7 Ways We Hold Our Personal Training Clients Accountable
When I ask potential clients, “What do you think is the number 1 thing missing that once you have you’ll have no problems reaching your goals?” Here's the main response I get.
“Accountability!”
Bingo.
You could have the best plan in the world but if you don’t follow it you won’t get results.
Now I do think you need a really solid Strength Training, Nutrition, and Cardio plan to get the health and fitness results you want. BUT the most important thing is you do something consistently.
You will get better results consistently following a mediocre plan than if you rarely/never follow the BEST PLAN EVER.
To follow a plan consistently, the plan needs to be reasonably set up so you can actually commit to it. But you also need accountability. Accountability from a real, live human will always and forever get you better results than if you try to go at it solo.
That’s why Accountability is something included in every single program we offer at Steel. It’s why we don’t offer gym access. Everything is built around coaching and accountability because I’m committed to client results.
Our programs are built around what we call the 3 Keys to Success. These are the 3 things we’ve found every client needs if they want to be successful.
Strength Training
Sustainable Nutrition
Coaching and Accountability
Coaching and ACCOUNTABILITY is our 3rd key to success. And I tell every potential client this is the most important part of the program AND it’s my favorite part of the program- because it’s all about people and progress. 2 things I love very much!
So without further ado, let’s dive into the 6 ways we hold you accountable at Steel!
You Invest Significantly Into Your Health
When you sign up at Steel, you sign up because you believe we’ll get you where you want to go. NOT because we offer the cheapest deals in town.
We do in fact offer a GREAT deal. Possibly the best deal out there!
The deal is you invest your hard earned money and your valuable time and your energy and effort and we’ll coach you to success with your health and fitness.
You, your health, and your fitness are worth investing in. And when you win, it will be worth everything you invested x10!
But to work with us you have to pay. It ain't cheap! And it’s definitely not free.
Not only does this allow us to cover expenses, pay our staff well, and make a profit (I’ve got a family to feed and dreams to make a reality!!)…it is a way of holding you accountable.
Look, are there people who are paying $10 every month to Planet Fitness and absolutely changing their life? You bet! What percentage of their members are getting these results though? Probably not many.
If you can get results paying $10 a month at a gym, go for it!! I’m not here to stop you. And quite frankly, you probably aren’t in our target market.
We work with people who are interested in high quality coaching, who know they will greatly benefit from Accountability to succeed, and who are willing and able to pay for it.
The payment itself, while not the most important part of accountability, will hold you accountable.
You might be willing to waste $10, $20, or even $50/month. But I don’t know many people willing to waste $300, $600, $900+ per month. If you pay that much, you’re going to show up and do the work. Guaranteed.
Monthly Goal Reviews
Every month during your first 12 weeks at Steel (and quarterly after that) we do a goal review. We’ll take progress pictures, take measurements, and discuss your progress. We’ll see how happy you are with the results and we’ll adjust your program as necessary to keep you progressing as quickly as possible.
First, it’s very motivating to see your measurements and progress pics improving every single month. Seeing those quick results shows you the plan is working and motivates you to KEEP GOING!
Second, knowing you’re going to have to face the truth of your pics and measurements, you’ll be more likely to stay on track.
It’s both the carrot and the stick.
There’s a lot of excitement when things look good.
And some pain when things don’t look good. I’ve found clients seeing not so great results in a goal review is the BEST motivation for getting serious about changing your nutrition and getting your steps in and/or adding in some cardio.
We aren’t here to shame you about “bad” results. We celebrate you when you win, and encourage you and motivate you when you aren’t doing so great. We’re always positive. We know that you know when you haven’t been doing right lol.
I am NOT interested in making you feel bad about yourself. That won’t help you win.
But seeing the truth in the goal reviews is wildly helpful at keeping you accountable and on track! And it’s always a win when we do them. Because either we can celebrate and know you’re on the right path, or we’ll detect very quickly you need to make some changes.
Weekly (or more) Text Check-Ins
In addition to the monthly goal reviews, we text you a minimum of once per week to check in.
We want to make sure you’re feeling good about everything.
We want to make sure you’re showing up to your workouts.
We want to make sure you’re following your nutrition plan.
We want to make sure you’re getting your steps in and/or doing some cardio.
And we’ll be there to answer any questions you have.
Part of the goal of the texts is to make sure you’re doing all the right things! But it’s also so you know we care. We’re here to help. And you can reach out to us at any time.
Seriously, any time our clients need us they text or e-mail us and we handle it ASAP.
Note***I don’t answer texts at 3am. If you have a question then, you have a problem I’m not qualified to solve lol. But other than that please reach out. We got you!!
