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Archive for “Personal Trainer” Tag

Symptomatology of Training Young Athletes

Posted on: January 27th, 2011 by IYCA 5 Comments

 

Training young athletes… It seems that everybody dabbles in this market 

Whether the fitness or sport training professional is a Physical Therapist by trade, Personal Trainer to the average adult clientele or Strength Coach to elite sporting stars, when stating their bios and areas or expertise, it seems that the sentence always ends with ‘I am Training Young Athletes, too‘.

 

And why not, right?

 

Training young athletes is the fastest growing niche within the entire fitness industry.

It’s worth over $4 billion a year in the United States alone and more than 1 million children, youths and teens hired a Personal Trainer in 2007 – a large number for the purpose of enhancing sport performance.

 

But that term, ‘enhancing sport performance’ is something that doesn’t really belong in the vernacular of the youth sports training world. At least not in the way we currently use it.

 

At the risk of sounding acrimonious, let me ask you this question.

 

How much do you really know about human growth, development and the necessary components of training clients in the pediatric and formative years?

 

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Youth Fitness Business: Training Adults is More Difficult – Part 4

Posted on: November 17th, 2010 by IYCA 3 Comments

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youth fitness business

9.) Financial Justification – Most athlete programs are funded by parents or the school system or a possible sponsor. Parents can rationalize spending the dollars on a Youth Fitness Business and on their children more than themselves when it comes to physical fitness. Why? Parents view their children as “still having a chance” to achieve a dream or great feat. This brings us back to the adult client. Why doesn’t an adult view this the same way? Adults cannot justify spending the money on personal training or fitness because they face other expenses where they need to funnel their hard-earned money to. When it comes to personal health, adults try to rationalize with themselves by procrastinating, or trying to get healthier on their own. When they fail, they finally seek out a personal trainer. Certain adults are skeptical of this expense simply because they lack the confidence, commitment, and motivation needed to succeed.

 

Yup, parents will pay for their kids while sacrificing for themselves. True. But the fitness industry generates more than $100 billion every year in the United States alone – people ARE paying for service and product.

 

The youth fitness business /sport training market generates $4 billion annually in the United States (according to the Wall Street Journal). The adult ‘fat loss’ demographic generates 4x that amount. (more…)

Back To School….Food For Thought

Posted on: September 23rd, 2010 by IYCA 1 Comment

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Youth Fitness Matrix

Posted on: September 21st, 2010 by IYCA No Comments

 

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The Youth Fitness and Sport Training market has officially exploded.

 

Trainers, Coaches, Facilities and Health Clubs worldwide have all jumped at this new opportunity to provide quality service to the demographic most in need.

 

And the market has responded.

 

More than 1 million kids and teenagers hired a Personal Trainer last year in the United States alone and as much as $4 billion are spent every year in this country on training and coaching for kids.

 

But as with any new marketplace, the professionals who can claim ‘Specialist’ status will eventually become the go-to-experts for consumers at large.

 

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Training Young Athletes – Big Mistake

Posted on: October 13th, 2009 by IYCA 16 Comments

 

Training Young Athletes

I admit to being annoyed on my call with Brad.
 

Not by him, but by the advice he was given,
 

It’s not a bad thing to say “I don’t know.”
 

You can’t know everything.
 

But yet again, I find more examples of people who think they do.
 

Training Young athletes need specific protocols

 

And if you don’t know what those ‘specifics’ are, why not just say so?
 

How to train young baseball players is the topic of this video but you better believe that it applies to ALL young athletes.
 

I think I’m getting tired of being surprised every time I realize that our industry, at large, doesn’t know ANYTHING about working with young athletes…

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The 3-4-5 System for Young Athletes

Posted on: April 14th, 2009 by IYCA 6 Comments

 

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Young Athletes Training System

Stephen Holt has long been considered one of the fitness industry’s top personal trainers. He has been highlighted by NSCA, PTontheNet, Fitness Magazine, IDEA and Health and Fitness Source, to name a few. Additionally, Stephen has been named "Expert of the Year" by AllExperts.com and "Personal Trainer of the Year" by the American Council on Exercise.

 

 

BG: What’s your background in youth sports and athletics? Have you worked with young athletes?

 

SH: Hi, Brian. First, let my point out that I’m really glad to hear about your book. Far too many trainers and parents are forcing kids into programs designed by and for adult bodybuilders.

