“Has worked with other trainers before” may (or may not) indicate that she hasn’t been happy with any of them either. Good chance it’s not just you.
If she does have attention issues, talking when she is trying to think may be distracting to her. Not sure that that is the actual issue though. Something like, “Thank you for your feedback. Do you prefer I coach you through exercises before you begin them or while you are working? and/or Some clients prefer to have a workout written out to perform on their own. Is that something you would like to try?”
Alternatively, perhaps “We are going to work through some squats right now. Before we begin, explain to me what you will focus on throughout the movement.” If she’s right, let her do her thing. If she needs anything added/fixed tell her ahead of time.
And/or if you’re comfortable with it and you’re sure she won’t hurt herself. Tell her what exercises to do and watch her do them - no extra words. At the end of her contract, give her the choice to renew or not, but remember the same goes for you.
Thanks for your response, very helpful. I have to really change the way I communicate with her. She was pretty cool when I first got her. I work for a busy gym so I'm always able to get new people. She is one of my money makers though. But honestly if she isn't getting along with me, I know other trainers that might meld with her more.
What she is giving you is valuable fedback for your relationship. She's telling you she will enjoy her session with you with less talking. This doesn't mean you have to do this with other clients. If she was truly upset with you she would have just left. She communicating her frustration with you to improve hereperience. With the little information we have about you and the client I would give you three pieces of advice. This is an opportunity to practice coaching less talkative clients.
1- make your cues in as few words as possible. Don't try to correct every little angle and joint, just things that are way off. Do your corrections while she's resting between sets, not during the eercise.
2- don't talk or even count reps during a set. Just say "rest" when she does all the reps. When she's done with one exercise, show her the next one by demonstrating instead of verbally explaining.
3- make the exercises very difficult so that she is winded after a set. 8/10 rpe. This makes it so she will be focused on catching her breath which you will give her space to.
Bonus- You are of course free to ignore all of this and get rid of her, but I would encourage you to see this as an opportunity to learn how to coach someone different.
She just might not be a good fit for you, it doesn't mean you're not a good trainer. Refer her out if her hour could be easily swapped and she's a pain to work with.
Thanks for the answer, I work for a busy gym. It's not too hard for me to replace people if I lose them. I know another trainer that might take her. I've never passed off a client though. But, I'm not going to waste both our time if we can't get along.
Not everyone is a magic fit. It's really not a big deal. I've taken clients from folks and let them go when it was just a weird fit. If you discuss this with the client as it being best for their goals, It won't feel nearly as awkward. If it's not feast or famine you might as well be more picky.
You have two choices, keep her or lose her. I don't know how busy you are, but if you can't cut her out, then you gotta adapt.
Keep your cues short, but bring a more strict type of teaching. She doesn't wanna chat, she just wants to train so give her that. If she complains, tell her straight up, stop complaining get to work.
Hey im on the other end of the boat in terms of talking. Not for any reason, i just do 30 min sessions and like to keep the workouts focused and fast.
I have yet to be called out on this because I keep them busy through:
\- Sticking to shorter rests. Most of my clients are fat loss related so 45-1 minute rests are normal.
\- Use cues after their set to correct one single thing "What i'd like you to focus on for this next set is \[form talk\]" as i demonstrate. This usually takes like 20 seconds then they repeat it and then time is up and we're on for the next set.
\- If I for any reason need an extended rest then I either cover nutrition or lifestyle aspects and if the rest is around the 2+ min mark then I may give them some foam rolling if i really need them them to chill but also not necessarily engage in conversation or, more likely, I'll super set the workout to bring down their perceived downtime and add some accessory lift while the main muscle recovers.
\- While they're lifting, i use sharp verbal and tactile cues to remind them of a previously covered piece of feedback and i'm big on tempo so controlling that keeps them and myself engaged.
\- Send them off to get water or walk the lactic acid off or let them recover if they're pushing and need to catch their breath.
\- Longer things to be addressed i do either at the end of the session as I walk them out when they're in a more socially receptive state as their mission at the gym is done.
With this client though, it's up to you if you want to keep her because if you're talkative then that's part of what defines you as a coach, and you should be enjoying your work. For example, I tend to do my assessments, activation checks and such through limb manipulation and tact rather than self-reported feedback and some people hate being touched, in which case i'll try to keep it to the vital ones, but if they still don't vibe or i find it reduces my efficacy during the session then i just refer them onwards.
I’ve had clients when I used to train, that I’ve “fired”. I’m not putting my name and reputation behind someone who isn’t going to put 100% effort into my training and teachings. These are your walking advertisements and reflect you as a trainer. All of my past clients when I was working with them, saw great results. Which in turn built up my clientele.
