When Did the Fitness World Get So Complicated?

During a time when obesity rates continue to rise and general health declines there are more scientific publications and medical breakthroughs regarding optimal strategies to improve our health.  With science and technology at the forefront you would think we would be trending the opposite direction, to better health.  So one must step back and wonder what the hell is going on? What's missing? If we know the answers then why can't we fix the problem?

In a great guest post by Jonathan Goodman on the BioLayne blog page he describes how fitness professionals are failing at their jobs.  In the article he explains why quick fixes, bio-hacks and fat diet/fitness trends don't work:

"...I believe that one major reason that the fitness industry is falling is because almost all the information is being presented the same way. It is being presented with a finite state of mind - that is "here's a goal: go get it," versus "you're in this for life so here's how you make a meaningful habitual change that starts with small steps..."

He goes on to talk about where personal trainers fall short and how they need to SIMPLIFY things rather than making the lives of their clients more complicated than they already are....

"...The problem isn't that people don't have enough information. Quite the opposite; it's that they have too much.... there are a lot of experts spouting conflicting theories claiming that they have discovered the best way and therefore it's impossible for the public to know what to do..."

This really lends to our Mantra here at Total Athletic Therapy. Instead of presenting the latest ground breaking research and bombarding clients with specific numbers, ranges and magic formulas, we take a "Back to Basics" approach. We acknowledge the fact that information overload doesn't help anyone and sometimes starting at the beginning and getting back to the basics is going to be more beneficial. We provide our clients with the tools necessary to make educated decisions for themselves and help them develop a lifestyle of healthy habit-forming choices. Dr. Layne Norton is famous for saying: "...if I do my job correctly, you won't need me anymore." Again, this is our goal. We want our clients to become educated and advocates for their own health & wellness versus relying on a fitness professional to make the decisions for them.

We are even offering a lecture series this spring which we discuss various topics relating to exercise, mobility and nutrition and how to take a "Back to Basics" approach for success.

Article  Link: The Fitness Industry is Failing -Jonathan Goodman
Personal Trainer Development Center
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