Coaching the Obese (Part 1)

This article is intended for those that are obese and for those coaches and personal trainers that may find themselves working with the obese.  Let me start by saying that I am not defining obese as the absurd standards used by a BMI Chart, military waist/neck measurements, or any other wildly inaccurate mechanism to determine who is or is not obese.  For the purposes of this article, I am generally defining obese as those whose excessive amounts of body fat have significantly impacted their life, health, and in particular, their ability to perform basic physical activities.

As a trainer or coach it must be understood that having success with an obese client is multi-faceted.  Unfortunately many of the areas I am about to cover are completely out of your control, and furthermore, are likely well beyond your capabilities or understanding.  But, as a strength coach or personal trainer, we deal with the areas we can and try to affect some degree of positive change in our clients’ lives.

In my experience, improvement in the following 5 areas must be addressed for an obese client to see real and lasting change:

Psychological 

The potential spectrum of psychological factors that affect a person’s relationship with food or themselves is quite broad.  At the furthest end of the spectrum may be the person who has suffered some form of severe emotional and/or physical trauma at some point in their lives, perhaps their childhood.  A history of verbal/physical/sexual abuse from a parent, sibling, or other family member is not uncommon.  In this instance, food can become a coping mechanism in the same way that others use drugs, alcohol, sex, or any other vice.  Food provides a sort of “high” that provides temporary relief from the internal conflict and angst they may battle with daily.  It’s quite common that the obese person is unaware of this connection.  It often takes the intervention of a professional counselor or therapist to connect the dots for them.

At the other end of the spectrum may be the person who simply “got lazy” with his diet and exercise habits and has found himself in a hole that is hard to get out of.  I have dealt with dozens of clients who were at one time very fit, healthy, and regular with their diet and exercise habits.  But along comes marriage, a few kids, bills, a stress filled job, and all of a sudden 10-15 years goes by in the blink of an eye.  10-15 years of stress eating, nightly alcohol consumption, and little to no exercise.   This is the best case scenario for a trainer or strength coach, because this scenario provides the best chance for success.  It’s really just an issue of forming new habits and often the commitment to start with a trainer or coach is the catalyst they need to get them back on track.  If they can make just a month or two of regular training appointments, they can often right the ship.

I would suggest that everyone reading this (especially if you are obese or train obese clients) read Maxwell Maltz’s Psycho – Cybernetics for a better understanding of the role that self image plays in our success and failure.  The basic thesis is that we will neither out-perform nor under-perform the basic image we have set of ourselves.  So if you see yourself as poor or middle class – you will likely remain poor or middle class.  Or in our scenario – if the self image you have for yourself is fat and out of shape – you will likely remain fat and out of shape.  Essentially, your subconscious will dictate your behaviors to keep you in alignment with your self image.

And of course, there is the problem with personal responsibility and accountability.  I know that it isn’t politically correct to make blanket judgments about certain groups of people, but the truth of the matter is that there is a certain level of “blame everything else first” mentality with this demographic.  “It’s my genetics, it’s my thyroid, it’s my husband/wife,  it’s my job, etc, etc”.  All of these things may indeed be contributing factors to a person’s obesity, but the heart of the problem is you.  Whatever the root cause is, a person must ultimately take some personal responsibility for where they are at.  If they won’t do that, no counselor, trainer, or coach can help.

If you are a trainer or coach, it is NOT your job to play the role of therapist or counselor to your clients.  Every situation must be handled individually, but if and when you feel it is appropriate, it is not out of the question that you recommend that someone seek outside counseling services to compliment their physical training.  Again, something like this is situation-dependent and must be handled delicately.  There must be a certain level of trust and personal relationship between client and coach, and timing is everything.  It can be awkward and you run the risk of really pissing off your client and losing them.  The upside is that you just might get them the help they need.

Social/Family

Many obese people don’t like to be reminded that they are obese.  It isn’t uncommon for obese people to seek out and befriend other obese people.  For them, there is greater comfort and less perceived judgment when associating with those that may share in their habits and lifestyle.  Unfortunately this can perpetuate the cycle.  For those who start an exercise or diet program, expect resistance and opposition from obese friends.  It may be quite passive.  “Oh, you started with a trainer?  Aren’t they really really expensive? ”  Its not an overt attack on your effforts, but it isn’t exactly a measure of support either.  Unfortunately it’s par for the course and basically comes from the perceived “threat” your actions pose to them.  What if you lose weight and get fit?  How will that make them look and feel?  It’s uncomfortable for them to think about.  It’s all very subconscious, but all very real, and all very common.

This phenomenon also extends to family.  Spouses, children, parents, and siblings may not be as supportive as you had hoped for.  This is exponentially true if they themselves are also obese.  Your actions are an indirect threat to them.  “What!  You want to eat fish and vegetables every night for dinner!” For someone who is used to “comfort food” every night for dinner followed by dessert, grazing, and snacking, you are presenting a threat to their lifestyle – and one they didn’t choose.  You are also forcing them to examine their own behaviors – something they really may not like.

The unfortunate reality is that without some social and familial support, there is a much greater likelihood of failure.  We can’t always get rid of our family members (although we would like to at times) but we can reduce our interactions with them – especially if those family members are not part of the nuclear family (our spouses and our children).   It may very well be that the obese trainee needs to remove themselves from certain social settings or groups of people whose behaviors run counter to their own personal goals – this can include both family and friends.  This is a hard choice to make and must be done on an individual basis.  This is not a decision that the coach or trainer should involve himself with.  General recommendations and discussions are fine, but it’s best to stay out of issues regarding a client’s family.

While these two things (Psychological and Social/Family) are not directly related to training or coaching an obese client, they are critical for the coach or trainer to understand.  In Part 2, we will examine the 3 factors that deal more with the actual physical training of the obese client –  Cardio, Diet, and of course – Barbell Training.