trainers posing as nutritionists

[dr.mel_PT]

it makes me mad when i hear how people take nutritional advice from their trainers who have ZERO background in nutrition. i just overheard a coworker telling someone how she is not allowed to eat any carbs or fruit because her trainer told her fruit is bad for her because it's made up of sugar. um HELLO, it's not the same as processed sugar which IS bad for you!!!! and how can you cut out carbs entirely when youre doing high-intensity workouts 5-6 days a week?! people dont question things like this? i dont get it.

 

[elsie3]

Oh, I so love this post. I've been having trouble with my neighbor who is a spin instructor. She thinks she knows EVERYTHING about nutrition and exercise--and doesn't.

People need to check their resources.

 

[lauramangano]

I'm currently going to school for exercise physiology, and they have taught us NOT to plan peoples meals for them, for precisely the reason you have mentioned above. We won't have the training that a dietician or nutritionist will have, so we are taught not to act like we do have that training. We can, on the other hand, make common sense suggestions like, "Maybe you could not eat those candy bars"

 

[Clarissa]

I'm currently going to school for exercise physiology, and they have taught us NOT to plan peoples meals for them, for precisely the reason you have mentioned above. We won't have the training that a dietician or nutritionist will have, so we are taught not to act like we do have that training. We can, on the other hand, make common sense suggestions like, "Maybe you could not eat those candy bars"

Exactly! I am a Trainer and I NEVER give nutritional advice past the common sense suggestions. I talk about protein needs, etc, but never offer a diet plan. They need to find a certified nutrionist for that. It is against what AFAA stands for anyway, and that is what I am certified through.

 

[morningstar]

it makes me mad when i hear how people take nutritional advice from their trainers who have ZERO background in nutrition. i just overheard a coworker telling someone how she is not allowed to eat any carbs or fruit because her trainer told her fruit is bad for her because it's made up of sugar. um HELLO, it's not the same as processed sugar which IS bad for you!!!! and how can you cut out carbs entirely when youre doing high-intensity workouts 5-6 days a week?! people dont question things like this? i dont get it.

You wanna hear what's worse? I went to a registered dietitian who was supposed to have a speciality in sports nutrition, and she constantly quoted a trainer she went to as the source of nutrition information I should follow. I knew more than her! I guess I should have gone to her trainer, right? Oh, and get this, she told me to lose body fat I should drop my calories to 1500/day, even though I was doing weight training splits almost every day, working out 3 hours most days and doing lots of walking and cardio. My freakin' BMR is more than 1500 calories a day! My body would have shut down.

 

[kathryn]

From what I understand, "nutritionist" doesn't mean much. There is no one standard for becoming one (like their is for becoming a licensed dietician), so these trainers could well be "nutritionists" and still be misinformed.

 

[NRG Woman]

I work as a trainer and never give nutritional advice because that is not what I am trained to do. I do work with special populations though which can be its own challenge. Once I had a client that had very disordered eating and I had spent the entire hour working with her convincing her it was okay to eat something after her workout and then eat dinner. As I was scheduling her next appointment another trainer came over and overheard a sentence or two of what we were talking about and told her she should eat a pop tart when she got home...and he meant it. Are you kidding me? He did more damage with that one statement than he will ever know.

It is always the trainers that are least aware that are freely dispensing nutritional advice.

Shayne