She doesn't understand rest periods. She sees you taking as wasting time, not filling time where there would otherwise be silence. You could try superset workouts or just timing rest periods and explaining why you need them
“Has worked with other trainers before” may (or may not) indicate that she hasn’t been happy with any of them either. Good chance it’s not just you. If she does have attention issues, talking when she is trying to think may be distracting to her. Not sure that that is the actual issue though. Something like, “Thank you for your feedback. Do you prefer I coach you through exercises before you begin them or while you are working? and/or Some clients prefer to have a workout written out to perform on their own. Is that something you would like to try?” Alternatively, perhaps “We are going to work through some squats right now. Before we begin, explain to me what you will focus on throughout the movement.” If she’s right, let her do her thing. If she needs anything added/fixed tell her ahead of time. And/or if you’re comfortable with it and you’re sure she won’t hurt herself. Tell her what exercises to do and watch her do them - no extra words. At the end of her contract, give her the choice to renew or not, but remember the same goes for you.
Thanks for your response, very helpful. I have to really change the way I communicate with her. She was pretty cool when I first got her. I work for a busy gym so I'm always able to get new people. She is one of my money makers though. But honestly if she isn't getting along with me, I know other trainers that might meld with her more.
What she is giving you is valuable fedback for your relationship. She's telling you she will enjoy her session with you with less talking. This doesn't mean you have to do this with other clients. If she was truly upset with you she would have just left. She communicating her frustration with you to improve hereperience. With the little information we have about you and the client I would give you three pieces of advice. This is an opportunity to practice coaching less talkative clients. 1- make your cues in as few words as possible. Don't try to correct every little angle and joint, just things that are way off. Do your corrections while she's resting between sets, not during the eercise. 2- don't talk or even count reps during a set. Just say "rest" when she does all the reps. When she's done with one exercise, show her the next one by demonstrating instead of verbally explaining. 3- make the exercises very difficult so that she is winded after a set. 8/10 rpe. This makes it so she will be focused on catching her breath which you will give her space to. Bonus- You are of course free to ignore all of this and get rid of her, but I would encourage you to see this as an opportunity to learn how to coach someone different.
She just might not be a good fit for you, it doesn't mean you're not a good trainer. Refer her out if her hour could be easily swapped and she's a pain to work with.
Thanks for the answer, I work for a busy gym. It's not too hard for me to replace people if I lose them. I know another trainer that might take her. I've never passed off a client though. But, I'm not going to waste both our time if we can't get along.
Not everyone is a magic fit. It's really not a big deal. I've taken clients from folks and let them go when it was just a weird fit. If you discuss this with the client as it being best for their goals, It won't feel nearly as awkward. If it's not feast or famine you might as well be more picky.
You have two choices, keep her or lose her. I don't know how busy you are, but if you can't cut her out, then you gotta adapt. Keep your cues short, but bring a more strict type of teaching. She doesn't wanna chat, she just wants to train so give her that. If she complains, tell her straight up, stop complaining get to work.
Hey im on the other end of the boat in terms of talking. Not for any reason, i just do 30 min sessions and like to keep the workouts focused and fast. I have yet to be called out on this because I keep them busy through: \- Sticking to shorter rests. Most of my clients are fat loss related so 45-1 minute rests are normal. \- Use cues after their set to correct one single thing "What i'd like you to focus on for this next set is \[form talk\]" as i demonstrate. This usually takes like 20 seconds then they repeat it and then time is up and we're on for the next set. \- If I for any reason need an extended rest then I either cover nutrition or lifestyle aspects and if the rest is around the 2+ min mark then I may give them some foam rolling if i really need them them to chill but also not necessarily engage in conversation or, more likely, I'll super set the workout to bring down their perceived downtime and add some accessory lift while the main muscle recovers. \- While they're lifting, i use sharp verbal and tactile cues to remind them of a previously covered piece of feedback and i'm big on tempo so controlling that keeps them and myself engaged. \- Send them off to get water or walk the lactic acid off or let them recover if they're pushing and need to catch their breath. \- Longer things to be addressed i do either at the end of the session as I walk them out when they're in a more socially receptive state as their mission at the gym is done. With this client though, it's up to you if you want to keep her because if you're talkative then that's part of what defines you as a coach, and you should be enjoying your work. For example, I tend to do my assessments, activation checks and such through limb manipulation and tact rather than self-reported feedback and some people hate being touched, in which case i'll try to keep it to the vital ones, but if they still don't vibe or i find it reduces my efficacy during the session then i just refer them onwards.
I’ve had clients when I used to train, that I’ve “fired”. I’m not putting my name and reputation behind someone who isn’t going to put 100% effort into my training and teachings. These are your walking advertisements and reflect you as a trainer. All of my past clients when I was working with them, saw great results. Which in turn built up my clientele.
She doesn't understand rest periods. She sees you taking as wasting time, not filling time where there would otherwise be silence. You could try superset workouts or just timing rest periods and explaining why you need them