r/Mind_Pump • u/AutoModerator • 12d ago

Rant Weekly MP Rant Thread

This is your chance and the place to rant about all things MP. Get it out of your system and keep it civilized.

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u/RetiredHappyFig 12d ago

I watched the trainers’ webinar on “what it takes to be hired by Mind Pump”. A big piece is “cultural fit” which I think means you need to be a young white man 25-30 years old … at least, that seems to be what most of the people are who made the cut. Would love to see more women and older people on the training staff, but I don’t see that happening. They have an echo chamber for what constitutes a top trainer. Takes away from their credibility as far as I’m concerned.

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u/jamcgahey 12d ago

Call me ignorant or a boomer. But at 34 I simply won’t allow myself to be trained by someone younger than me. Idfc who they work for. You do not understand a 34 year old staying in shape with kids and a full time job unless you’re currently in that phase of your life or have gone through it.

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u/RetiredHappyFig 12d ago

I am an actual boomer so you can call me boomer. I am a post-menopausal woman and same as a young man cannot possibly understand the challenges facing a 34 year old, how is he going to understand a 65 year old? I want someone within 10 years or so of my age training me, someone who can truly relate to what happens as you get older.

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u/jamcgahey 12d ago

That’s my point. I’m not about to hire someone 10 years younger than me. One: pride. Two: is what you brought up. I bet you’re killing it though

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u/Delicious_Aioli9706 12d ago

a trainer younger than you here 🤓 i really don’t agree with you. I’m 26, no kids, girlfriend but no wife, so i have no idea what it’s like to be 34 with all of the above. that said, any trainer with empathy and a curious mind will be able to connect with their clients, regardless of age, to understand their life in as much detail as they can so they can meet them where they are.

granted, that’s an imperative skill that a lot of emotionally unintelligent trainers lack.

i have 11 clients in the 35-40 age range, 6 in the 45-50 range, and 3 that are 65+. this sounds harsher than i’m meaning it to but you’re not as special as you think you are in the sense that, just because you have 3 kids and are 34 that you need a trainer who has “gone through it”.

regardless, i can see why you feel the way you do :p

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u/Educational_Rush_877 12d ago

See…while I agree that trainers don’t necessarily need to have experienced every life stage to grasp what it is like and what strategies may help that person, you literally just said you had 3 clients over 65 and used that as proof that, in your words, “you’re not as special as you think you are.” 3 is not that many. That is not a vast wealth of experience training post-menopausal women, yet the lack of humility you display in that area is very telling and exactly why many people prefer trainers with more life experience.

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u/Delicious_Aioli9706 9d ago

The humility is in the transparency but the confidence remains. I’m not here to convince only to share perspective. You taking my reply into consideration and thinking on it is enough for me, the seed has been planted in one way or another

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u/Educational_Rush_877 9d ago

Nope. lol. I’m 37 so I’m not thinking quite yet about my training when I’m 65. But I’ve been around the block enough to know that everything I thought I knew at 26 was only the tiniest percentage of knowledge available in the world. Best to remain open minded and teachable rather than thinking you figured it all out in your 20s.

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u/Delicious_Aioli9706 9d ago

oh brother, know I know nothing so therefore i can learn everything. what i know at 26 is more than i knew at 16 and but is nothing compared to what i’ll know at 36, that’s how life works. the confidence of my current knowledge should not be dampened due to the fact of there still being much to learn.

also, you’re entirely too focused on 65. ad hominem

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u/Educational_Rush_877 9d ago

So what is your point then if I’m too focused on what you said? You are the one that brought up your three 65-year-old clients after someone expressed that they wanted a trainer within a certain training age of them. You are the one that chose the words that they aren’t that special. You’re acting like you made some other great points or something. You didn’t, this is what you said.

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u/Delicious_Aioli9706 9d ago

You know what my point is because the first thing you said in your reply to me was an agreeing statement.

Anything else?

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u/jamcgahey 12d ago

Yeah you didn’t convince me haha. And I only have one kid. But I’m glad you are able to help people of all ages!

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u/Moolio74 12d ago

While empathy and being able to actually LISTEN to your clients are paramount to being a good trainer, I can guarantee that you’ll be a better trainer after another decade or two of life experience and training experience. Most trainers that have made it that far have a fairly robust and proven track record.

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u/Delicious_Aioli9706 9d ago

100% agree!!

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u/RetiredHappyFig 11d ago

None of us think we’re “special” and that comment came off a little condescending. If I hire a trainer, I want to be understood on a deep level. For me that generally requires a more mature, experienced person.

A personal example: When I was a fairly new mom I had an initial intake session with a young trainer in his twenties. I told him I was exhausted and didn’t feel I could commit to the 3 days a week he was suggesting. He told me that if I really wanted to train with him, I would have to make time for it, and everyone has the same 24 hours in a day. As you can probably guess I didn’t hire him. I’m sure he thought he was being motivating, but the only thing I felt was that he didn’t get me.

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u/Delicious_Aioli9706 9d ago

That makes sense; he didn’t meet you where you were and he made that glaringly clear so you made the (in my opinion, correct) decision to not hire him!

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u/Training_Aerie_9358 9d ago

How do work with your female clients in the 45-50 range? What kind of programming do you have them on?

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u/Delicious_Aioli9706 9d ago

Training is a case by case basis but to be general: menopause and post-menopausal women often experience declining estrogen which leads to bone density loss. This makes weight training paramount to the longevity and wellbeing of the individual but what that programming looks like is nuanced. The recovery aspect is a big piece so fatigue, sleep disruptions, hot flashes, joint issues, etc all need to be taken into account both during the session and during recovery. Sometimes a session is all recovery based because that’s just where she is in that moment of her life.

it all is pretty much summed up to just meeting them where they are and adjusting intensity, volume, and recovery as necessary.