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Are fitness trainers working to encourage their clients to maintain a healthy lifestyle to change their bodies and their lives, or are they just looking for another before-and-after photo to flaunt on their page?
One has to wonder what the true purpose is when a trainer puts their client on blast for not only indulging in a burger but posting it when her diet plan doesn’t allow for it. Pierre Rashaud cut a client off and used her behavior as a warning to anyone interested in taking on his services. He also vented about the frustration of having clients whom he works hard making meal plans and coming up with workouts for, only for them to go off and do what they want.
“Y’all Wonder why I always say BIG JOINT. It’s a MENTALITY! Y’all have the physical ability to be fit and healthy but y’all trapped in a BIG JOINT mentality,” he wrote on his Instagram post with the burger in question for all to see.
“Y’all hire trainers, we put ALL OUR EFFORT INTO YOU! We go above and beyond to Help you. Write out workout plans, write out meal plans, get up at 3am, 4am, 5am in the morning to Train y’all. Then y’all do sh-t like this. THIS IS NOT ON HER MEAL PLAN!” he added. “Then when I asked her about [sic] she made a joke, made and [sic] excuse, and acted like it wasn’t that big of a deal. Y’all do sh-t like this then at the end of the month y’all complain that you’re not losing weight or reaching your body goal. I speak for all trainers, WE’RE TIRED OF THIS SH-T!”
Rashaud wrapped up by saying that he wasn’t looking to make money off of his clients but that he was looking for their “success story,” referring to clients who can’t get it together as “BIGGIE.”
Now, was the burger a lot? Definitely (though I don’t see fries, so give the girl some credit for that). Was it fair for him to be frustrated that he’s putting a lot of time and effort into someone whom he deems inconsistent? Yes. But when has shaming people for slipping up ever really inspired healthy weight loss and results that can be maintained?
As someone who has worked with a trainer in the past, I can admit that in the beginning, I wasn’t as serious as I claimed to be. We were training at the crack of dawn every weekend and a few times during weekdays. Even though she was working me in ways I hadn’t experienced since high school basketball practice, I was still struggling with my food. When I would get on the scale, it was evident. I was losing a few pounds, but as Dr. Now says on My 600-Lb Life, not what I should have been losing if I strictly stuck to the diet plan.
She didn’t scold me, though. She was patient and reminded me that not only was I spending my money, but I was spending my time and energy training with her but not getting the results I was looking for because I wouldn’t completely clean my diet. I would ultimately have an epiphany about this while still under her instruction and turned things around. The pounds eventually started to come off for real, for real. Even better, once we stopped working together (only because the gym I found her at closed), I took the tools she showed me, applied her training to my own solo workouts, and in the end, lost 40 pounds.
All these years later, her tutelage still informs the workouts I do today as I work to shed postpartum weight (11 pounds down and the abs are showing up again). I embrace weights, save certain troublemaker foods for occasional eating (talking to you white rice) and remind myself that like she said, I’m the only one holding myself back. Had she sh-t on me like this trainer had when I was first finding my footing, I don’t think I would have continued with her or been able to accomplish my results. She kept it real but showed compassion because there is a difference between tough love and just being harsh. “BIGGIE”? Sir. That sounds more insulting than inspiring.
Nevertheless, he had every right to cut her off if he felt she wasn’t taking their work seriously. No one will respect your time if you don’t. If you feel it is being wasted in anything you do, relationships, professionally, whatever the case, you are entitled to be protective of that and choose to deal with people who are respectful and appreciative of your efforts. It does send a message and allows people to reevaluate their behavior. Where he went wrong though was putting her on blast after the fact, using her for attention to attract more business, and to scold people like her, who in most cases, need help making the mental switch to prioritize healthy living before they can actually physically change. But considering he spends more time calling folks “big joints” to get them to do their work and stick to it (because what better way than light ridicule to light a fire in someone), it’s no surprise he would see nothing wrong with this.
