HFI is unique in that they offer “Motivational Interviewing” skills courses. These are advanced skills workshops for personal trainers who are already qualified and are working day-to-day with clients. MI is an effective method to significantly enhance change relating to any health behaviour. MI is currently used by more enlightened professionals in the field of physiotherapy, sports therapy, sports coaching, elite sport physiology, dietetics and nutritional therapy.

In personal training, MI has a direct impact on client success by increasing initial motivation, but more importantly, on-going motivation levels towards exercise and eating behaviours. MI skills will also impact directly on sales because trainers will become naturally effective in sales situations whether face-to-face or on the phone.

As personal trainers become “qualified” there has to be a strong emphasis on safety and effectiveness of client preparation and training. After this stage, the fitness industry currently focuses more on “technical” or “specialized” aspects of training. this is more about the trainer and less about the clients needs. As trainers become more experienced there comes a time when no amount of additional knowledge is going to make a difference to a trainer’s motivational skills and therefore their effectiveness. Often the opposite can be true and overly technical and trainers’ pre-occupation with the specific type exercise can be detrimental to clients reaching exercise and eating behaviour goals. The personal training industry has become more about specific exercise systems, products and selling equipment and less about client results. The determining factor for client retention is results. Results are gained by clients maintaining behaviour change. It is very hard for many trainers to accept that their success depends much less upon what clients do and more about whether they actually do it. This is especially so for newly qualified and less experienced trainers.

Employers  find this skill is an imperative part of any client facing role. Without specific training in MI, health practitioners can unwittingly develop a de-motivating approach with clients. employees really don’t develop much effectiveness in this area.

There are two HFI 2-day workshops available:

• HFI Exercise Behaviour Motivator - Motivational Interviewing for Exercise Behaviour Change

• HFI Eating Behaviour Motivator - Motivational Interviewing for Eating Behaviour Change

HFI Exercise Motivator

Motivational Interviewing for Effective Exercise Behaviour Change

The HFI Exercise Motivator workshop will ensure trainers and other health professionals have a strong influence over clients’ exercise behaviour adherence, sales and success.

“Success is not about the trainer or the client knowledge. It's about motivational psychology and whether the trainer can have an effect on clients’ behaviour”.

Who is this for?

Advanced personal trainers who are REPs level 3 or higher.

Any client-facing health professional qualified in their field where behaviour change is the desired outcome.

HFI Course Category / Level        

Motivational Psychology

Advanced Personal Training Skills

Personal Training Business Selling Skills

Course format    2-day workshop (no additional assessment).

“This course changed my mind about almost everything I have learned so far! I am a very knowledgeable trainer but I realize now didn’t have any real and quantifiable power over my clients’ motivation.  I use my new skills every time I interact with clients, whether during sales pitches, day-to-day at sessions or during on-going sit-down consultations. It works with initial contacts but also with my very long term clients as well. What was unexpected was, it turned me into a great sales person without having to resort to hard-sell persuasion!”

Course content

A combination of didactic lecture, live demonstration, dvd demonstrations and role play are included.

The workshop programme covers:

-     Introduction to motivational interviewing

-     The motivational toolbox spirit and style

-     Effective listening skills - advanced reflective listening skills.

-     Setting an agenda for the consultation

-     How to develop a rapport

-     Decisional balance and resolving client ambivalence

-     Creating discrepancy

-     Supporting self-efficacy (client confidence)

-     Motivational information exchange

-     Helping with decision making

-     Using MI during exercise sessions

- Follow up techniques to increase and maintain motivation

Benefits

- A complete change of focus for your PT practice from process to outcome

- Become an effective motivational trainer

- Avoid client motivation-reducing behaviours

- Improve clients' motivation, attendance and outcomes 

- Develop the more important and challenging PT skills 

- Use the most powerful tool available to you – the right style of verbal interaction

- Avoid leaving your clients’ motivation to chance

- Increase sales conversion rates 

- Increase earnings

Are you ready to make a difference to the subtle skills which will increase your business profitability?