Coaches Corner
Coach Focus: Personal Training Philosophies with Camille Goddard
What makes a good coach? Knowledge? Experience? Empathy? Personal trainer Camille Goddard knows the answer. Read our piece about her coaching philosophy and become a better coach yourself.
Some coaches can make you fit.
Some coaches can teach you things.
But the best coach is the one that helps you
understand what you want, why you want it, and what you need to achieve it.
This is what our personal trainer Camille Goddard
strives for. She holds multiple diplomas in personal training, fitness, and
nutrition, so she knows well what makes a good coach.
From injury to recovery
At a young age Camille used to do middle-distance running
and compete a lot. Unfortunately, due to a knee injury, she was forced to give
up running, which was a great shock for a kid. But Camille says it made her
discover a gym and find her true vocation: “I
felt that I could still get that feeling and sense of achievement. Not in terms
of competing with someone other than myself but in terms of getting somewhere
and becoming better, as I did while running”.
Sport and training helped Camille to go through really
dark times, recover mentally, and find peace and meaning in life. That is why
she decided to dedicate herself to coaching to help other people through sports
as well. She wants her clients to feel what she felt, to find comfort in
training and sheer excitement from new achievements.
Sport as your own kind of therapy
For Camille training is never a hard and nasty job on the shrink of your limits. No, it is time you devote to yourself and spend how YOU want. In the gym, you are among many other people, but it is a solitary journey you can embark upon at your own pace and on your own terms. No matter what else is going on in your life, this can be your safe place.
A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step
Every training with Camille is never the same because
every client is different. Someone wants to lose weight, and someone trains for
a competition. Some people want to build a new healthier lifestyle and some
just need to blow off steam after a stressful day. There are many reasons for
people to find their way to the gym so you cannot apply a universal approach to
everyone.
Camille believes that every training plan should start
with a conversation. A personal trainer should dig in and figure out why you
came to the gym. What makes you tick? What problems do you have? How far you
can and want to go? People often do not know the answers themselves. But
understanding your needs and desires is what makes you move forward even when
first excitement and interest are replaced by fatigue and routine.
“The gym should be an amazing experience, and you
should get everything out of it that you want to. But unless you understand why
are you doing it in the first place, you are not getting anywhere.”
And then of course it is about building trust. Because
a good coach is the one whose decisions you do not question. Building your
client’s trust is the most important task for every coach. Without it, you
cannot move forward.
Philosophy of training
Despite using a personal approach to each client,
Camille Goddard sticks to a certain philosophy of training which comprises
three integral components: evidence-based practice, self-development of a
coach, and educating the athlete to the point of self-sufficiency.
Evidence-based practice
There is a core framework and scientifically proven
methods to improve an athlete’s characteristics and achieve their goals. You
can tailor this framework to your needs, and you will succeed. But you
shouldn’t invent your own rules. Build your training based on science and
facts. They never lie.
Self-development of a coach
The art and science of sports training are not
standing still. They are constantly developing, so personal trainers must
nourish themselves with knowledge and news on the topic to remain top experts
and their domain. Camille tries to pick up every new study or discovery which
can help her become an even better coach for her clients.
Educating an athlete
Following the coach's advice is good but you will not find motivation just by doing what you are told to. A personal coach has to be a teacher as well. They have to explain to the client why he/she is doing this or that exercise and how exactly it will help them achieve their goals. Helping people understand the principles of their workout will help them feel more included, active, and hence more responsible for their results. It is easier to move forward if you know your route.
Does it mean that with time a person can continue training without a coach?
Camille gladly teaches every client and explains the mechanisms
of training in the way she used to learn them. However, she explains, when it
comes to your own training, you cannot always be objective. No matter how much
you know, there will always be an element of bias, so you cannot rely solely on
your opinion. This is when a coach can help you. “Every good coach has a coach,” she smiles. Having a coach does not
make you less competent or smart. But it definitely makes your training more
professional.
Camille has been working with many clients at different stages of motivation, progress, doubt and despair. When asked about a motivation source for beginners, she comes up with a brilliant answer.
“There is a reason why you thought about going to the gym. Sit down and think about the little things you are currently unhappy with. Then think if they can be improved by going to the gym. If they can, you have got your answer”.
Do you have things that can be improved by going to
the gym? If yes, contact Camille and book your first training at once. Discover even more sports and coaches with Sport Session.
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