Confessions of a Personal Trainer
If you have ever witnessed a personal trainer in action (or seen any of the stereotypical portrayals on television), you probably have a picture in your head of an imposing figure standing over their client counting each repetition of every exercise loud enough for all to hear.
A standard workout consists of several exercises organized into sets and repetitions or reps.
There are at least several million different combinations of exercises, sets and reps and choosing the ones that work for you is dependent on your goals, injury history, workout preferences, and exercise experience. Consulting with a certified fitness professional can help ensure you are doing workout combinations that are efficient and safe.
As a very general rule, heavier resistance lifted for less repetitions (for example, sets of 6-8 repetitions) would be used to develop muscular strength while higher repetition ranges (10-12 or more reps in each set) would be more suited to developing muscular endurance.
Most personal trainers seem to be very accurate when counting client reps, but I actually rarely count each repetition as my client completes them. For the longest time, I thought I lacked focus. My client was doing all of the hard work – all I had to do was count to 8, 10 or 12.
However, I eventually discovered that most clients count intuitively on their own which freed me up to shift my attention to the most important thing – how they were moving.
In the back of my head, I have a fairly accurate tally of my clients’ reps as they go but I choose to focus on observing their technique and giving cues to help them make the most out of each movement. I’m aiming to land them within a repetition range rather than a specific number. Who decided that a set of 10 was better than a set of 9 or 11 anyways?
I will determine when their set is complete based on their performance. If they are starting to fatigue and their technique is starting to suffer, then it’s time to take a break and regroup for the next set. At times, I’ll add a bonus repetition or two if the person is looking strong at the end of the set. To me, it’s more important that they focus on quality repetitions rather than worry about completing an exact number.
During a workout, the number of repetitions in each set is important but it’s certainly not the most important thing.
Tips of the day
* Choose a repetition range that will help you achieve your goals.
* Focus on good form during each repetition of your exercise.
* Enjoy your workout – it should be challenging and make you feel awesome.
Kathryn McKenzie – B.H.Kin, B.Ed / Certified Kinesiologist, Sport Conditioning Specialist & Personal Trainer & Author, Speaker & Owner of Surefire Fitness Phone: 204-802-3131