 

Back to your question & That depends on your definition of "young." When I started as a personal trainer over 20 years ago, I set a minimum age of 16 for clients. Later, as I took more courses and read more books and articles on training young athletes, I lowered that minimum to 14, then eventually 10 or so, depending on their mental and physical maturity.

 

Most of the young athletes I help are girls’ lacrosse players with the youngest being 11. (We started when she was 9).

 

Although I focus on lacrosse (it’s a major sport here in the Baltimore area), most of the girls are three-season athletes and also play soccer, field hockey basketball and/or tennis.

 

If the athlete is a little younger (9-11,12), I’ll typically train them along with one parent. It seems to keep all of us happier.

 

BG: There are a lot of coaches, parents and even trainers who treat young athletes as if they were "little adults". What I mean by that is they will take the training routine of a superstar athlete and use it as a guide when working with youngsters. Why, if at all, should we warn against that kind of training?

 

SH: I agree that, unfortunately, there are too many young athletes being forced to specialize in a single sport.

 

Although it may appear counterintuitive at first, it’s better for young athletes NOT to specialize in a single sport. A single sport will limit that athlete’s motor development. Diversity puts the young athlete in various positions and requires different motor patterns and different strategies of muscle and muscle fiber recruitment.

 

You’ll find that most successful adult athletes were well-rounded athletes when they were younger.

 

BG: The age old debate is "How old should an athlete be before they begin lifting weights." What’s your view on that controversial topic?

 

SH: For years we’ve heard the myth that weight training will stunt a young athlete’s growth, but most scientific evidence shows otherwise.

 

In fact, recent studies indicate that young athletes can make gains in strength and, in some cases, even muscle size (which we once thought was impossible) at any virtually any age.

 

What you do what to avoid, however, are structured weight training "routines" based on traditional bodybuilding for adults.

 

Young athletes

respond better both mentally and physically to workouts that are more like play. Games using medicine balls work well, for example.

 

We also know that the adult heart rate charts don’t work for children and neither do the %RM vs. reps charts. It’s clear that the "rules" that we often use in training adults don’t apply to young athletes and can even be harmful.

 

BG: Using your ideals, could you define "functional conditioning" for us?

 

SH: It’s interesting that "functional" is probably the most popular buzzword in the fitness industry these days, yet most people, even trainers who claim that they’re "functional," can’t define exactly what they mean.

 

My definition of functional is "fortifying the way the body is designed to work based upon anatomy, movement patterns and biomechanics."

 

I use what I call the "3-4-5 System."

 

This is a little technical, but … I make sure that my clients work all three planes (sagittal, frontal, transverse), all four outer unit muscle systems (anterior oblique, posterior oblique, deep longitudinal and lateral) and all five basic motor patterns (pushing, pulling, rotation, moving your center of gravity, and working on one leg).

 

If you’re doing the math and think that’s a lot of exercises, it doesn’t total up to 3 x 4 x 5 = 60 different exercises. You simply select exercises that cover multiple categories.

 

The scientific basis is a little complicated, but the exercises are not as complicated. I explain it all in my book and through free excerpts that I publish in my "3-4-5 Fitness Newsletter." Most people pick up the system quickly and easily.

 

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Youth Fitness Trainer or Coach

Posted on: February 26th, 2009 by IYCA 3 Comments

Youth Fitness Professionals

Personal Trainer = Someone who works with a client to plan or implement an
exercise or fitness program.

 

Coach = Someone who gives instruction, advice or direction.

 

As defined by Webster’s Dictionary.

 

Much has been discussed about my use of the term ‘Coach’ in favor or the word
‘Trainer’ when describing myself as well as IYCA certified professionals.

 

And I have been asked many times why I have such a strong inclination towards
the one versus the other.

 

Re-read the definitions above and you should be able to figure it out for yourself.

 

The Art of Coaching information I provide in the Level 1 YouthFitness Specialist
course is both a great source of pride for us here at the IYCA, but also serves as a
strong differentiating factor in terms of our organization versus other educational
bodies in this industry.

 

Programming, training, exercise selection…

 

These are the sciences of our work.

 

Communication, coaching and instruction…

 

These are the arts within Youth Fitness.

 

Understanding how to reach each and every one of your young clients in a manner
that they will hear and respond to is perhaps the single greatest challenge facing
Youth Fitness Specialists.

