Thank goodness for modern technology. It has allowed me to continue working with in-person clients remotely. I have long held the belief that there is no substitute for in-person training. Now, I’m not so sure. The experience of working one-on-one in the same room with someone can’t entirely be replicated, but, over the last four months, I have found there are tremendous advantages to working remotely.
CHALLENGES AND OBSTACLES LEAD TO GROWTH
Necessity truly is the mother of invention. The need to find substitutions, work within limited spaces with limited (or no) equipment has served to make me a better trainer. Getting creative and changing things up has not only made the sessions fun and interesting, the results are there. Quarantine has been an opportunity to double down on bodyweight exercises. As a result, all of my clients are seeing improvements in core strength, mobility, stability, endurance and flexibility.
TEAMWORK MAKES THE DREAM WORK
When gyms abruptly announced their closings, items like dumbbells and kettlebells became scarce commodities on Amazon. Over the past two months I have had clients use the following items as exercise equipment: gallons of water, jugs of wine, backpacks filled with heavy objects, purses filled with bags of flour, towels, couches, chairs, paint cans, broomsticks, basically anything within the walls of their home (including the walls themselves.) In order to plan my sessions effectively, I need to plan ahead with my clients. I’ll send texts like, “Hey. Got any big bottles of booze? The kind with the handle? (No judgment. Winky face.)” These interactions make the training more of a collaborative venture. They force the client to think about fitness outside of their sessions and I have found the result is clients being more engaged and invested during the sessions.
IT HELPS TO (LITERALLY) SEE THINGS DIFFERENTLY
Watching someone work through the camera of their smartphone or tablet allows me to see them move in a different way than if I were standing right in front of them. And I’m noticing different things. Being able to zoom in on minute details allows me to make more specific adjustments. The old expression is “the devil is in the details.” I don’t know if the devil is in the details but fitness gains most certainly are.
ALL KILLER. NO FILLER
There are so many ways to make a workout more challenging; you can add weight, add reps. Without access to a full gym, one of the best ways to increase the difficulty of a workout is by decreasing (or eliminating) rest in between sets. I’m also progressing intensity on exercises by slowing the tempo of each rep down which creates more time under tension and allows me to really drill down on improving form (which increases effectiveness.) I find that a lot of my clients are able to get more exercise in. This has allowed me to start streaming 30 minute sessions— something I’ve never attempted in person.
A COMFORTABLE PLACE TO PUSH SOMEONE OUT OF A COMFORT ZONE
I love the gym. I am aware that not everyone shares this love. A lot of people find gyms to be intimidating. In a gym setting, I am able to push my clients past their comfort zone by making them feel comfortable in an uncomfortable situation. A client working from home can take comfort that they are on their own turf and are in a safe place devoid of judgment. They don’t have to listen to “Eye of the Tiger” at full volume every hour on the hour. They aren’t surrounded by sweaty, grunting strangers. (Although, my quarantine sessions often feature cameo appearances from spouses, kids, dogs and cats.)