Training special populations: where to start

I work with a wide range of clients in studio and via distance with my coaching program.  In my opinion, one of the first things a trainer must get comfortable with is learning to work WITH a client’s limitations in order to safely net them results. I realized that I have never written about this, and the topic has been on my mind with some recent work I have done.

Are you a trainer? If so this maybe useful to you.

Do you fit in to one of these special population categories? If so, I believe this will be helpful to your progress.

As I enjoy starting with questions, here is the start:

• Do you currently subscribe to a belief system which states every person needs basically the same workout, and all that is required is a scaling of poundage or reps?
• Do you currently believe “all they need” is your blend of guru approved exercises pet to your favorite training system?
• Is your training program centered on a certain exercise tool/piece of equipment, a certain rep scheme, an ideologically focused movement pattern, or an ideal state selected end goal?

If you answer “Yes” to any of these three questions, I know one thing is certain. You are going to plateau. Your gains will be slow. If you are a trainer you likely have hurt someone, probably yourself.

Is there another way to get the job done?

Special Populations

There are many groupings of people we could title special populations. A simple way I define it is a group of people who have common needs or restrictions which alter their training program significantly.

Obese

First lets be clear here. Obese is not the same as “over-weight.”  Obese refers specifically to BODY FAT percentage or body mass index (BMI) exceeding a set value . While tt is possible to be “over-weight” and be lean it is also rare. Body builders and many professional athletes are an example of being over weight while lean. Men who lift weights with beer bellies are not.

If you are involved in the fitness industry then you are tied to obesity and fat loss to some degree.

Here is an opinion, personal trainers are the first line of offense in the war on flab.

America is the fattest country in the world, by percentage and by population. To be more specific, we have the most obese people, the most over weight people. We have the most over weight kids, adults, and seniors.

We are fucking fat.

I am looking at a chart right now published by the US FDA which lists men with a body fat percentage  25%> and women 30%> as obese. I have a similar chart from the University of Minnesota exercise science department. The national heart and lung association lists a BMI of over 30 as obese.

Men, if you are over 25% body fat you are classified as obese. If your BMI is over 30 you are obese. Yes you are.

Now a lot of people say things such as “everyone I know is over 25%” or “BMI is bullshit, everyone I know is over 30″

That does not mean they are not obese, it just means everyone you know is dangerously fat.

It is true most men in this sad country are now over 25%.

Body mass index is often criticized are being “completely worthless” but I strongly disagree.

here is a BMI calculator. Click on it and insert your numbers.

What did you find?

I am 6′ 2″ tall, I weigh 212 lbs at a body fat of 11.5%. My body mass index is 27.2.

If I get my weight to 220, my BMI goes up to 28.2. If my body weight was 230 it would 29.5. If my body weight was 234 it would be a 30.

I carry 191 lbs of fat free mass right now. The only way for me to get to 234 would be to add a lot of fat. In the next decade of training it is unlikely I will push my fat free mass over 215. Lean mass simply happens VERY SLOW. So for most people these rapid gains in weight are from BODY FAT. Don’t take my word for it, get out your tape measure and calipers and learn for yourself.

30 or greater BMI = obese holds true with EVERY drug free athlete I personally know. I was playing with the calculator as I wrote this and ran the stats of every person I know. Guess what- the only people who went over BMI 30 were the ones who are also carrying too much fat. Check for yourself.

Check for yourself.

Back on target….

What is the problem here with training obese people?

For my readers who have never carried over 15-20% BF I have an educational experiment for you to run. You will need an X vest or backpack. I would like you to put on 50lbs and wear it ALL DAY from dawn to dusk. In fact to reap full benefits I want you to wear this for TWO FULL DAYS, from the second you wake up to the minute you are back in bed.

You will quickly find out, everything that was easy is now harder. You are tired fast. Your joints may hurt. You may find yourself out of breath, sweating, beat down, from routine activity.

I bring this up because I am not impressed with the lack of compassion many trainers have with very fat people. What is a trainers job again? I thought it was to make the client better. I didn’t realize it was a trainers job to punish other people for not living a bitching ass rock star life of total fitness.

I don’t want to deflect in to a rant on “Biggest Loser” so I will leave it at this- do not abuse people.

I will examine solutions below.

Senior citizens

I often hear people use the expression “golden years” to describe elderly people, I don’t know where the gold is. As far as I can observe getting old sucks.