 

We must be chameleon. We must accept the fact that understanding the specifics
associated with learning and communication are every bit as important, maybe
more so, than creating and implementing effective and developmentally-sound
training programs.

 

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Youth Training Business Message From Tampa

Posted on: November 20th, 2008 by IYCA 1 Comment

 

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Youth Training Education Is a Must

Hey,

 

So here I am in Tampa, Florida.

 

A special guest of Pat Rigsby and Nick Berry for their
Ultimate Business Solutions master mind meeting.

 

The weather’s nice and I’m certainly happy not to be in
my winter-filled home of Chicago right now.

 

But the past couple of days have been a lot more than a
nice break from the cold weather.

 

In fact, it’s been as big an eye opening experience as I’ve
had in a long time.

 

And here’s why…

 

I’ve listened to fellow fitness professionals discussing
their youth training businesses, roadblocks they’re facing and ideas
they’ve implemented that have become widely successful.

 

I’ve contributed my thoughts and opinions as well as offered
any advice I could based on my 13 year track record of success
in this industry.

 

But the true ‘hidden gem’ of the past couple of days have
been in noticing the people in the room.

 

Jason Brown

 

David Whitley

 

Donovan Owens

 

Jim Labadie

 

 

Do any of those names sound familiar to you?

 

Jason Brown is the KING of martial arts conditioning.

 

David Whitley just got back from Tokyo as a guest
lecturer on kettlebell training.

 

Donovan Owens is the #1 Trainer in Austin, Texas and
just recently was offered a regular column in the largest
newspaper in that area.

 

Jim Labadie, a one-time Personal Trainer, is now recognized
as the best and most successful ‘business coach’ in the industry
and is on demand literally all over the world.

 

So how does that translate into an ‘eye opening’ experience?

 

Easy…

 

The best of the BEST are here.

 

Learning.

 

Getting better.

 

Pushing themselves to be even more successful.

 

And this is something I talk about all the time.

 

The best are the best because they are constantly learning.

 

The best get better because they never stop wanting more.

 

So let me cut to the chase on this…

 

My new ‘Secrets of Program Design’ CEU course is
what you need.

 

It is the best and most convenient means by which to become
better, learn more and enhance your youth training success.

 

It’s a never-before-seen look inside my brain.

 

How I construct youth training programs.

 

How I get results regardless of the situation.

 

How I coach and program for teams and individual athletes.

 

How I became the most successful Youth Fitness Specialist
in the world.

 

And isn’t learning from and patterning success the best and
most efficient way of becoming successful yourself?

 

I’m sitting in a conference room at the Intercontinental Hotel
in Tampa right now listening to David Whitley talk about how
he makes more than $5,000 A DAY as a guest speaker.

 

And here he is.

 

Learning.

 

Investing in his career.

 

Because he knows that’s what it takes to be successful.

 

When are you going to realize that?

 

Here’s your exclusive link to the youth training ‘Secrets of Program Design’ course –

 

 

http://www.iyca.org/course/programdesign

 

 

 

From Tampa….

 

Brian

 

 

 

IYCA Family: Does This Make Sense to You?

Posted on: September 15th, 2008 by IYCA 5 Comments

IYCA is against everything you are about to hear

Because of potential criminal fallout, I’m not allowed to tell you where I saw this.

What’s criminal is the fact that this happened at all.

And the criminals in this case shouldn’t be allowed to hide behind our legal system.

But what can I say?

That’s the law I suppose.

So, with the details muddled and the offenders protected, let me tell you what happened while I was working out yesterday.

A Personal Trainer was conducting a training session with a middle-aged client.

That in itself is not a story.

The fact that I even noticed them at all was based on what I kept hearing.

Groans.

Groans of effort.

Groans of effort that eventually turned into screams.

I mean tribal screams – the kind you usually only hear from elite power lifters or world-class bodybuilders.

Rep after rep after rep, this middle-aged man was literally screaming, cursing and grunting his way through the workout.

All the while, his Personal Trainer was paying literally no attention.

I mean at all.

He wasn’t even watching.

His eyes were fixed across the gym at a couple of other Personal Trainers who had joined the rest of the people in the facility as we all watched in horror at what was going on.

Only, the Personal Trainers weren’t in shock, disbelief or concern.

They were laughing.

The Personal Trainer who was actually conducting this training session was looking at his buddies and laughing.

