Do you ever find yourself losing motivation? What about getting frustrated with where you are physically? Do you blame your trainer and/or other people around you for you not getting the results you want?

I will be the first to say that there are a lot of terrible trainers in this industry. To be honest some are an embarrassment to a field that I take a lot of pride in. I definitely do not know everything and there is always room for improvement, but some “trainers” really are a joke. Some truly need to check their ego at the door, get educated or find another career before they hurt someone.

However, I will play the devil’s advocate for the sake of getting my point across. Let’s say there are no bad trainers (hypothetically speaking of course)

So many times I hear of someone working with a trainer, and when they don’t see the results they want or expect, they complain about their trainer or training program. This is a BIG red flag for me. When I hear someone say this about another trainer OR when I see someone not making progress…….here is a list of what runs through my mind:

1 – Are you showing up for every session?….AKA are you CONSISTENT?!

2 – Are you listening when the trainer corrects you and gives you advice on ways to make your technique better or workouts more challenging?

3 – Are you practicing the skills they teach you outside of your regular sessions? (Are you living an active lifestyle outside of your training session or just sitting in front of the TV?)

4 – Are you still eating like you did when you were in college??????

5 – Are you taking advantage of any extra events your trainer may offer designed to help boost your knowledge and skill level?

6 – Are you willing to sacrifice eating out for some grilled chicken & veggies at home?

7 – Does your output match your input?? Translation……are you stuffing your face with so much of the bad stuff that you can’t possibly burn it off? You need to change your mindset and think of food as fuel. And if you’re fueling your body (input) with crap and that crappy “fuel” is always more than your daily activity level (output) then you will not see the results you want.

8 – Have you mastered the basics yet? This one is huge for me……when it comes to training…..how can you expect to learn the “cool” stuff when you haven’t taken the time to master the basics…..the fundamentals?? Yes, that means repetition and lots of hard work. Yes, that means you might have to work on the same movements over and over until you get them right. And guess what? Then you will have to work on them some more. Do you think major league baseball players stop taking batting practice when they sign that first big contract?? HECK NO!!! It means they have to practice even more now. They have to MASTER their craft if they want to keep playing and succeed in their sport. Same applies to you and me. How can we get stronger if we don’t put in the time to learn the basics?

So…….are you willing to do the “little things” that would help you reach your goals? If not……than stop blaming everyone else. Take responsibility for crying out loud.  If you are content with where you are and not reaching your goals, ok. Maybe that is just the season of life you are in at the moment….and that is totally ok……..I’ve been there. BUT…..if you are frustrated about not meeting your goals, it’s time to look in the mirror and take off the blinders. Stop blaming other people.

EVERY TIME I find myself not meeting a goal, it’s because of something I am doing or NOT doing. And it sucks when I have to admit to myself that I am not doing what I need to do to meet my goals. That’s a tough pill to swallow folks. It is never fun to admit when we are the reason we aren’t meeting the mark, but it’s the only way to finally get over that hurdle.

It’s time to take responsibility. We all have lives outside of the gym. And yes those lives interfere with our training sometimes…..it happens. But stop making excuses. We all have reasons that we could use for not making our health a priority, but excuses won’t make us stronger. Excuses won’t help us accomplish our goals.

Do you need a new trainer? Possibly. Maybe…..but maybe not. Maybe you need to start with YOU first. And IF you are doing all the little things and still not seeing results…… then, yes, it might be time to hire a new trainer. But until you can honestly say you are doing all the little things right……it’s time for a little self-reflection. It’s time for a gut check.  It’s time to put in some more batting practice.