You’re on Our Calendar
If you’re a 1 on 1 client we schedule you manually every single week. You’ll be on our Google calendar and we will absolutely know if you don’t show up to your workout.
And we understand life happens. We don’t expect perfect attendance.
But if you don’t show, you better believe we’re going to be reaching out if you haven’t already told us why you missed!
For our Small-Group clients you will have access to our scheduling app where you can schedule your workouts in advance. You can schedule them as far in advance as you’d like! But when we look at our sessions for the day, we open up the app to see who is coming. And just like the 1 on 1 clients, if you don’t show up we’ll be sure to check on you.
Again, we don’t expect perfection. But we do expect communication and commitment to us. Because we are committed to you and your success!
And for BOTH 1 on 1 and small-group clients we will go into the app and pull attendance reports to see who hasn’t been in the gym lately, or who’s been showing up sporadically instead of consistently. We KNOW when you haven’t been showing up. And if you don’t show up, you can bet your bottom dollar you’ll be hearing from us asking you what’s going on!
Asking About Your Nutrition in the Gym
When you come to the gym, we’re going to workout. Obviously! And we’ll talk more on that later.
But when we see you, we aren’t JUST going to workout. We’re going to check in and see how you are and how your weekend was and how your sick dog is doing. Then we’re going to ask you about your nutrition.
We aren’t going to grill you about it. We aren’t going to shame you. We just want to know how your eating has been. Good or bad or in between.
We just want to make sure you’re doing the things you said you were willing to do to get to your goal.
Having another checkpoint in addition to the monthly goal reviews and the weekly texts is only going to keep you more accountable!
Pushing You in Your Workouts
Of course when it comes to your workouts, the primary goal is to…you know…workout!
We’ll be focusing on Strength Training because we know this is the fastest way to change your body and is the best use of your time in the gym.
Strength Training builds muscle, boosts our metabolism, makes it easier to lose fat and maintain that fat loss. It gives us the lean toned defined look we want. It prevents injury, increases energy, reduces stress, helps us sleep better, etc. It does all the things!
And as your Personal Trainer we will make sure your program is exactly what you need for your goals, and we’ll coach you through every workout and every exercise and every rep. And we’ll make sure you’re using good form and giving every workout your best effort!
It’s hard to get to the gym without accountability. But let’s say you do make that happen. Good for you!
BUT the next problem you’ll run into is you probably won’t push yourself like you would if you had a Personal Trainer holding you accountable.
Accountability ensures you get more workouts in AND it ensures you get the most out of your workouts!
Something interesting to note here. Accountability isn’t just for the every day people we work with. The best athletes and business owners in the world pretty much always have at least one coach if not more to hold them accountable and push them.
If Michael Jordan needed a coach to be THE Michael Jordan, surely you and I would benefit from a coach.
Always Being in Your Corner
The first 6 items are things we DO. Things we do to make sure you’re showing up to your workouts, following your nutrition plan, and getting your steps in and/or doing your cardio.
A huge piece of us offering the accountability you need is DOING all the things to take care of you. But there may be an element that’s even more important than all the DOING. It’s the BEING.
Now I sound so philosophical. Let me explain.
You can rest assured knowing that WE ARE YOUR PERSON on this fitness journey.
We are here for you! Most clients don’t need non-stop accountability. In fact, clients who need non-stop accountability probably aren’t committed to their goals. They’re relying purely on us for their motivation and they won’t win in the long run.
At the end of the day YOU have to be committed. YOU have to put in the work even when you don’t feel like it.
But every once in a while you may need that reminder, that push, that encouragement. And when you need it, it goes a long way!
I’m always telling our staff that the difference between us delivering an amazing service and a mediocre one is often the difference of 2-3 conversations each month. Those 2-3 brief interactions can be life-changing for someone. And that’s what we’re committed to providing you!
We will BE who you need in a coach on this journey.
It gives clients so much peace of mind simply knowing they have someone in their corner committed to their success. Committed to helping them get from point A to point B.
Like I said earlier, if you’re one of these superstars who can get a gym membership, go consistently, and see amazing results without a coach to guide you and hold you accountable…keep up the great work!
But if you know you’d do better with a coach to guide you, lay out a program perfect for you and your goals, and to hold you accountable every step of the way…my advice is…
Go hire that coach!!!
Of course we would LOVE to be your coach. I’m confident we can help you change your life.
But at the end of the day you need to find a coach who cares A LOT about you and your success. There are a lot of awesome coaches out there. Just gotta find one you like!
And if you’d like to see if we’d be a good fit to work together, CLICK HERE and fill out the form.
I’ll contact you within 24 hours to schedule a zero-pressure phone call to see if we’re a good fit to work together!
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