaged over 11 minute miles. That was the last day I paid for that trainer. I was so pissed. What the hell is this person doing to my wife for 2 months where she isn't able to even run 3 miles?
Obviously, this is ridiculous. Some people in my office really like CrossFit and use it as a "crash course" to get fit. Once you do it for a while and get some exercises down, you could probably keep doing something like it on your own without the classes.
Prices:
6 workouts/month: $110
12 workouts/month: $180
16 workouts/month: $220
20 workouts/month: $260
http://crossfitcincinnati.typepad.com/
But in the grand scheme of things, if you really want to lose weight, it goes back to Don's formula:
Calories in > calories out = weight gain
Calories in < calories out = weight loss
So you need some combination of diet and exercise. CrossFit or a trainer are ways to ensure that you stick to the exercise end of the equation, but you've also got to look at how many calories you're taking in.
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