Frank Bruni ‘Our Pulchritudinous Priesthood’ – A Response

I just read a New York Times article about personal training. The author’s message is “What therapists were to the more cerebral New York of yesteryear, trainers are to the more superficial here and now: designated agents of self-actualization, florid expressions of self-indulgence, must -have accessories, must-cite authorities.” I feel that deserves a response.

Firstly and fairly, the author does make some good points. I am inclined to agree with the opinion that we as a society are becoming more superficial. I also agree that often it is our general reflex to throw money at a problem rather than put forth the effort to fix it ourselves. And as such, I must also agree that personal training is sometimes little more than a luxury item used as an outlet for vanity. However, where this author has gone astray is in the assumption that because he has had personal training himself, he somehow understands the profession.

The crux of his argument seems to revolve around the belief that being a personal trainer does not require expertise, education, or even intelligence. ‘If you have $400 and a pulse, you can be a trainer,’ according to the author’s own trainer. Now I will grant that this statement is technically true, it really only takes the testing fee and the ability to study a single textbook to become certified. But who among us has never heard a professional say – “I didn’t learn the important things at school. I learned them out there in the real world, doing the job.” I recently had the pleasure of dining with two lawyers who both talked about the fact that law school does nothing to prepare you for actually practicing law. This is why firms invest a lot in training their associates to do the job after law school. The same is true for doctors, whose residency serves to teach them how to actually help real live patients after their completion of medical school. I believe we could all agree that having a piece of paper on the wall, at any price, does not guarantee that you are good at what you do.

Assuming now, that diplomas are not the ultimate gauge of competence, let’s address whether or not personal training has any content to be good or bad at. The author seems to doubt it. “In America…people of means seem to believe that there’s no problem…that can’t be fixed by throwing money and a putative expert at it. Anything can be delegated. Everything can be outsourced, even perspiration.” This quote is actually quite poignant.  Any trainer worth half their $400 certification should be able to tell you that sweating is not a requirement for working out, nor does it say anything about whether or not you are making yourself healthier. I can help you lose 50 pounds and feel better and stronger than you have in years without needing to make you sweat. I can do this because I am a professional who understands what you need, not what you think you need. And that may be the most important point I have to make in this response. The real “putative experts” are those of us who think that because we can make ourselves sweat, we somehow know anything about exercise. It is the  uninformed buyers who make it possible for trainers to exist that think the job does not require anything more than a pulse. Does your trainer know if your pelvic girdle has the proper mobility and stability to perform a lunge? Do they know if you have the proper scapulohumeral rhythm to perform an overhead press? Do they know if you are at risk for subacromial impingement? They should know, and as a buyer, you should do at least enough research to be able to ask one or two relevant questions in order to determine if you are investing your money in the right person.

As a personal trainer who invests many twelve hour days in working with clients, continuing my education, and helping to educate other trainers I would like to say that this is a real profession. Simply jumping around in a room, running in circles, or plugging along on an elliptical does not equate to a beneficial exercise program nor to personal training. There are trainers out there who do not share my attitude but when I see them, doing things that make me cringe, I am not always sure who to be mad at – the one delivering the training or the one willing to pay for it. I, and others, take our responsibility to those who entrust us with their bodies very seriously and I know that what I can help someone do is, without the shadow of a doubt, worth having my expertise for.