ONE-ON-ONE TRAINING SESSIONS
Each and every day this semester, I was able to shadow Christina through her daily routine, which consisted of a lot of one-on-one work with a number of clients who have paid memberships to utilize the gym and the resources available at Mackal Field House. During the first few sessions with Christina’s clients, it was up to me to take note of not only the muscle group(s) we were targeting to improve upon, but also how effective/ineffective each training technique was for the individual, and if it were something we could build off of, or not.
It was during this time where I had the opportunity to get to know each client personally, recognize what their strengths and weaknesses may be, and try and formulate an exercise plan that can best help improve their overall fitness level. A majority of Christina’s clients ranged from 40 – 80 years old, so during the initial first few sessions it was my objective to get to know how each client’s body responded to the exercises, what their perceived rate of exertion was during each exercise, and what their personal limits were.
I had never truly had the chance to train with an ‘elderly’ age group, so this was a great learning experience for me, as I learned to adapt my own personal enthusiasm for exercise to meet the needs of the client, in addition developing a better understanding of their respective upper limits to exercise.
As the semester stretched on, Christina and I did tons of work with a number of clients, most of which were URI alumni, which was a great sight to see for me, seeing how they came back to their alma mater to continue to improve themselves holistically. Of all her clients, I was lucky enough to really connect with four them, not only through exercise and fitness, but also on an interpersonal level as well. For privacy reasons, names of clientele will not be used, instead clients will be referred to as “Client A, B, C, and D”. Each member we trained has their own needs and special accommodations that we, as trainers, need to take into account so that our clients can get the most out of the training session without injuring themselves.
Client A
One of the first clients I had the opportunity to work with, Client A, had some limitations that needed addressing. He has been dealing with a constant hip strain, believed to be either his hip flexor or a strain to his Sartorius muscle. So every day we worked to try and alleviate some of the tension on his hips, by stretching before each session, in-addition to a lengthy warm-up of the hips/legs/type I muscle fibers. The focus of his training was primarily to increase the overall mobility of the client’s mid-lower back, while also working vigorously to improve overall flexibility of his appendages.
Also, a side goal we had was the aim to reduce the amount of adipose tissue Client A had around his thoracic cavity, a direct result of his poor eating habits which was/is impeding his ability to complete daily activities of living, so shedding off that excess weight was another aim we had. As the semester progressed, there was improvement in both mobility and flexibility without strain on his hips, however as trainers, we can only give our clients the knowledge on how to eat healthier and make healthy lifestyle choices, ultimately, it is up to the client himself to decide to change his habits.
Client B
Another client of ours, Client B, was one of my favorite ladies I have had to opportunity to get to know over this stretch of semester. This specific client’s scope of focus was directed towards improving overall strength and wellness of the body, as she is already a dedicated cyclist, who leads an active, healthy life. Seeing how Client B’s type I muscle fibers were already strong and developed due to years of cycling, it was our aim to help her enhance her upper body strength.
We were able to achieve this by incorporating hour long weight training regimen three times a week, with stretching included before and after each session. We worked a lot on Cybex machines, used free weights, Bosu Balls and exercise bands for balance and stability, and incorporated various core workouts. Having worked so well with this client, she began attending my Sports Training Boot Camp every week for additional training to continue to help improve her overall homeostasis level.
Client C
A third client we had was Client C, who did a lot of her own work in the gym warming up before meeting with Christina and I for our session. The aim for this client was to improve her overall strength level, for both upper and lower extremities. So in-order to achieve this goal, we would focus on the major muscle groups of the body, such as the pectorals, deltoids, biceps, triceps, and her hamstrings, quadriceps, and core stability.
This was done by utilization of Cybex machines throughout the gym, coupled with exercises utilizing; exercise bands and balls, some free weights, weighted bars, and TRX bands. in This particular client’s flexibility was already at a high level when we began training, and has only improved along with her overall strength level as the semester carried on.
Client D
Lastly, our eldest client, Client D, would meet with us twice a week at least, but was a regular in the gym regardless of if he was training with Christina and I or not. Client D is 78 years old, so the scope of his exercise program was to work on developing and maintaining his overall flexibility, mobility, and combat any tightness within his body. A lot of the work we did with Client D was body weight training and stretching, with intentions of not letting his body tighten up and make him sore due to a combination of age and inflexibility.