Trends, choices and goals!

We have already asked the question “Why do we train?” In my my blog “What are you doing....?” where we covered several intrinsic reasons for training. The points I want to discuss in this blog are trends and choices and how they impact our training or vice versa.

We have choices, this is how it should be. We can choose what gym we go to, or to train at home or in the local park. We can choose what type of training we do, running, weights, rowing or classes; and we can choose our training aims. We can train for strength, muscle gain, weight loss or fitness.

However, there have also been various trends within the fitness industry over the years. Back in the 60’s and 70’s if you were a man and lifted weights it was probably for bodybuilding only, whilst women either didn't train or just did aerobic exercise.

From the 70’s onwards we saw studio based classes really take off where the emphasis on the classes was to feel the “burn” and shed fat.

Through the 70’s and on to the 90’s we saw 1 set max effort training programmes built around weight machines such as Nautilus and Hammer, as well as high repetition weight training to sculpt, shape and again “burn” the fat. Classes became more varied, with offerings starting to include spin, combat type classes, and classes using more resistance equipment.

Now we have state of the art gyms, we have crossfit boxes and dedicated spin studios. People are following comprehensive training programmes, using apps and online PT’s to achieve their training goals. These goals also seem to be coalescing into three main areas: to look good; to be fit and strong; or to feel good and maintain an active and healthy lifestyle.

My question is this: do training trends drive our training goals or do our training goals lead to the trends we see in this industry?

Now I know that most of you are going to come back with “but trends always lead the way” or “innovators start trends not us”, however consider this; a trend has to start somewhere and be followed by enough people to gain momentum and become wider spread.

Before the internet and social media really took off it was tv marketing that sold us products and put names to fitness workouts such as Jane Fonda. Women wanted to look like her and so followed her workouts in gym classes or at home on video (if you remember that!). This so called “trend” led the way and the public followed.

Jump forward a few decades and now someone, anyone, can post a workout on Facebook or Instagram, see it go viral and have a huge number of people doing that workout within days!

Gyms are more often than not set up to offer choice and variety, to enable people to train in almost any way they want.

My take home point on this is that we have choices, we, you must decide what your training goals are; what you want from your training sessions, how you want to look, to improve your athletic ability, to lose weight or to gain muscle.

If you need some input on your training goals or how you are going to achieve them, whether this is online personal training or in person then get in touch with me at www.getcoached.net or via FB at @getcoached.net or even email me at tsilvester@getcoached.net