Taking a broad view of problems associated with aging- cardio vascular risk, cardio pulmonary issues, a range of mobility restrictions, the life time of accumulated injury, typically a number of prescription medications  (which you must at least have a primitive understanding of) bone softening/weakness, decreased energy, decreased coordination, and reduced recovery time.

More elderly Americans are hitting the gym now than ever before (winning!) and which this comes a population base which did not grow up learning fitness to the extent of our 18-40 year old population now. This means a lot of people are stepping in the door who have truly no idea what to do. They are looking for people to teach them to safely train their body. I suppose everyone else is too, but I mention this in particular to an important concern of mine. Injury.

If your 20 year old kid pulls hammie training with you tonight, he will likely be in tomorrow. He may bitch about his leg hurting, but you will train around it. Likely our young stud will be feeling good in 5-8 days and fully recovered in 2 weeks.

A brand new client age 70 may be bed ridden for a month from a mild training accident. Additionally the injury may scare her so badly that every belief she has about fitness being dangerous is cemented even further.

The flip side of this is simple: do not baby them or treat them like kids which is a disturbing trend I have witnessed. Your senior citizen client is not stupid, do not treat them as such. You know who you are.

The mangled

Life is fucking hard and dangerous. No one makes it out alive in the long run, and there are a lot of people who have the scars to prove it.

The mangled is the collection of all the people who can tell you first hand that shit happens. These people often suffer restrictions in various movements, and will not always fit in to your model of perfect form. That is unless you are smart enough to understand THERE IS NO PERFECT FORM. See my article series on form here Part I, Part II, Part III. Read the fucking articles too, don’t just pass them over.

People don’t like being told what they have to do, and they often don’t like being told what they can’t do. Your job is not to make them do anything, or stop them from trying. Your job is to make them better. Keep that in mind, especially my homies in the corrective exercise fields.

Keep this in mind- just because something could be “corrected” does not mean it is time to address it.

Kids

More parents are turning over their kids to trainers and coaches these days. I think that is great. Start them young. Unless of course you are starting them off on your broken view of the body and the world.

Here are some important things you need to know.

Kids are not able to explain themselves so well. Neither are most adults. Kids typically have a short attention span. Then again so do most adults.

I am lost for a moment here, because the most important points about kids seem to be universal as I reflect…

Ok, here are my opinions.

Kids exercise is more like a guided play time than a PT appointment. I’ll ask a kid what they want to do, I ask them if they want to do it now. “Do you want to climb the rope, jump on the boxes, catch the ball, or lift that weight?” The right answer is whatever comes out their mouth.

Kids do not need to be pushed. They just need to be pointed. If you find your kid doesn’t like the options you are offering, I say the packaging or marketing sucks.

Find ways to make things like a game.

“Hey buddy how many times do you think you could jump on this box in 30 seconds?” “Think you can do it again and beat that number?”

What does it take to work with a kid? The same thing it takes to work with a dog. Control the situation, keep things in relative order, keep them safe, make the time spent productive. I do not see it as my job to teach the kid life lessons, enforce discipline, or be any kind of role model. That job falls to their parents.

My job is to help your little booger picker get better at their sport, at moving, or lose their junior pot belly.

So what do you need to do?

Don’t pretend your a fucking doctor. They need to see a doctor before they work with you. It’s for you, it’s for them.

Do keep track of medical requirements/limitations of the client.

Work within their limits.

Ask more questions

Stop assuming, stop knowing, get thinking.

A three step process- Ask them what the problem is, design experiments to find answers to the problem, execute best solution located from the experiment.

See how easy that is? Imagine if you learned to stop telling people what they need to do and started asking them what they want to do? Wow, it’s like you would be a totally more useful trainer!

Scale movements, do not eliminate them. If your current understanding of movement prevents you from finding safe and appropriate movement than you need to turn the client over to someone who is responsible enough to know what they are doing.

Know what a kettlebell swing is? Hip flexion/hip extension, with knee flexion/knee extension, and a minor degree of spinal extension. Know how small the ROM can be? 6 inches, even less I suppose. Just hinge and stand up. Not what you were told by your favorite trainer at your course? Ge hip to life homie. Do what the client can do, do not force them.

Be aware of high impact and high speed movements.

Best of all- lead with testing. Test everything. Leave it all to their body to decide.

For those who will do this, better results are in the cards.

In my upcoming Smarter Strength Workshop I will be covering strategies for working with a variety of people, and how to get them results no matter what their starting point is.