By now many of you have seen in the news in the last few days the story regarding the personal trainer who apparently trained a first time client into the hospital. The news story obviously piqued my interest what with the talk of kidney damage so of course I have something to say on the matter!
BRISBANE TIMES – National gym chain, personal trainer sued after man spends week in hospital
To sue your trainer for something like this – it’s pretty serious. Rhabdomyolysis is pretty serious. The main questions that are flying around about this situation are rightly being posed.
Is the trainer negligent?
Is the Fitness Centre liable?
Did the client disclose their full medical history?
Was their full medical history even requested?
What exactly did this trainer do to the client?
Why didn’t the client say NO?
The conundrum with this list of questions that answering one question doesn’t solve the mystery. It will be a while before we find out the finer details of this case and until then, we can only speculate but it opens up a bigger, darker and more dangerous question –
What the HELL is wrong with the fitness industry?
I am the first to admit I am not your usual PT. I am not the stereotypical beefcake who yells at clients, who pushes them to vomit point and beyond (up yours, Biggest Loser). I don’t make personal training more about me and what I look like in comparison to my clients. I don’t use sneaky and manipulative tricks to sign people on and I try to keep my before and after photos with as little variables as I can.
So why is there so much rubbish happening in the industry? Strap yourself in as I’m about to get ranty.
The stereotypical traits of a gym junkie aren’t offensive a good chunk of the time they’re on point – especially in your larger corporate gyms. The bro culture that perpetuates from there, the effort put in to be seen as an alpha, the biggest and most ripped guy in the gym.. I have to concede it’s an interesting people watching location. The issue that often eventuates from these gym bunnies is the notion of “Hey I love going to the gym and I could totally make some sick money by training people so I’m going to be a PT!”.
If this guy is/was your idol – we probably won’t get along.
We then have our newly inspired walking condom full of walnuts toddling off to a PT college to get certified. Anywhere between 8 weeks 6 months later (TAFE certs take longer and generally provide a better quality of trainer in my opinion) our newly certified nutty prophylactic/trainer is busy telling everyone how much of a fitness expert they are – often directly on instruction from the respective college.
Unless you frequently circulate in the industry, you are unlikely to know about these PT colleges. They are a bit like a phoenix. They exist, then they crash and burn because they are often run terribly and then they rise from the ashes – often with a new name and a new Registered Training Organisation number. It’s incredulous – why is a college that is pumping out supposedly successful PTs failing? More times than not – it’s because they are quite often set up and run by PTs or similar fitness industry entrenched people who believe they can make a quicker buck. Often it’s those stereotypical trainers who have problems counting who are now in charge of the education provision to countless budding trainers.
Now some people might be saying “How can you make such wild and unfounded accusations?”. Well easy – I worked in one. PT Train was you could say a text book example of the rise and fall and rise again and then fall again of PT colleges. I started there as a student when it was a new college. I then got asked to do some sales work there after finishing my certifications which suited me and then it became apparent how bare boned the college was. The course at time quite challenging (in a good way) but as the college tried to grow, feedback came in that the course was too hard and that other colleges were more appealing as the time to complete the course was less and the assignments and the volume of work was much less. To meet the needs of potential customers, the needs of clients and the long term training of PTs, the course was dumbed down. Just what a possible PT client would LOVE to hear.
On the way to the gym or a music festival? It’s hard to say. One of them could be a PT though.
Not only was the course dumbed down but they would end up taking anyone for the course. One of the sales tactics to get people in to make a sale was to make out that a screening interview was done so that we could be sure that the potential student was right for the college. I did many of these interviews and often I didn’t bother following up people who interviewed because simply put – they didn’t fit the mould or my high expectations.. and by that, if they were deadbeat idiots thinking they could train people hardcore and get certified as quick as possible – they shouldn’t be in the industry. One time I interviewed a guy who seemed nice and keen enough but when it came to filling out our student forms, he couldn’t because simply put – he could barely read or write. Given the sheer amount of reading and writing required for the course, I said to him that I was concerned the workload would be outside his capabilities given that he struggled with our registration form. He accepted this but then what do I see in two weeks time? The same guy trying to use the computer. The Manager of the college called him back and signed him on. He lasted 3 weeks. Never finished but financially obligated to pay for the course because Vinnie, the manager signed him on.
Another student who was coerced into signing up may have wanted to do the course but she simply did not have the skills and physical capability succeed in the industry. She ended up dropping out and then going to another college and being preyed on there too.
Shortcuts, not charging people correctly, false and misleading sales tactics.. it was all happening.. until I got involved. My background with consumer law was a pain and yet often what kept the college out of hot water. There were times I was told to do something and I would flat out refuse because it was against the law and that if they want it done, they would have to do it themselves which now that I think of it was quite the power play given that said CEO Vinnie was good at schmoozing (sleazily and manipulatively) but when it came to IT, or organising stuff or you know – Being ethical. That’s why I was there. I was not there to continue the cycle of bros training more bros to propagate the fitness industry with more bad examples. In the end, PT Train got big, then imploded and the owner then ran off with the money of students who were left in limbo – no course to finish and out of pocket thousands of dollars. The owner tried to set up a NEW fitness college.. and yeah that failed too. I’d quit long before that time but I’d learned the lesson that working for a private company is very different to working for a semi-privatized utility that had a high degree of accountability.
