How fit should a group fit instructor be?

[nikkigiovanni]

I am thoroughly enjoying this thread. What a fascinating topic.

Here are my personal thoughts/opinions. It is undisputed that fitness comes in all shapes/sizes. There is no doubt in my mind that people of all shapes/sizes/BMI's, whatever, can indeed be excellent & knowledgeable fitness instructors. I think it is all about whom YOU feel comfortable training and motivating you. There is no right/wrong here.

With that said, not to sound judgmental or shallow (please do not take offense), I would want MY trainer to have visible muscles. I want to see toned legs/glutes, somewhat flat stomach (perhaps not a 6pk, but not a flabby stomach), kick a** arms with shapely shoulder's, bulging biceps, toned triceps, and a back that makes me jealous when he/she does pull-ups. He/she does not necessarily have to have 10% body fat or look like Cathe, Jillian, or Bob (although I wouldn't complain) but those visual aspects are what I would be looking for in a trainer, along with knowledge, expertise, strength, endurance, and of course a desirable personality. I want the entire package baby

Natasha

I agree with this. If Cathe was overweight, I doubt that I'd be so interested in her workouts. Having a trainer who looks fit is motivating to me.

 

[mrsyancy]

very interesting thread.....

i myself would possibly lean toward someone who "looked" the part....but at the same time i am also open-minded.....b/c i am quite a bit overweight but i can keep up with cathe and other tough instructors on their dvds, but i wouldn't dare teach a class being this overweight....but i think that's b/c i'm very self conscious also

this reminds me that when I was at cathe's RT in july the spin instructor did not look "super fit" to me....she looked like she had a bit of a pudgy tummy and just not overall toned.....BUT boy did she kick our butts in that spin class

now it could be that i'm that great at spinning.......lol....but i was looking around at the entire class and almost no one could keep up with this lady.....i was slayed afterwards....and we still had cathe's boot camp class to go to.....wowza

so anyway....i said all that to say as others have mentioned that there is a trainer/group fitness market out there for everyone just like dvds

 

[monkeydoodle]

I have personally lost a lot of weight ( 2 babies) and have struggled with the last 10 pounds in the past. A lot of people do. I do not feel motivated by people who are also struggling. I do not need to see ultra ripped but certainly not overweight. I do enjoy working out with someone super ripped.
We have exactly one personal trainer in my town and she yo-yos hard core and for that reason I refuse to use her facilities, she doesn't motivate me. Fiddlefit, I think it is healthier to maintain than to yo yo so kudos to you for figuring out what works for you.
I know that for most people, weight issues are tied to diet and some it is an underlying medical condition but weight is still a critical component. I know super fit but very heavy people.
One of my issues is that it is unhealthy to even be 10 lbs overweight, it is hard on the joints, especially the knees and if personal trainers and fitness instructors are even a few pounds overweight, that can be seen as acceptable and normal and a healthy weight will very likely be seen as unachievable, which it isn't of course. Our society is so overweight and obese that it is acceptable and normal and the more fitness instructors that are also in this category the worse the situation becomes.

That is my opinion, I also have beautiful cousins who are extremely obese and are intimidated by ultra buff and they work out with less buff trainers, it has motivated them to lose a lot of weight and have a blast doing it and I am ecstatic for them.

 

[Stebby]

Here's my story. I was a chubby kid and didn't do much exercise of any sort until I was 12 (BTW my avatar photo is a picture of me at 12). That was when I discovered, when "forced" to take up cross-country running in my gym class, that I could actually improve my fitness level through exercise. The same year, I started swimming more seriously and cemented my love of exercise. At 18 I joined a gym and started weight training, relatively heavy. Although I was strong and healthy, I was always bottom-heavy and people often told me I was "too big" or "too muscular". For a couple of years I toyed with becoming a fitness instructor, but always said to myself, nah, I don't look the part. (At the time, late 70s-early 80s, all instructors were very young, very thin and very beautiful - often they were models who had been hired by the gyms.)

