Personal Fitness Professional - November/December 2008 - (Page 34)

WWW .XTB OO P AM TC [ SPOTLIGHT] CERTIFICATIONS & EDUCATION , 888.679.4 .COM 77 0 ALYTE PIEDRA ACSM Health/Fitness Instructor; NESTA Certiﬁed Fitness Nutrition Coach; bachelor’s degree in health promotion from the University of Iowa. SOMEONE CLIENTS RELATE TO I was always the biggest one in my class. When I was 11 or 12, my mom joined the YMCA. I saw her working out and got really interested, so I started working out on my own and felt that it was working. When I turned 13, I was shown around the gym by a trainer who became a mentor for me as I built up my professional ﬁtness skills. So now, to help clients, I tell them my personal health story and let them know that whatever happens happens, and they can’t dwell on it. They always have a brand new opportunity to learn new things and become a healthier person surrounded by positive experiences. Actually, I like to train people that have given up on themselves, who have been overweight their entire lives. These clients work out one day and feel too sore to go back, and they have never met somebody to help them along. Clients really enjoy the fact that I’m right there with them and I’ve experienced it my entire life. People like a human being that they can feel comfortable with and are just as human as they are. HANDLING BAD CLIENTS I’ve actually had to pass a client onto another trainer — it was more of a personality diﬀerence. I felt like they would try to take advantage of my time, act like children and disrespect me. But I just had to talk with these clients and tell them that it wasn’t a very good ﬁt, and it ends up working out very well. Honesty is the best way to go about handling bad clients. Nobody should take it personally. Sometimes there’s a personality diﬀerence that causes a bad ﬁt, which is why we at our facility sit down with clients to see what they look for in a trainer before they actually start training. ALYTE’S FUTURE GOALS Hopefully, my husband and I will have our own national boot camp franchise, and later go international with it. Also, I want to give more trainers the opportunity to make a career out of their education. I feel like you go to school, get certiﬁed and learn how to train, but you don’t really learn what to do with it, how you apply the knowledge into real life and make it a business or a career. CUSTOMER SERVICE I want to set a standard in the ﬁtness industry in one thing that makes us successful: great customer service. For all the trainers out there, never lose focus on the client and customer service. Especially in these hard economic times, what people need is excellent service and value. If you show your clients that you care about each and every one of them, you will build a strong client base that will be with you for years to come. Be patient and hard-working. Whatever you put into it is what you will get out, so don’t expect to work a few hours a week and gather a great client base. Discuss diﬀerent issues with your clients, motivate them to succeed, and show them you care. Get to know clients as people and ﬁgure out what motivates them and how you can work with that and make them beneﬁt the greatest. Not every single person is going to be your ideal client, and not every client is the same. NOV-DEC2008 · WWW.FIT-PRO.COM 34 http://WWW.FIT-PRO.COM

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Personal Fitness Professional - November/December 2008

Personal Fitness Professional - November/December 2008 Contents Letter from the Editor, Writers Your Scope of Practice Combating Youth Obesity Current Controversies The Balancing Act Product Profile Building a Base of Special Populations The Right State of Mind Mark Your Calendar The Equipment Dilemma Too Much To Do, Too Little Time Exercise Spotlight Holiday Gift Guide New on the Market Alyte Piedra

Personal Fitness Professional - November/December 2008

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