Training Day (One)

So today I trained my first client..FINALLY!!!It has been in the works for about three weeks, cancelled once, and today it finally happened...It is a female in her mid twenties, that just had a baby about six months ago and is looking to get her pre-baby body back. She has never really been active, and when she approached me about training she made it very clear that her focus area is her tummy...Although I loved the idea of training someone who has never been active because I feel like she is a blank slate, I couldn't help but feel instantly challenged by the thought of WHERE TO BEGIN??!!! On top of my nervousness of training my first client I was also facing a challenge of not knowing the facility and not being aware of what equipment would be available. We trained at her community center, so I knew I had to be prepared to alter and improvise the workout that I had written up prior to our session once I saw what was actually there...When I got there, things had to be altered..All that was available was a circuit of machines that isolated each major muscle group, one mat, one bench, one rack of dumbbells, and a few medicine balls...WOW!!!!Well going from my gym to this was...an experience..But we made it work...We did a warm up to get blood flowing and warm up her muscles, which consisted of mountain climbers and planks...Planks are amazing to engage your core and really fire that muscle group...As a new mom, those muscles haven't been put to work in a while so it is important to strengthen that area back up...Then we did a circuit of approximately 8 exercises which targeted every major muscle group, plus some ab work...We did some back strengthening exercises to balance out her core, because along with a weak core her lower back is also weak. And finally we finished with lots of stretching...Overall I felt the first session went well...She definitely felt it, and I warned her that she will feel it tomorrow because her body is not used to all that activity...We discussed eating habits which totally need to be modified. I'm  not a fan of a diet or the word diet in the traditional sense but I will say that you need to make healthy choices, there are food groups for a reason, you need to fuel your body because it is kind of like putting gas in a car, drink lots of water, everything in moderation, I mean it really is not rocket science...I don't believe in depriving your body of cravings, because when you finally give in, and we all do you will eat WAY more then if you had just satisfied that craving when you originally had it....Like I said EVERYTHING IN MODERATION! Honestly this session was great for both of us..She is the perfect candidate for my gym guinea pig...She was very cooperative and receptive to the training, and those qualities will really help me build my confidence as a trainer. I feel after today the first session of personal training regardless of which side of it you are on is a learning experience. A client needs to learn  and get a feel for the trainer and their style and a trainer needs to take an inventory of the client, strengths/weaknesses, goals, etc. We definitely accomplished all of that today, and she added increasing flexibility to her goals so I will definitely be adding those exercises to her future workouts. I think one of the best moments was her confusion that most of her exercises DID NOT involve any weights..It is amazing what a great workout you can get by just using your body weight..Meaning lunges, squats, tricep dips, pushups, just to name a few...We will be training three days a week..So stay tuned!