Then when I was 23 and in my last year of university, in 1984, on a dare from a friend, I took the plunge and took a 40-hour fitness instructor training course at my university. I immediately got a part-time job teaching 10-12 classes per week. I loved it. I came out of my shell. I worked at providing a good workout. I went to other instructors' classes and staff meetings at the gym to get more tips. I spent many hours finding music and recording it onto cassette tapes. I read many books. I worked on my physique. I dieted. But still, I was bottom heavy and felt I was obese (I was 5'4" and 125 lbs at the time, when most 5'4" instructors were closer to 100 lbs). Yet my classes were always full. I got positive feedback from a lot of people, but every once in awhile I would overhear comments like "why would they hire such a thunder-thighs to be an instructor?" which were crushing. Several times I seriously contemplated giving it all up, but my boss and my friends told me I was good at this, and I should keep going if I wanted to.

So I did keep going. I got certified in 1986 when ACE (IDEA Foundation at the time) came out with their first certification program. I continued to teach group exercise part time for 23 years, until I was 46 years old. During the 23 years I taught many varieties of classes including hi-lo, step, core, resistance band classes and stretch. I made many friends and learned a vast amount about nutrition, exercise science, leadership, and even stress relief. I learned how to avoid the obesity that plagues many members of my family. If I had listened to the little voice inside me, and the voices of people around me, telling me that I didn't look good enough to be a fitness instructor, I would have missed out on 23 years of life changing experiences. I stopped teaching when my daughter got old enough to participate in extra-curricular activities and I could no longer commit the time to teach fitness in addition to holding down a full-time job and supporting my daughter in her activities.

I still maintain my certification and I still attend one conference per year to keep up on the latest stuff, see old friends, try out new workouts and generally recharge. I still work out, hard. When I retire, probably in the next 8-10 years, I will probably go back to teaching group ex. And I will still not "look like a fitness instructor". But here's what teaching has given me: confidence in my body that I would never had otherwise; comfort with public speaking; exposure (through my continuing education) to some of the top exercise scientists and fitness professionals in the world; special friendships with people whom I would never even have met if they hadn't happened to attend my classes!

To anybody who wants to teach, but isn't sure if they have the right look: go for it! Get trained, get certified, become someone who has something important to share. Some people will be inspired by you. Others will not. Do not worry about the people who judge you by how you look - they will go elsewhere to find what they are looking for. Don't miss out on what could be a great adventure, just because of other people's opinions! I am glad I didn't.

Stebby

 

[mrsprincess07]

I care much more about how FIT someone is over how THIN they are. I kinda get annoyed that people assume that overweight folks cannot be fit. JMO

I agree.

So many smaller/thinner instructors if you got to know them and actaully talked to them about their habits in depth, aren't as "healthy" as one would assume. It's not uncommon for them, like us non-fitness instructors, do engage in extreme food/fitness habits that would not be recommended by true professionals for obtaining health. I've worked with many over the years that swore off certain food groups, stayed at the bare minimum for calories, went all day without eating something solid and lived off liquids, etc.

Thin and Smaller doesn't = Healthy. Heavier, "fat", Over Weight doesn't = Unhealthy.

It's a mental block that people have. They pre-judge others based on the outside ASSUMING it means one thing when it has no credibility whatsoever.

A great example: Debra Mazda. Size 12. Runner, Racer, Personal Trainer, and holds a MS in Exercise Physiology. If you looked at her without knowing her credentials and her personal story (lost approx 160 pounds without surgery) You'd assume she's probably not as healthy as say Cathe. Not only is she AS healthy, she's also earned a Master's Degree to allow her to walk the walk and talk the talk.

Size and weight mean nothing. There are many, many examples of larger people leaving the thinner, smaller people in the dust. You don't know the person just by looking at them and you have no idea about the knowledge they have and the power they produce. I know I've been everything from a Size 3 to a Size 22. I was at my healthiest at a Size 14. I had Gyms wanting to pay for my certification to become a PT and a Nutrition Counselor. I knew my stuff, I had the strength and power, and according to the gym, I would be a huge inspiration to other women looking for a "real" role model; someone they could relate to without feeling like all they will ever be is a Fat Girl in a world of Skinny-Minis.

I say go for it! If people want to skip your class because of your size, it's speaks more about THEM than it does YOU. And besides, do you really want to have someone standing behind you judging you on the size of your butt instead of what knowledge and experience you bring to the table? I know I wouldn't. You can't stop people from short changing you, but that doesn't mean you need to tuck tail and cave in either.