IMPROPER FORM OR TECHNIQUE

I have been in this situation a hand full of times. Even when I was at the gym working out myself.
I find it depends on how bad the form is and even how the individual looks. If it is obvious they have been working out for a long time I assume they wouldn't listen to me anyway so they have to be real bad.

Lets say I have been in this situation 5 times. My first step is to talk about the proper form with MY client at a louder voice and say why bad form can hurt you. 2 out of 5 will be listening because my shirt says trainer and they listen for free tips already. Next would be to mimic good form and bad. this will cat attention for maybe a total of 3 out of 5. My next step is to wait for them to finish and have a couple seconds of rest and just go over and say "hey my Name is Marcus and I am a CPT and notices you were working great, if you don't mind can I show you a way to get more out of this exercise tho?"

People don't like to hear "your wrong and are going to hurt yourself" Then I offer them some free training time.

Beyond that there is not much more I do. I don't like to sound know it all so i do my part to correct them and the forget about it.

Hope that helps!

Hi Michael. This is a tough one! The humanitarian part of me says "yes," but the practical/professional/risk-adverse part of me says "definitely not," for a host of reasons. Here are just a few reasons why in my personal opinion I don't think that interfering with the non-client while in a professional setting (working with my own client) is a good idea (I'm listing these in no particular order of importance). First, I should be "totally" focused on my client, not others who are also working out. So, why/how did I even get to the point of noticing another person's poor form? Second, I know absolutely nothing about this other person (for example, their physical limitations that may "require" them to use this "poor form"), so trying to "correct" something that I know very little about is a big problem (remember, there is "textbook" form for certain exercises, and then there is/are adaptations that we, and exercisers make or have to make, according to their own physical limitations and make-up, so to presume that they SHOULD perform an exercise according to the "textbook" without knowing more about this person is a big no-no in my opinion). Third, in my opinion, as a professional trainer I should not be giving "professional" advice without first having a client-trainer relationship with the other person. Do you ever see a doctor, lawyer, dentist etc. giving unsolicited professional advice to a random person that they meet or see out in public? Absolutely not! They generally will not until they enter into a professional relationship with the person. Why? Liability reasons, also because they don't know the person's situation (giving professional advice with limited or worse yet, NO details or specific information is a serious risk ... I could go on and on about this subject, but I'm guessing that you know my opinion on this. Others may disagree, but in my opinion, it a situation with little benefit and great risk.

One caveat/exception would be if I saw someone endangering their health/life or that of someone else, but that's not the situation that your question asks and so my answer is not intended to respond to that situation.

I hope this helps.

LaRue, CSCS
www.lecfitness.com
larue.cook@lecfitness.com

I am with LaRue. There have been times when I have instructed my clients to do an exercise differently from the 'normal' way for very good reasons. In fact, I told them that it would be possible that they may be approached by somebody who points out the 'improper' form.

If I am at a gym and see somebody do something incorrect, I would only approach if there was risk to life or limb. Also, with the realization that some guys look at me with a 'what do you think you know, lady'-attitude, I have in the past approached the gym owner to point out the situation on the assumption that nobody enjoys calling 911.

I have been tempted but have resisted.

Unless asked, in a gym setting, I would not step in.

Like everyone else who answered I have a mixed view. If I’m training a client and I see someone doing an exercise wrong, at that point in time I will not address it. If the person is still around after I’m done with the session I'll approach the person and offer some "technical advice" on the exercise they performed. Normally when I do offer assistant to anyone I ask for permission or if it's okay if I show you the proper form. Sometimes the person might not be able to perform the exercise correctly and I'll show a modification of the exercise. This not only show's people that you're approachable but open's the door for new clients.

Personally, if my job responsibilities included anything that is synonymous with managing or supervising, then I would say something. If not, I would mind my business.

Perhaps that individual might get lucky and the manager, assistant manager, supervisor or supervisor might see it and offer constructive criticism.

It might be better received from someone who has that responsibility as opposed to someone who has the same responsibilities as you do have.

I tend to lean toward handling situations in such a way that promote collaboration. We have enough drama between personal trainers going on already.

I love reading the responses on this forum. Some really well thought out, intelligent answers all around.

I am in agreement with all. If it's not a life or serious injury threatening mistake, I tend to stay out of it. However, as Marcus mentioned, using a slightly louder voice with your current client is not a bad way to put the hint out there for someone nearby practicing poor form.