Sage Fitness. The most recent high profile college to go kaput. Not even the face of the Commando could help it. Poor promotion choice, Steve.
I know I don’t gel well in the fitness industry. I actually take pride in that I am not your typical guy. I’m cautious and I am not all that interested in being seen as the alpha in a group of men. I march to the beat of my own drum and that rhythm doesn’t always resonate with others. I found that out in final audition process for Big Brother years ago. Never have I been so proud of being voted out of a room for being difficult to work with! Something I noticed while working at the college and also working in a gym space is how it can be a case when you have a group of men in a confined area or with a task to complete – they would tend to get loose. Things would start getting laddish. Horsing around.. being competitive about silly stuff.. trying to outdo another.. talking up how they totally smashed someone in a training session. Talking about women in less than acceptable ways.. you know.. how it is.. Boys will be Boys..
NO. STOP MAKING THIS AN ACCEPTABLE THING
If you can’t hold a civil tongue in your head and conduct yourself professionally, get out my gym. Get out of any gym. Get out and stay out of anywhere that people are because if this sort of stuff is acceptable and okay – you’re likely to be a shit human who needs to reflect on his bullshittery and grow the fuck up.
A little bit passionate about this part, aren’t I? And rightfully so.
This bro culture that is poisoning the men in general is rife within the gym industry also. Combine it with the fake and superficial niceness bullshit that seems to come part and parcel with the fitness industry, you have a toxic cocktail of danger. Danger because it often goes unchecked.
You have trainers who think boasting to the lads that they destroyed someone first session is high five worthy.
No. This makes you a shit trainer. Your first session should be about discussing, goals, nutrition, doing postural and functional mobility tests – Not about pushing them till they spew.. which is obviously for your own enjoyment and clearly shows you are in the job for the wrong reasons.
You have trainers who don’t bother doing initial consults because they are a waste of time
No. These trainers SHOULD have been taught due diligence in screening clients back in college yet don’t bother anymore because computers are hard and paperwork doesn’t fit properly in the glove box of the ute.
You have trainers who make it all about them
Is your trainer training you because they actually enjoy helping you? Or are they training you because they like the attention of being seen as amazing and hot and desirable?
Trainers who go full neanderthal
Doing inappropriate things or saying inappropriate things about women, men.. anyone. Would you say those things with your wife/partner/significant other/mother present? No? Then don’t and reassess your stance because you’re currently standing in your own shit.
What is this new thing about trainers wearing aviators? Or more accurately aviators that are not correctly adjusted to sit on their face or simply put – don’t suit them and just look awful. Stop doing it. Like any pair of glasses, they have to fit and suit your face. Go to a Specsavers and get them adjusted or get them to help you choose a pair of sunnies that don’t make you look like a twat.
Yes.. you can feel the rant intensity building to face smushing intensity. Well I better reel it in now. While I haven’t gone nuclear/third impact just yet.. That last point stands though. Ergh.
I’ve unloaded a lot about trainers and the industry in this article. I’ve noted where these poor attitudes and behaviours begin and how they flow through into colleges.. not being corrected and often amplified by the fake attitudes and lack of ethics of those who run said colleges. Don’t get me wrong.. there are good colleges out there.. but they are few and far between.
So what is my stance on this poor client who suffered Rhabdomyolysis from doing a session with a PT in a 24hr fitness centre?
Is the trainer negligent?
If no initial consult and/or testing was done – yes.
Is the Fitness Centre liable?
They hired the guy to work in their gym. He wore a shirt with their logo on it. Did they properly interview and screen him for credentials or did they do the usual “Oh look a trainer prepared to pay $200+ a week to be here and we don’t have to do much”. There is some responsibility I feel.
Was their full medical history requested?
That we wouldn’t know unless we spoke to both trainer and client and getting something in writing to prove it.. be it a client registration form or equivalent.
Did the client disclose their full medical history?
This is down to the client on this one. Underlying medical conditions are tricky and at times both parties may not even know about them.
What exactly did this trainer do to the client?
If this was actually his first session, I am very interested to know what the testing/training protocol this trainer was using. It sounds like it was conducted like what you would see on The Biggest Loser. Except there was no crack team of medical staff on hand to help if they keeled over.
Why didn’t the client say NO?
This is where my sympathy kicks in for the trainer. I’ve had a client insist that I thrash them and yet I’d already determined some minor functional movement problems and also that they had not eaten for 9 hours. I did not thrash them. I got them a drink of Gatorade and did some very basic movement training like sit to stand squats. They lasted the session, they worked.. but they were not thrashed like requested and they went somewhere else. Bullet dodged. Some people talk up their abilities and what they want. I question anyone who can push through the pain and vomiting multiple times but I also question any trainer who thinks this acceptable.. unless they were on the Biggest Loser which kinda tells you about their credibility.
I take my client’s health and well being seriously. You should ask yourself if you feel that your trainer does too
Jon 😉
Jon is a Metabolic Precision Transformation Specialist working from his Studio EPIC WIN PT in Newmarket, Brisbane. Follow all the fun and adventures by liking the Facebook page here