Since lockdown begun, the fad of working out from home also caught up fast enough for everyone to fall prey to various online training schedules. Without giving it much thought, it came across as a common misconception that any workout schedule would help achieve the same body as of the trainer working out in the video. However, despite various mediums for maintaining fitness levels, it gave rise to misconceptions, which eventually would have led to delayed results in achieving that desired body weight appearance. Battle of losing weight is half-lost already when the approach to it is wrong.
Online Fitness Training Tips Debunked
Despite gyms opening up, a lot many people still prefer working out from home. Hence, for achieveing of weight loss goals, here we bring to you some common online fitness myths debunked by Tharun Sholarajan, Head Coach - Gold’s Gym India.
Myth 1: Online Training Is Not As Effective As Training At The Gym
Most people’s idea of effective training is lifting weights and using machines at a gym. But weight training doesn’t necessarily have to mean external weights. Even your body weight is more than sufficient to get an excellent training session and achieve phenomenal results. The movement possibilities are infinite.
Zero to minimal dependency on equipment means you’re more likely to maximize your time. The key with any effective training program lies in the parameters of volume (how many repetitions in total), intensity (how much weight was used), frequency (how many times the muscle/functionality/energy system was trained), density (how much work was done in a given time).
Also Read: 4 Ways You Can Boost Your Workout With A Personal Trainer
While high volume, frequency and intensity are possible at home with bands/water bottles/backpacks etc, increasing the density of work done is critical in maximizing muscle mass, burning more calories, and eventually enough to stay in a caloric deficit and burn fat, given your nutrition, sleep and hydration are in place too. If you can perform more work in less time, you will maximize results. All 4 parameters need to be carefully designed into the program.
Myth 2: Online Trainers Don’t Interact Much. It’s Impersonal
This is true of any platform you choose. Many trainers could be absent mentally while being present physically, and this applies to an in-person training session as much or even more compared to online training.
With online training, it’s the art of being present while being absent. The first shackle one needs to remove it from one’s mind. As long as you’re open and enthusiastic to giving online training a go, if that’s your only option currently, then the first hurdle has been crossed already. Next is up to the trainer to be aware of what you and others need (based on if it’s a group class or one on one). Again, if the trainer is dull and boring, you will not enjoy the class regardless of what medium you choose.
It’s a trainer’s job and skill to be able to develop a program based on different fitness levels, and more importantly, execute it with appropriate physical demonstration and verbal cues. Storytelling and educating your audience is key. That’s where they draw inspiration from. Moreover, coaching need not be restricted to just the one hour class. It’s what happens in the remaining 23 hours and how your coach interacts with you and keeps you motivated/accountable that matters equally. This is as simple as sharing meals daily and merely responding to your client with a thumbs up. It makes a monumental difference in their motivation levels. As long as this is covered, an online training program can be equally good, if not even better than in-person training. Even a program with zero 1:1 verbal interaction such as a live broadcast or pre-recorded videos can be as significant, if not better than someone training you in person based on the parameters mentioned above. So, a rock-solid system with great communication is the answer.
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Also Read: Learn These Fail-Proof Tips To Build Endurance By Gym Trainer Hitesh Chhabria
Myth 3: Because The Personal Trainer/Celebrity Looks Good Or Is Popular, They Know What They’re Talking About
One of the biggest misconceptions, thanks to the ease of access to every online portal is that if someone looks good, they know what they’re talking about when it comes to training you. Looks are highly deceptive. Let’s consider most trainers who either may have used performance enhancement substances and/or photoshopped at least to a certain degree to look the way they do, possibly without knowing much about healthy balanced nutrition. Without knowing how to balance calories, macro and micronutrients. I can show you a 10-minute transformation and claim it took me 6 months. All I need to do is get a good upper body pump, close the curtains, turn on overhead lighting, suck my stomach in, flex my abs, and throw some water on myself. There’s no shortcut to getting into great shape.
Myth 4: The Same Online Workout Program Works For Everyone, If It Works For My Friend It Will Work For Me
Everyone’s bodies are made different. Your lifestyle choices are different. The way you need to be trained and should eat may be the polar opposite of what someone else should be doing. Yes, some basic rules and principles when it comes to training and nutrition remain the same across all goals. Still, an educated professional with experience to train a variety of body types, food preference, is far superior to someone without it. Moreover, empathy is far more important to be an online trainer than just looking good and quoting motivational statements. The ability to EMPATHIZE with your audience’s reality and give them a realistic picture of how to deal with real-life circumstances better is what’s more important than only showing the best parts of your own life.
Again, a customized program is a bit more of an investment as compared to a generic program, but it will be worth it.
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