As a
woman, I know that we frequently struggle with finding the right personal fitness plan. Not only are we constantly displeased
with our body image, but most of the time we do not want to ask for help for
fear of being criticized. That criticism
is especially difficult to take when given by another woman. Let’s face it – as
women, we are our own worst critics. However, women should no longer feel this
way.
Today,
women have so many options for seeking help for fitness inspiration (also
called “fitspo” or "fitsporation" – the words fitness and inspiration combined), workouts,
personal trainers, and even nutrition advice. Women are more likely than men to
take advantage of inspirational social media sites and smart phone apps such as
Instagram and Pinterest because they target women in most of their posts. Posting
“fitspo” before and after weight loss (or muscle gain) pictures via Instagram has
created a new phenomena of ‘online famous’ as women share their fitness
tips. These ‘fitspo” women gain social
media followers who are inspired to workout after seeing images of real results.
Pinterest has a Health & Fitness section
that provides ideas for quick workouts and recipes. I am guilty of spending
countless minutes of my day on these social media sites.
For
women who struggle with face-to-face assessments of their bodies, there are
many online personal trainers who have the knowledge and skills to provide
solid advance (for a fee) to their virtual clients! These personal trainers can
empower these virtual clients by providing instruction via Skype, FaceTime and podcasts. Most of the time, online personal trainers are
cheaper than gym membership, you are able to set your own schedule, can
visually show you how to do an exercise even though they are not in person, and
helps improve on communication skills and accountability via the internet.
There are so many pro’s when it comes to online training and motivation.
The
old excuse “I will join a gym after I lose some weight” is no longer valid
thanks to the internet and social media.
Women no longer have to be ashamed or intimidated; the internet is
filled with reputable fitness information that allows each person to develop a
good workout, meal plan, and motivation to succeed.. However, as always, you cannot
believe everything on the internet so make sure you choose wisely and are a
well-informed fitness client!
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| Picture taken from Instagram |
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| Picture taken from Pinterest |
I was unaware of the #fitspo phenom that was happening and I will definitely use it!
ReplyDeleteThe majority of my client base is female. Females are more likely to take on being a personal training client than men are, according to what I have seen and experienced. Social media has a lot, if not everything, to do with this. Girls spend countless hours on Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, and blogs where they see pictures of air brushed and photo-shopped women who are deemed “sexy”. The “secret” to looking like these non-existent women? Diet and exercise.
ReplyDeleteNot only do we gain clients because of social media, but we can also keep up with them and encourage them through it as well. Like you had mentioned, posting progress photos is an awesome way to visually see improvement in their work. Also, from recent experience I have used social media to communicate with people who have to miss workouts or boot camp. I can post workouts to blogs. So, in that sense it helps with client-trainer communication.
Social media also helps to promote you as a personal trainer. Trainers, female and male, can gain followers and interest by using familiar hashtags and/or mentioning other trainers or potential populations.