The three most common
types of learning styles are visual, auditory, and kinesthetic. Visual learners
learn best by looking at pictures, reading charts and graphs, or watching a demonstration.
Auditory learners would rather listen to things being explained than reading
about it. They depend on hearing to retain information. Kinesthetic learners,
however, process material best through a hands-on experience. I am a
kinesthetic learner. I took the personal training pre-certification courses, I
studied my study guides, learned the test material to pass the written ACE
Personal Training exam and then I was certified; I had a piece of paper that
said I could train anyone. However, I was terrified.
I had read the books,
listened to the courses, but I had yet to have that hands-on experience! This
is the case for almost all new
personal trainers. Once in the field, we are slapped into reality when we realize
that we are responsible for the physical, mental, and emotional well-being of
another human being - something which we have only read about in the textbooks.
The truth is personal trainers gain most of their training knowledge through
experience.
Experience is defined
as “active participation in events or activities, leading to the accumulation
of knowledge or skill”. In other words you can think back on previous practice,
with other clients or your own experience, and combined that with your book
knowledge to think through a situation that hasn’t been presented before. With
every new client comes new understanding and information for future clients. For
instance, if a client complains about knee pain, your understanding will allow
you to refer to your studies, and your experience will assist in your course of
action.
Experience teaches
you to modify and tailor the personal
training to each new client.
I definitely did not have any clue about the 3 main types of learning styles when I first started. I had to learn the different styles through on job experience. When I first started training clients I figured that everyone learned just like I did, which is visually. I did not try to teach differently, until my legs were to sore for me to demonstrate a proper squat so I talked my client through it, and they did it perfectly. From that day forward I began to try different ways to teach my clients. People do have different learning styles and it takes a sensitive and observant trainer to figure out which style benefits each client the best.
ReplyDelete