TRAINING THE 5 TYPES OF CLIENTS

Transcription

1 NICK TUMMINELLO S TRAINING THE 5 TYPES OF CLIENTS OBJECTIVES List the five most common types of clients and a few key characteristics of each client type so you know how to identify them. Discuss how clients from each category view the fitness professional differently causing the fitness professional to wear three-hats. Share some of the practical programming strategies I use with each type of client. WHAT PROGRAM DESIGN REALLY IS (AND ISN T): Exercise programming isn t about the traditional periodization (planning) models, as these were intended to peak an athlete for competition. Therefore, these models don t apply well to most people fitness pros are regularly working with. Put simply, program design is about creating a training stimulus; the right training stimulus to achieve one s goal(s). 1

2 THE STATE OF THE PROFESSIONAL FITNESS TRAINING FIELD Trainer/ Philosophy Centered Programming (The Dictator) Vs. Client/ Goal Centered Programming (The Facilitator) -- Certain training methods are best for certain goals, and no one method is best for all goals. This is why we take a mixed training approach -- MOST CLIENTS FIT INTO ONE OF FIVE CATEGORIES BASED ON WHY THEY RE EXERCISING: 1. Physique 2. Performance 3. Physique + Performance Hybrid 4. Fat Loss 5. General Fitness & Health - This leaves out special populations such as people struggling with obesity or those going through post-rehabilitation training. - COMMON CHARACTERISTICS OF THE 5 KINDS OF CLIENTS HOW TO IDENTIFY EACH CLIENT TYPE 2

3 COMMON CHARACTERISTICS OF THE PHYSIQUE CLIENT: They re focused on aesthetics and looking to focus on maximizing muscular development (i.e., muscle size). They usually enjoy bodybuilding style training and prioritize their workouts, along with practicing proper eating habits. They tend to gauge success by how they look in the mirror (flexing) and by circumference measurements. COMMON CHARACTERISTICS OF THE PERFORMANCE CLIENT: They re focused on athletics and looking to maximize their physical ability (power, strength, conditioning, etc.) in order to be better able to express their skills in a given field, court or combat sport. Although this type of client usually prioritizes training and takes it seriously, not all of them prioritize the nutritional and lifestyle component. They tend to gauge success by improvements from their baseline in strength & conditioning tests. COMMON CHARACTERISTICS OF THE PHYSIQUE + PERFORMANCE HYBRID CLIENT: They re usually a recreational athlete or exercise enthusiast who's looking to improve both their physique and general athleticism without training to either extreme. Although this type of client usually prioritizes training and takes it seriously, not all of them prioritize the nutritional and lifestyle component. They tend to judge the success by changes in their physical appearance and/or by improvements from their baseline in strength & conditioning tests and fitness challenges. 3

4 COMMON CHARACTERISTICS OF THE FAT LOSS CLIENT: They re usually a recreational exerciser who is looking to focus on losing some extra body fat while minimizing muscle loss. They may or may not enjoy exercise and are often frustrated from trying several different diets and being unable to stick with them because they were unrealistic for them in the long-term. They often gauges success via psychological factors such as improved eating behaviors and exercising more often. ^ Also with physical factors such as how they fit into their clothes, how they look in the mirror, along with reductions in weight and body fat measurements. COMMON CHARACTERISTICS OF THE GENERAL FITNESS & HEALTH (FH) CLIENT: They re usually a recreational exerciser who is looking for general health and fitness without specifically focusing on physique, performance or fat loss. Many clients in this category enjoy exercise but often say they don t want to think when they re working out. They just want a great workout experience that challenges them but doesn t hurt them. Although this type of client often asserts that they re looking to lose some fat, they re not interested in changing their eating habits accordingly. Other clients in this same category with openly state that they re not at all interested in changing their earing habits and are exercising as weightmanagement in order offset all of the foods they love to eat. They often gauges success by how much they ve enjoyed each workout, how they feel at the end of the workout, and by the fact they completed a certain amount of workouts per week. FITNESS & HEALTH AND FAT LOSS CLIENTS ARE VERY SIMILAR Both clients types are looking for the same type of workout experience. What separates the two types of clients is the lifestyle they lead outside of the gym. (Eating for Offense vs. Defense) 4

