Any advice on training a female client, 55 , smoker, needing to lose body fat by at least 10%, shoulder limitations, & other.
My client is a breast cancer survivor, not willing to give up smoking, is holding all her fat in her stomach and abdominal region. She is limited by shoulder usage due to previous injury. She also has a very poor diet, is working on changing some, and increasing water intake. She lives on frozen dinners, and packaged foods, which we’ve gone over several times. Recently, I’ve gotten her to do her first 5K, walking, and now she is jogging as well, with strength training. Just need some ideas to help her because she is in a danger zone with the body fat and still smoking.
Hi Dawn,
yes, there are clients that seem to be resistant to all the suggestions we make. Yet: they keep coming back to us for training, and while there may be a lot of room for improvement when they are not with us, during the hour under our tutelage we have the ability to make a positive change.
You mention that she is already working on changing some things about her food intake, and that is cause for praise. I tend to constantly administer CPR (constant positive reinforcement) and try to step easy on what can turn into nagging. I am sure you have pointed out all of the unhealthy behaviors, and I am also sure that she already knew about it beforehand.
You have already made significant progress and should not forget that you can only help her to the extent that she wants to be helped. You are a very positive influence in her life, and she would not continue to see you if she did not feel that way.
Karin Singleton
www.meltnc.com