4 Tips for Setting Great Client Goals

Hi and welcome to this video review of personal training. Today we’ll cover 4 points on setting client goals. So, let’s get started.

1. Choosing appropriate exercises for specific goals

The personal trainer bases each exercise session around one or more of the client goals. With primary goals, it may be necessary to center the entire session around that one goal. With secondary goals, it may be effective to group them together for a session. The client will be more invested in each workout if he knows what goals are being worked on and why. If he can see how the exercises he is doing will help him reach his goals, he will also have increased motivation to continue faithfulness to the exercise routine.

Program design must be specific to where the client’s current level of fitness lies. It will not be a beneficial experience for either the client or the trainer if session goals and long-term goals do not match. Session goals should be building blocks that help the client reach the overall goals and thus must be closely related to the overall goals. The program design must properly reflect both the session and overall goals. It is beneficial for the trainer to recognize in both written and verbal form the specific goals for each session.

2. Recording client progress

Recording client progress at the end of each exercise session gives the personal trainer a small picture of how the client is doing from session to session. At the time of reassessment and re-testing, the trainer can then compare results with session notes. This gives both the trainer and the client a full picture of progress. In addition, if keeping in contact with a cooperating physician, it is necessary for the personal trainer to provide ample documentation for liability reasons and so the physician stays as informed as possible.

3. Exercise risks and benefits

Exercise guidelines for otherwise healthy adults include the following: in general, adults should do fitness-related physical activity 3–5 days per week, do leisure-related physical activity 2–3 days per week, and sit sparingly. The following exercise guidelines refer to seniors: in general, they should acquire 30 minutes of moderate physical activity on most if not all days of the week and should consult a physician before moving to a more vigorous program. Flexibility and resistance training should be included on several days each week.

4. Client safety in the fitness facility

Client safety can be ensured by having them engage in exercises that correspond to their current fitness level. Clients should also be taught how to correctly handle resistance machines and free weights to avoid personal injury. They should also be made aware of facility rules regarding flow of traffic inside the facility, appropriate cardiovascular machine usage, and age requirements for using equipment. Clients should never use a machine they do not know how to use; this can be remedied by the personal trainer giving a comprehensive education on machine usage.

This has been a video review of personal training. For more resources, find our other videos in the description below. Thanks for watching.