Rep after rep after rep.

I could go on about how poorly the middle-aged client was performing each repetition and how dangerous his movement patterns were, but that is not the point of this story.

And it isn’t where I believe the Personal Trainer erred most by not watching his client…

…This guy was turning greener and greener by the second.

And the laughing Personal Trainer, acting cool to his buddies, didn’t even notice.

And then it happened.

And anyone actually watching this freak show would have predicted it.

I did.

The middle-aged client leaps off the leg press machine (don’t even get me started on that one), and runs to the closest garbage can.

In a lucky twist of fate, he managed to pull the lid off the top just as the vomit started soaring out of his mouth.

And the Personal Trainer laughed..

He didn’t once go over to his client and see that he was o.k.

He just laughed, smirked and grinned at his buddies.

The vomit stopped, the lid was placed back on the garbage can and everyone in the gym went back to there own business.

The smug Personal Trainer walked over to the now completely exhausted and defeated middle-aged client and says – and this is not me exaggerating –

“Good job.  That’s the price you have to pay.  Let’s get back to work”

I want to end the story there and let you stew for a moment about all the things that are wrong about that situation…. But I have more to say about it in a second.

First, think of this –

I want you to realize and even internalize the fact that when the general public, our consumers at large, think of ‘Personal Trainers’, they think of you and the jackass in this story in the same way.

To the public, you and him are the same.

Here’s how the story ends.

As I’m walking out of the gym, pretty much ‘done’ with what I had just seen, I notice a sign on the front door that I hadn’t noticed when I walked in:

‘Coming This Winter – Our New YOUTH FITNESS PROGRAM’

There was a photograph of the Personal Trainer who will be heading up this gym’s new Youth Fitness program.

Any guesses who it was?

See, this is why the IYCA was created.

To actually differentiate you from Personal Training clowns like this guy.

I checked out his bio on the website, by the way.

He is certified by all those mainstream certification companies – the ones that you are certified by as well.

And because of that, the potential customers you and him as equal.

The IYCA is different. 

We are the only certification agency that actually specializes in educating you on how best to train and develop young athletes and youth fitness participants.

In fact, we do such a great job at preparing Fitness and Sport Training professionals for the endless opportunities that exist in ‘Youth’ niche of the industry, we were recently featured in the internationally acclaimed magazine, Newsweek.

Our youth-based curriculum is not ‘one’ of the certifications we offer.

It is all we offer.

And I created it so that consumers knew that you were different than idiot-boy above.

Right now, the IYCA has certified professionals working in the ever-expanding field of youth fitness and sport development all over the world:

Canada
The United States
Singapore
New Zealand
Australia
England
Scotland
Wales
South Africa

I mean, our IYCA Testimonials page has letters and comments from professional Trainers all over the world who have been overjoyed at the way there careers have changed since becoming IYCA certified.

Have a look for yourself –

http://www.iyca.org/testimonials

The Wall Street Journal reported that over $4 billion a year are being spent on Personal Training and Coaching for youths in the United States alone.

Parents are going to take their kids to fools, or they’re going to bring them to you.

It’s your choice.

‘Till next time,

“What the IYCA has done for my career is worth more than I could ever repay”

Robert Belley
Youth Conditioning Specialist – since 2005

 

 

Become certified as a Youth Conditioning Specialist today and see how much your career will change.

IYCA Certification is the GOLD STANDARD… Click here to find out why –

http://www.iyca.org/fitspecialist1

 

P.S. – There was a recent story in media publications all over the world showing that nearly 1 million children and teens throughout the United States alone use Personal Trainers.

Client demands are changing in the fitness industry…

Are you prepared to change with them??

Become IYCA Certified Now –

 

http://www.iyca.org/fitspecialist1

 

 

Exercise Programs For Kids: 3 Key Elements…

Posted on: May 16th, 2008 by IYCA 2 Comments

 

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Exercise Programs For Kids Done Right

There’s 3 key elements you have to understand when it comes to exercise programs for kids.

 

And these things AREN’T taught in your standard adult based fitness certifications…

 

 

A record setting 1 million clients under the age of 18 hired a personal trainer in the United States alone in 2007.

 

Our industry is changing rapidly and the following video will explain why your current credentials may not be enough…

 

 

Leave your comments below and let me know what you think on exercise programs for kids and certifications.