Cutting Edge Fitness Coaching seminar: Part 5

By using these cutting edge strategies, you can help even your toughest clients follow the rules.

In the fitness industry we often joke that clients are looking for “the magic pill.”  But here’s the real joke: even if such a pill existed, clients wouldn’t actually take it.

Compliance — people doing what they know they should — is a critical problem in the fitness industry.

[The medical industry too: miracle cancer and diabetes drugs prescribed by MDs are taken a shockingly low 55% of the time.]

That’s why, in this video series, we’ll share 5 strategies for helping clients — even the toughest ones — follow the “rules.”  The rules we know can change their lives.

To learn more, click the play button below.  (Or click here for part 1, part 2, part 3, or part 4).

This video is about 4 minutes long.

To download an audio or a video version of this file, click here.
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Involve clients in the change process

As we say in part 4 of this series, build habits within the context of a client’s life.

That’s it for part 5 of Cutting Edge Fitness and Nutrition Coaching.

Now, let’s summarize the key principles:

Change is hard.
Understand that in asking clients to change, we’re asking them to go against some basic brain circuitry that normally favours safety and security.

To prepare your clients for change, you need to:

• speak to your clients’ rider (the rational-judging brain);
• guide the elephant (the intuitive-feeling-sensing brain); and
• shape the path (the client’s environment and life structures).

Inhibit “analysis paralysis”.
To make changes we must silence the critical self while releasing and facilitating the “flow self” through simple, meaningful tasks.

Make change meaningful.
Make sure the change is salient to the client . Ask questions, listen carefully, and try to empathize with their point of view.

Choose one practical change at a time.
Develop it collaboratively with the client, and make that change as small and do-able as possible.

Test confidence.
Periodically test and re-test the client’s confidence. If the task is too big, shrink it further.

These principles are simple to understand and use. In fact, you could use this simple one-habit method in your own practice, starting immediately.

Ask yourself the following questions:

• What’s truly important to me in terms of the deeper principles that guide my own practice?
• Where am I not living those principles? What’s my limiting factor(s) that prevent me from doing this effectively?
• What is one simple, clear, practical, and very small habit I can start to do immediately?
• How confident am I that I can do it every day? (If you’re less than 9/10, make the task easier).

Then write your task down on a post-it note, refer to it 10 times today, and get going!

If you want to learn more about exercise nutrition and add legitimate nutrition coaching to your skill set, the Precision Nutrition Certification is perfect for you.

The program is based on over 10 years of research and statistical data from over 20,000 Precision Nutrition clients. In essence, it's a comprehensive nutrition coaching course. And it's designed to teach fitness, strength, nutrition, and rehab professionals how to get clients in the best shape of their lives.

Since we only take a limited amount of students, and the program sells out every time, I strongly recommend you add your name to our presale list. When you do, you get the chance to sign up 24 hours before everyone else. Even better, you save $200 off the cost of the program.