So if you know me already you know I'm awful at being told what to do. Its like I have this instinctual anti-authoritarian complex that makes me an absolute nightmare to manage.
Yes, even when I've asked for it. Tell me what to do and all of a sudden I don't want to do it anymore. And this was something I already knew about myself but thought, naively because I really wanted to train with someone, that I'd be able to work well with a PT. Oh how wrong I was.
So lets start at the beginning; the reason I wanted a PT. Far from a novice in the gym, my main goal for getting a PT was to up my calorie intake as I don't manage to eat much consistently. Which over the years, seems to have messed up my metabolism a little, leaving me with only a toddlers allowance of calories before I start to put weight on. Which during a pandemic and the gyms closing, made it very easy to pack on an extra 10 pounds.
So even though I do have quite a good knowledge nutrition and the science to all that shit I thought best hand this over to a professional because I don't seem to be getting anywhere here.
Having a online PT meant that every single little thing had to be tracked and this meant using, MyFitnessPal, Habit Tracker, a Fit Bit to monitor everything - every single day. Along with weigh ins 3-4 times a week, 11k steps a day and workouts 4 times a week.
The first thing I learnt - working out, is not my problem, I can easily reach 4 workouts and still feel like I can do more. This is because I love going to the gym, and always have.
The second thing I learnt - getting 11k steps in (10k is your suggested daily) is so much harder then you think when you work from home. It meant I had to schedule in at least an hour and a half every day walking.
Getting onto the anti-authoritarian part of me - I cannot do as I'm told, plain and simple. I don't want to, and to be honest - I'm happy with that part of me. Its what makes me who I am. I question everything, and will never follow blindly without understanding and believing in the benefits of anything that takes up my time. So using so many apps to fill out information and stay 'accountable' doesn't work for me, because I am very self aware - I don't kid myself of anything and I sure don't need another checklist in my life to fill out to say I've done something I know I have or haven't done - because I know if I haven't or have done it.
A huge part of working with a personal trainer is giving up yourself to their ideas and plans and just going with it - and this is why it works for so many people - but its the exact reason it doesn't and possibly may never work for me.
To conclude, I cant say it wasn't worth trying as I have come out of it with things I will continue to do to stay in shape and continually work on my health. Such as, get those steps in, eat more protein and don't over train - rest is good.
Have you ever had a PT? If so how was your experience and what did you gain the most from it?
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