After working out once a week with my trainer doing solo personal training for a number of months he suggested switching to the “Share a Trainer” program and coming to see him twice a week. I agreed right away.
Later that night I began to have some doubts. What if I didn’t like the other person I was training with? Would I get less personal attention from my trainer? Would the quality of my workouts go down? Would we be doing those 2-person workout moves that I see online? Will we have trouble syncing up our schedules to decide on workout days?
I decided to stick with my initial reaction and go for it – worst case if I decided after a couple sessions that I hated it then I could go back to my once-a-week solo training sessions.
Here’s how the answers to those questions played out:
What if I didn’t like the other person I was training with?
The verdict: Turned out not to be a problem
My new training partner and I get along quite well. We definitely have different personalities and workout styles, but that doesn’t stop us from chatting and sharing a laugh between sets.
Although I’m an introvert and socializing with others can be draining for me, it’s actually been nice to have someone to work out with. She and I are at different levels so we’re not competing against each other but I think we use each other as motivation to push ourselves. It’s fun to see someone else working towards their goals and growing stronger.
On the other hand, if you do get paired up with someone you don’t jive well with it’s still not a big deal. There is no requirement that you HAVE to talk to them. You’re both just in the gym doing your own thing and there just happens to be the same person guiding each of you.
Would I get less personal attention from my trainer?
The verdict: Maybe so, but I don’t feel that it is lacking
My trainer still gives me attention when I need it; showing me how to do new moves and spotting me on ones where I need assistance. I never feel neglected, though I do sometimes need to rest an extra moment while I wait to ask him a question or get a spot.
Not having my trainer watching me every moment has actually pushed me to feel more confident moving between exercises on my own.
I also feel like I’m more in tune with my body as I do the moves because I’m trying to watch my own form based on feedback he’s given me in the past instead of relying on him to remind me with each rep to keep my chest up and my back straight.
Would the quality of my workouts go down?
The verdict: No
I’m still getting high quality workouts and they are tailored towards my needs and goals.
My trainer is still able to customize my workouts as I need him to. For example, if I go in one day and my shoulder is hurting he’ll switch up the moves on the fly to ones that I can do without any pain.
I’m still pushing my limits during my workouts and I’m working with the weights and reps that I need to be in order to continue to see improvement.
Most of the time my workout partner and I are doing different exercises and even when we are doing the same thing we’re doing it at our own levels so that we each feel challenged.
Would we be doing those 2-person workout moves that I see online?
The verdict: No
Sharing a trainer is not the same as partner workouts or group workouts (although sometimes we do circuits together).
For the most part we are working out independently and our trainer is bouncing between us instructing us on what to do, spotting us as we need it, and timing our intervals.
Given how smart and flexible the Just Sweat trainers are I’m sure if both you and your partner were into pair workout moves and asked nicely your trainer could come up with something that fit in to the plan for each of you.
Will we have trouble syncing up our schedules to decide on workout days?
The verdict: Sometimes, yes
The lady I workout with and I have very different schedules outside of the gym and that sometimes presents challenges. I typically work 9-5 and she has varying shifts as well as classes. Most of the time we’ve been able to make it work, though we’ve had to make some changes to our regular days along the way.
We’ve actually tried 3-way trainer sharing and are now doing that once a week. The other workout day is just the two of us and it’s worked out quite well. If one of us can’t make it on a day where there’s three of us scheduled then the other two can still go. It allows more flexibility for the schedule and it feels only slightly more crowded. I wouldn’t add any more people to the mix though, unless I was looking for a group-style class (which has its own benefits).
Despite a few grumblings on my part when training was cancelled due to my partner being unavailable, overall I’ve been happy with the switch to sharing a trainer and I would recommend it to anyone interested in doing personal training.
Shout out to my training partner – looking forward to seeing you in the studio for our next workout!
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