5 CLIENTS CAN (AND DO) MORPH! Some general health and fitness clients do morph into fat loss, physique, performance or P2 hybrid clients as they get more knowledgeable (and more serious) about exercise through the continued guidance of the fitness professional. Some physique or performance clients morph into P2 hybrid clients or general health & fitness clients when they re in the offseason or not training for a specific event. THE 3 HATS OF THE FITNESS PROFESSIONAL Most physique and performance clients view the fitness professional as their coach who serves a guide in each aspect of their training and competition preparation. Most physique/performance hybrid clients view the fitness professional as their trainer who designs them training programs. Most fat loss and fitness & health clients view the fitness professional as their PE teacher for adults who they go to, to be told what to do for a workout each time they visit. BRINGING FITNESS BACK TO FITNESS PRO S Many don't really care about general health and fitness They think you re wasting your time working out unless you're training with a specific focus on physique or performance measures. There are numerous well-evidenced physical and mental health benefits which many trainers seem to care less about. Disease prevention, Preservation of bone mass, Improved mood (even in those with depression), anxiety/stress reduction, Improved sleep, enhanced feeling of energy and well being, The delay of what's called "all-cause mortality" and even brain growth 5

6 Give Clients A Combination Of What They Want And What They Need VS. MY APPROACH: Give Clients What The Need To Achieve What They Want. WHAT DOES AND DOESN T MAKE EXERCISE PROGRAMING INDIVIDUALIZED: Everyone does the same basic actions: pushing, pulling, level changes, etc. It s which specific exercises (of those movements) you DON T use. It s how you organize and prioritize the exercises you DO use PRACTICAL TRAINING STRATEGIES FOR THE 5 KINDS OF CLIENTS DIFFERENT GOALS REQUIRE DIFFERENT TRAINING APPROACHES 6

7 PHYSIQUE CLIENTS: Create a training environment that triggers the three mechanisms of hypertrophy: Mechanical tension, Muscle damage and Metabolic stress (Schoenfeld 2010). ^ To create this environment, use a mix of set/rep ranges by working with different loads. Dedicate more weekly work volume to bringing up less-developed muscle groups. Do standard sets and paired sets. Use body-part weekly training splits or total-body workouts. PERFORMANCE CLIENTS: In the offseason, use a more traditional linear periodization training approach: hypertrophy/base, strength, power and power endurance. ^ The final power-endurance phase peaks the athlete so he or she is conditioned at the start of preseason and can focus on skill training. During the competition season, use a concurrent model with a mixture of power training, strength training and hypertrophy training. Do tri-sets and quad-sets. Use total-body workouts to minimize fatigue in specific muscle groups. PHYSIQUE + PERFORMANCE HYBRID CLIENTS: Use a concurrent model with a mixture of power training, strength training and hypertrophy training. Use a mix of set/rep ranges by working with different loads. Do paired sets and tri-sets. Use a push/pull/lower-body training split or total-body workouts. 7

8 FAT LOSS CLIENTS: Emphasize achieving a caloric deficit primarily through (high protein) dietary habits. Emphasize the 3 C s of metabolic strength training: Complexes, Circuits and Combinations. ^They create a high metabolic demand because they require more extended, high-intensity, total-body efforts than traditional strength training methods do (Tumminello 2014). Maintain consistency with basic lifts, to monitor any potential loss in muscle and strength, but continually add some movement variety to keep things fun and interesting. Use total-body workouts. 1. Resistance training (RT) was more effective than endurance training (ET) or combination of RT and ET, (particularly when progressive training volume of 2-to-3 sets for 6-to-10 reps at an intensity of 75% 1RM, utilizing whole body and freeweight exercises). 2. When training for the purpose of maximizing fat loss purposes the focus of the training "should be on producing a large metabolic stress" (as induced by RT or intense levels of ET). GENERAL FITNESS AND HEALTH CLIENTS: Integrate power training, strength training, bodybuilding, 3D movement training and body weight applications. Use a wide spectrum of sets and reps, along with a variety of training tools, from basic free weights and cables to bands and balls. Maintain consistency with basic lifts, to gauge progress, but continually add some movement variety to keep things interesting and enjoyable. Use tri-sets and quad-sets. Use total-body workouts. 8

9 THANK YOU!!! NickTumminello.com 9