Is there such a thing as a Fitness Industry Expert??
Opinions are like mouths, everyone has one.
What is often interesting though it is often the person with the biggest mouth who give their opinions the loudest. Now just because they are the loudest does not mean that they know the most.
I have just had the privilege to watch a webinar that is about to be released to the general public that states that it is the Fundamentals of Exercise programming. While the content was sound, a lot of it was copied from a publication by Pearson Education that I am very aware of, the way in which this person presented themselves as an expert was very very worrying.
The definition of an expert is someone is very knowledgeable about or skilful in a particular area.
Now if I have only just finished my fitness course at TAFE am I an expert?
What if I have finished my course a year ago and have trained a number of people to moderate success? Am I now an expert?
What if I have no education but have won an Australian title am I now an expert?
What if I have over 20 years experience am I an expert?
To be honest I believe that none of the above are experts. An expert in the fitness industry is someone who has trained many people over and extended period of time who has obtained results both personally and professionally with a range of clients with a range of abilities successfully over a period of time.
An expert is also someone who stays up to date not from reading the next edition of Muscle and Fitness (not that there is anything wrong with that) but from reading and publishing in peer reviewed articles and journals.
The fact that PT's come and go and that PT's are being pumped out left right and centre by large organisations who care very little about industry standards the term expert in the fitness industry is incredibly watered down.
Before you believe your so called expert look not only of how they train and train others but look at their overall contribution to the industry. What have they done to make a difference to it?