I have been in that situation myself more than once. As with most of the other people answering, I have a sliding scale I use to respond to the situation. What it boils down to is that the client who is paying for my time always takes precident. If I am assisting them, I may notice someone else's 'bad form' but will usually not approach that person unless a) my client is on a long break or b) my client's session is over. In one case, however, I saw someone get stuck under their bench press. My client and I were the only people in the general area and I dropped everything to assist the person. I believe this falls into the "life and limb" category!

I agree with Kurt that if I were on my own time I might try to offer some general guidance, especially if I knew the person was a novice. It can be a great opportunity to drum up new business. When I see poor technique in a member that uses the weight room regularly, I'll often strike up a conversation (if they seem receptive) and ask them about their exercise regiment and what goals they're training toward. This usually gives me a chance to give them advice that's appropriate to their personal situation, especially if I compliment their good efforts. In the few cases I've intervened I've asked for the person's permission before talking to them or demonstrating anything. If they say no I just hit the road.

Great question!
I agree, that unless someone is hurting themselves, I don't step in. But, one of the facilities that I train in is the YMCA. If a trainer is not with a client, we are expected to assist a member who is struggling with form. The few times this has come up, I always ask first if they would be open to being coached and it is always appreciated.

Ugh.... Sometimes yes and sometimes no. To be honest it can depend on whether it is a man or a woman. Woman are usually more receptive to a woman stopping to help. I find that men are not always so willing to take the help/instruction. They treat me as if I couldn't possibly know what I am talking about. You get the yeah, yeah, thanks.....

If I observe improper exercise form or technique that may endanger the exerciser or others, I would intervene. In all other cases, it has been my experience when trying to offer suggestions/pointers that many exercisers will look at you sending the message that I have been doing this xx years and what can you teach or show me? I may approach the exerciser after they finish their routine and share my observations of their routine and present my card and offering my services which promote functional movement and training which is the foundation of resistance training.

Mark Fox,

I have encountered something similar recently. In a cancer survivors seniors group x class, the instructor (she is a senior herself and has a PhD in a health related field) regularly leads the seniors in static stretches prior to any core warming moves, believes that having them perform the full cobra (in yoga) is a great abdominal stretch for them, and calls supine hip adduction (scissor movement with the legs extended above hips) abdominal work. Worse still, she teaches them to do lat pulldowns behind their heads even though this stresses the shoulder girdle with excessive external rotation while placing them in cervical misalignment--and most of them have back problems, stenosis, and other such issues. She intends to seat them all on stability balls soon and have them then perform sustained, unsupported forward flexion with diagonal shearing force--as a stretch.
When she demonstrated all of this for us (her college class), and explained that this was how she wanted things done, I raised my hand to ask about the efficacy of each of these "exercises" and she simply told me that she got them all from a chiropractor and that she's used them on seniors for 25 years with good results. I explained what my concerns were and that industry guidelines suggest such exercises should be modified for our particular population (senior cancer survivors). She told me in no uncertain terms that she couldn't care less about rules/guidelines from "your" organization (actually, the ACSM isn't MY organization, but they do make the rules for us all to follow). When we spoke on the phone a few days later, she said that 2 of the other students had complained that I had questioned her about the exercises--they indicated that in so doing it demonstrated a lack of respect for her. Never have I been told that we should not ask questions in a college classroom atmosphere where we are taught to think for ourselves and learn to apply the theoretical knowledge that is imparted to us by our instructors. Challenging conventional thought is one of the big reasons we are there.
So, I could ask nothing else without appearing to challenge her authority, so I have kept quiet ever since, no matter what transpires. I did explain that I could not, however, in good conscience, teach everything in exactly the same manner she does without modification for safety when it comes my turn to lead them through a warmup/workout. She told me I should probably drop the course, but since I am on financial aid, that's not possible, but she will make certain I don't lead anything myself. So I go to class every week and watch her do things that make me wince, but since I am not in a supervisory role I can say nothing. Apparently, some gyms/rec ctrs will literally wait until there is an injury or an incident before they deem it necessary to take action.
Perhaps this is one very strong reason why sport specific certification should be mandated for everyone leading group or one-on-one fitness regardless of their level of education. Some things are simply not taught in college courses, and ever evolving safety guidelines are one of them.

Yes. You are the professional. See if they are trying to vary their exercise to get maximum bang for their buck and see if there's proper reason to do so.

If not, simply present your case for doing so. They aren't your client. If you speak up and they listen to you, you maybe saved them an injury. If you speak up and they dont, their loss.

As Trainers part of our job is to be certain people are exercising with proper technique. We want members of our gym to work out smart!! I correct people all the time, I want people to exceed with good form always.