11.  The industry is taking itself too seriously.

Back when I was a fresh faced gym instructor we used to have a ridiculous amount of fun on shift, maybe too much at times.

One of my bosses encouraged us all to flirt with the members.  After all, we were there to help people feel good about themselves.

Sometimes the flirting went further; that could be a trip to the toning table room for privacy, an impromptu sun bed or the many other nocks and crannies around the building.  Obviously, I heard about this happening but was never involved myself ;)

We used to go out drinking and partying hard as a team.

We trained together and pushed each other to work harder.

Sometimes the partying and training were combined.  I'm sure there isn't a man on the planet who hasn't done a Friday night pump session.

A pump session is designed to increase the size of your muscles making your t-shirt tighter and you more appealing.

We would take fat loss pills that were designed to ramp up your metabolism to train harder and for a little kicker before a hard party night of drinking (I wouldn't recommend it now, to many of my friends had digestive issues as a result).

We had 'education' weekends away that I can barely remember, let alone learnt anything or attended any worthwhile sessions.  Blackpool anyone?

When I look at the new generation of trainers coming through, they seem to be missing out on a lot of the above.  

They seem to forget that they are in an industry that is meant to be fun.  Their body has become their business card and that is putting a lot of pressure on them.

They take on mentors before they have had a chance to learn or experience anything for themselves.

12.  The industry is not taking itself seriously enough.

We are the frontline of helping the nation with it's obesity problem, yet we are failing.

The government doesn't take the industry seriously enough to invest in what we have to offer.

Our governing bodies bicker and argue amongst themselves rather than portraying a professional voice on how we can help.  

They want to prove that their way is better than the others.  This is to the detriment of the industry and a deserve to the public.

Government guidelines on nutrition and exercise change on a seemingly monthly basis.  They bring in 'experts' to advise who have a vested interest in their own agendas and companies.

We're slowly getting there but more needs to be done.

13.  You need to have skin in the game.

Something the government are discussing is providing personal trainers or classes for free to help the obese lose weight.

Although I think this is a step in the right direction, I feel it is ultimately flawed.

Very few people value anything that they haven't paid for.

I give lots of advice in this blog that people can use to improve their fitness or lose weight.  It is rare for me to receive feedback from somebody who has followed that advice.  Yet the same advice given to our paying members gets great results.

Why?  They have invested in themselves.

We have a referral offer for our members, if they recommend a friend to us they get a 50% discount off their next www.achievebootcamp.co.uk.  If they referred 2 they would get the full block free and so on.

If somebody got the month for free they would hardly make any sessions, they're not losing anything by not being there.

We changed the system to rolling the discount over for the following months and we had compliance again.

I think the government should be offering exercise sessions with trainers and coaches but I believe for them to be successful the public need to invest a little in to it too.

There needs to be an exchange of energy, that doesn't have to be financial.

If you want to get great results, invest in yourself.

14.  We all have the same amount of time in a day.

24 hours or 1440 minutes.

Some days I seem to be as productive as Willy Wonker.  

I get stuff done around the house, respond to emails, write fitness and nutrition programmes, coach 1-1 clients, treat injury therapy clients, do a workout, walk the dogs, cook a meal.

Other days, I seem to sit in front of the screen and stare blankly, leaving the office hours later frustrated that I don't seem to have achieved anything at all.

There is a saying that 'if you want to get something done, ask a busy person'.

I think it's true, when you spend time with busy people they just seem to have everything sorted.

In reality, they just have their time mapped out and value their time.  They don't take on too much, that way they don't feel overwhelmed and know they tackle everything on their plate.

15. Have a plan.

It's hard to be truly successful at anything if you are winging it.

Yes, you can get by.  I know many people who have managed to do pretty well by fluffing their way through life.

However, if they had a plan how much more could they have a achieved?

If you want to run a marathon, you can simply just head out of the door and start running. 

There is nothing more to it.

However, having a plan that takes you from where you are now to where you want to be reduces the risk of injury, overuse, boredom and ultimately failure.

A plan can only work if you follow the plan though and that is something that takes dedication.

The final 5 tomorrow.

Darren 'Wonker' Checkley