Hiring a Competition Coach for NPC Competition

By Alexandre M. Carneiro, IFBB Men’s Physique Pro, A.C.S.M Certified Personal Trainer, Sports Nutritionist, Personal Trainer,  ON (Optimum Nutrition) Athlete, follow Alex on Facebook,Instagram

The word ‘sensei’ has been passed on for hundreds of years. Did you know it means “person before another”? Some also use sensei to refer to their teachers as a form of respect.  Coach or trainer is used today in the fitness industry to refer to a person who has more knowledge and is passing on their knowledge regarding fitness and health. Finding the right coach or trainer for NPC competition is key component to success.

For ten years now, I have always worked with a teacher/coach that has helped me personally achieve a better physique and most importantly to me: better knowledge on the matter of achieving a better physique. I can’t say it has always been the same coach this entire time, however. During these ten years I have worked with 5 different people until I found one that I had the best connection with.  One of the best coaches on this earth once told me:

“You will never learn everything there is to this world, never.  When you think you know it all there will always be something new and if you aren’t open to new thoughts and new ways you will never truly be the best you you can ever be.”

Ever since that day I have kept my ears and mind open to everything and anything that was told to me. Obviously as time goes by you will learn to process what’s irrelevant and pointless to what’s important and life changing. My point with all of this is the following; during the Colorado NPC Free Workshop in January, it seemed like many had one question in their mind while all 6 of the IFBB Pro’s were talking. “How do I choose the best coach for me?” 

That is a great question because it’s who is the best coach for ME, not who is the best coach in general.

Coaches tend to specialize more and more to what they know best. It’s normal. In fact, you don’t go to a Japanese automobile dealer to buy the best German sports car, right? Then why would you lean to choose a coach that has not been through the process themselves? They will be the ones with the best personal experience to pass on and share. Unfortunately there many out there who think they know it all and the client’s are the ones who suffer because some coaches are great salesmen/women but aren’t really the best fitness professional to actually help you in your journey.

So what do YOU do to choose and select the best person to work with you on your journey? Ask these questions first:

• What’s their experience with their own journey? Have they competed?
• How long have they been working in this industry? (Are they a brand new competitor now teaching others or someone who has been helping others for a long time now?)
• What are their credentials? Does he/she know about nutrition or just learned because they did a show? Do they know the body well enough to not put you in harms way when training you?
• Customer Satisfaction. Talk to previous clients they’ve worked with. From all genders, ages and possibly sport divisions.
• What are their specialties? Do they know more about men’s physique than women’s physique specifically? Or more about men than women in general?
• Are they communicating with you when you need them to? (Or do they only communicate when they need to get paid?!)

These are just a few questions that you should ask them as well as yourself before hiring someone to help you with something as important as changing your body.

My last piece of advice is don’t go cheap. Most of the time coaches who go cheap tend to be the ones who don’t feel confident about their work and they charge less because they still have to build a name for themselves. No name brand or company that feels like they are not the best will ever charge you less than they know they are worth. Ever see Apple give discounts on ANY product any time in history? Nope. From day 1 they knew they were there to stay and make history. If money is an issue than talk to your coach/trainer and discuss a way to pay in payments, etc.

Finally, even some of the best  coaches and trainers might not be the best fit for you. Your personalities might not be the right chemistry. So sit down in a consultation with the trainer and see how it feels.  After all, you aren’t just buying a new pair of jeans. You are making a commitment to hiring someone that will be affecting you in many new exciting ways and you want to make sure it’s the very best for you.