Maintaining Quality Control:
Personal Trainers,
Fitness Facilities,
and Proper Programs
Starting an exercise program, even with the assistance and encouragement of MHPs and other professionals, is not easy. It's important to remember that it takes years to develop habits, including negative habits that are not beneficial to our health and wellbeing, with which we've become very comfortable. The lifestyle of most Western cultures consisting of an increasingly sedentary lifestyle, lack of exercise, and over-indulgence in food leading to excessive weight gain, has lead to greater deterioration in health. Each year we are getting sicker! There's plenty of blame to go around that helps explain our current health crisis—which, by the way, is getting worse each year as supported by the continued climb in the average weight of all age groups, and increased health costs. The purpose of this chapter is to focus on one source of the problem—the fitness industry—and to help MHPs to provide credible counsel to their clients in selecting proper exercise facilities, programs, and personnel in starting and maintaining an exercise program. Let's have a look at how your clients can select the most credible and effective support system that will make a significant contribution toward developing and maintaining a proper exercise program. In
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