Coaching & Mindset
A Client's Week Is Shaped Before They Reach The Session, And Core And Pelvic Floor Teaches You To Read Those Outside Influences First
From the FASTER syllabus: this article is taught in full in Core & Pelvic Floor, where this lesson lives →
In short: The first module of the Core & Pelvic Floor course, The FASTER Process, teaches that research has moved from individual factors to a multilevel model of why some people are active and others are not. Outside influences come first: social support, cultural norms, social environment, built environment and natural environment. Personal factors come second: motivation, goal setting and beliefs about benefits help, while lack of time and fatigue are the most commonly reported barriers.
The week comes first, the session second
Clients arrive with a week behind them, and that week has a lot to do with how training goes. The Core & Pelvic Floor course starts here, in the first module, The FASTER Process. The lesson is called Client Barriers and Facilitators to Exercise.
It takes on the fitness saying that everyone has the same 24 hours in a day. The course points out that the time people have varies a great deal with their work, the place they live and the support around them.
Research moved to layers
The lesson cites Bauman and colleagues (2021) on the correlates of physical activity. For about 30 years, research has been moving away from individual factors toward a multilevel model: demographic, environmental, psychosocial and social. In plain words, several layers of influence decide who is active.
The course lists the outside layers to check first:
- Social support from family, friends and colleagues
- Cultural norms and practices
- Social environment, including behaviour modelling
- Built environment, such as where a client lives and how the community is designed
- Natural environment, such as access to green spaces
Then the personal layer
Garcia and colleagues (2022) reviewed the literature and the course draws on it. Motivation, goal setting and personal beliefs about the benefits of exercise are consistently highlighted as facilitators. Lack of time and fatigue are among the most commonly reported barriers. Koh and colleagues (2022) add a cross-sectional study of perceived barriers.
The environment matters as well. Safe, appealing spaces, good parks and cycle lanes help. Poor weather, pollution and safety concerns put people off.
What a trainer does with it
The course is clear about reach. A personal trainer's influence sits mostly with the individual factors that encourage exercise and help a client reach their goals. Acknowledging the wider layers keeps a trainer from working against the client's motivation, and it helps the client set expectations that suit their real week.
How the course teaches it
FASTER courses are visual and interactive. You read, listen and answer in writing or by dictating, and the lesson links the research so you can find it again.
Where to go next
The lesson sits in Core & Pelvic Floor. PT Manager is free with any FASTER course and opens when you sign up.
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See what the course covers →Frequently asked
What is the multilevel model of physical activity?
Research that explains activity through several layers of influence, demographic, environmental, psychosocial and social, rather than through individual factors alone.
Which outside factors does the course list?
Social support, cultural norms and practices, the social environment, the built environment and the natural environment.
Which personal factors help and which get in the way?
Motivation, goal setting and beliefs about benefits help. Lack of time and fatigue are among the most commonly reported barriers.
Where does a personal trainer have the most influence?
On the individual factors, while acknowledging the wider ones so expectations stay realistic.
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