The stigma of Personal Trainers

Hello Beautiful People,

It's been a little while. Last week mom and I drove to Pittsburgh to help my brother and sister-in-law with their move. Someone needed to take care of nephew when the movers came and everything got unpacked.

There is much to tell you about from it, but today was Distance Day and I'm beat. I had a good run today (13 miles). So I will recap the whole thing tomorrow. Spoiler: Lots of eating out.

While I was away I was reading the book The Vacationers. It was one of the hot reads for the summer. The story follows the Post family as they spend 2 weeks on an island in Spain. I won't ruin the book in case you want to read it. But, there was something that bothered me.

The son brought his girlfriend of 6 years on the trip. He is 28 and she is 40. They live in Miami and she is a Personal Trainer.

The way she was portrayed was hard for me. She was constantly wearing spandex and lycra. When she wasn't dressed like she was going to the gym, which was 95% of the time, she was dressed um...very provocatively. Now that could be chalked up to the Miami thing

The family didn't like her. There could be a number of reasons: the age difference or the fact that she didn't interact with them much. I could handle that. But, there were moments when it was mentioned that she wasn't good enough for their family because of what she does. Ironically the person that said this had gained 30 pounds and turned to food for comfort.

There can be a stigma with being a Personal Trainer. There is an image that people have. All spandex and muscle. For the record, I only wear my workout clothes when I'm working out. I don't spend all day in spandex, even though my butt looks great in it!

What gets missed is that a good certified Trainer is a Health Professional. It's not all about getting a six-pack. It's not all about spending every free moment working out. It's more than just lifting weights. It's not just Fitness. It's Health and Fitness. Every body is different. And not everybody can design a program for all needs (injuries, body types, goals, diseases, etc). There was a lot of studying involved. A LOT of studying.

For the most part I have received a tremendous amount of support about being a Trainer. It hurts though when some people don't take me seriously. They think it's all about jumping jacks and running. They don't think it's a respectable career. But, I can't think of a better career. Helping people gain confidence. Helping people lower their blood pressure. Helping people get more energy. Helping people manage time. Helping people put their health first. Nope, there's nothing better.

Have a Blessed Evening

****Please note****

If you feel like you are alone on your journey and you just need some encouragement I am here for you! Shoot me an email and I will do my best to check in on you or give you the words of support you need several times a week. The journey is so much easier if you have support.

jhendersonfit@gmail.com