GROUP PERSONAL TRAINER

Some people dread standing up in front of groups and addressing large crowds of people. It may be fear of rejection or just pure shyness, but working with more than two people leads to stammering, sweating and nervousness. Personal trainers are a slightly different breed who enjoy attention and do not seem to be intimidated by groups of people, but we still have to refine our skills, divide our attention and multitask in a group environment.

The group dynamic is never boring with varied personalities, injuries, conditioning levels and needs of the clients who constitute this group. Although clients attend a specific class such as a toning class or boot camp, it does not mean that they have the same goals or needs. As professionals we need to guess the needs of each individual before the class and evaluate their workout afterwards. As with one-on-one training, each person has a specific manner that they want to be treated. Some people enjoy attention and correction, while others are more reserved and prefer to be left to themselves. Group trainers have the responsibility to prioritise safety and correct potentially dangerous movements and postures before any harm is caused and this means that the group trainer must constantly sweep the room with the eyes (if not their body) and watch each person as they participate in the workout.

We have to divide our attention between the participants and give equal attention to each member of the group, which is always challenging because some people are more needy and need more postural correction than others. The group trainer also gets more of a workout with repeated demonstration and correction, but it is important to demonstrate numerous times to ensure that each member of the class understands the exercises and techniques.

When working with groups, it is difficult to prescribe repetitions because some people will always try to finish first, leaving the others with half completed sets. This can be combated with time based training and it is less work for the group trainer to set a stopwatch than to count repetitions or monitor the different pace of the class.

The fun aspect of training is enhanced in groups with more scope for games, comments, competition and vibe. Along with the self motivation from each individual, there is also group pressure that will make them work harder, faster and stronger. This leads to comments and communication that will make the class fun. Team work is encouraged and there is no need to only work in partners. Dividing a class if fifteen people into three groups of five will lead to socialisation and the more experienced members can help the newbies. Dividing into groups of three is useful for games and races. A circuit is also another way to structure a class and it generally keeps going for an hour, but it may be difficult initially. The downside is that the noise leads to distraction and it becomes difficult for the trainer to maintain control over the group. The group trainer is under ore strain to treat participants equally and maintain control over safety aspects and technique. Correction should be done discretely and the group trainer must be a personal trainer for everybody.