Burnouts are very common in the Personal Training industry, especially now we are coming to the end of another eventful year. You may now be feeling frustrated, drained, and at times powerless.
No matter who you are, coaching and bringing energy to people all day can be exhausting and very draining and this is one of the reasons personal trainers can often burnout.
So how can you tell you are reaching burn out? Here a some signs you need to be aware of:
You truly dread going to work most days.
You find yourself complaining or being negative when one of your clients cancels, or starts to moan and whine to you.
You mentally check out at meetings or in sessions.
You’ve lost interest in learning new things.
You dream of something big simply because you don’t want to work.
You can’t imagine working as a PT for the next few years.
When people ask you if you like your job, you have a negative response.
If you can resonate to any of the above, it’s so vital that we address this problem as soon as possible.
Here are our tips to avoid burnouts. Please note, not all will apply to your situation, so take the tips you need and action it into your business today, before you totally give up.
Be realistic - You really need to understand what actions you need to be doing to enable you to function at your very best. Do you currently need more sleep, do you need to add more breaks between clients or do you need to finish early on one day. What recharges your batteries? The things that leave you feeling energised, always make time for. Whatever it is, you don't need to feel guilty for prioritising it into your routine.
Plan - We understand not everything goes to plan but that shouldn’t put you off. One day a week, spend 30mins to an hour structuring the week ahead. This will enable you to see any gaps and where you may need rest/breaks. It will help schedule clients, know when you are working on and in your business, plan in your training sessions and have time with family & friends. This will help you identify where you could potentially avoid any burnouts.
Take one full day off - Sundays do tend to be the day most people will take off. When we say a day off, we don’t mean no clients, we mean no work towards your business. So, put your computer away, stay away from social media and any other work you need to do, leave it all for the next day. If this is already giving you anxiety then you need it more than you actually think.
Put yourself first - Just because you are not doing something that is for your business it doesn't mean its time wasted, being in the correct mind frame can support you in running your business effectively. Always understand why you became a personal trainer, as PT’ing is a demanding profession, so show some empathy to yourself, look after yourself and take time to look after your mental state as your ability to help others will suffer if your head is a mess
Have strict boundaries - Are you letting clients bully you into training them at times that are inconvenient for you? Did you plan a day off but came in because that was the best time for their schedule? You need to learn to be more strict with your time. One way you can do this is to stop asking clients when they want to come in, and start telling them when you are available. They will start to respect your time more. Also, remember your inboxes on social media, your emails and phone will always be there so don't get sucked into the whole 24/7 thing and break your mental peace.
Talk about it - Find a place or community where you can ask questions, read other trainers' challenges, make friends or vent it out. Are there any trainers whose company you enjoy? Can you catch up with them, as friends or family may not truly understand your situation but other trainers will. This all can be a powerful thing, so don't underestimate it, it can make a big difference to your mental health.
Burning out as a PT is something we at TherapyFit care a lot about. Being trainers ourselves we have definitely felt this during our careers. Which has caused us to stop talking to friends and families, caused us to give up on hobbies we enjoy, just because we are busy or feel we need to work on our business 24/7. It's NOT your fault, being self employed we feel we need to fend for ourselves and everyone can feel like competition.
We just want to let you know, you are not out there alone experiencing this. Tell us which one resonated with you the most and let us know what you have implemented.
If you are struggling with any of the above feel free to reach out to our team at info@therapyfit.co.uk who will be able to help you on any of the above.
Therapy Fit
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