Tuition in the gym this afternoon

I couldn't help notice a guy showing a young kid (turns out he's 13) how to squat. I shall rephrase that, he was TRYING to show the kid how to squat. First off he never actually got under the bar to show him what to do just told him to get under the bar and bend his knees. The kids feet were together, his heels coming off the floor, and the bar was wobbling all over the place and all the guy could say was "try to keep the bar straight and try to keep your feet flat". That was it.....full instruction!! So after failing miserably with just the bar, he adds weight!!
 
I was amazed at how bad this was so went out to reception to ask who he was and it turns out it was a local teacher, not sure if the kid was a relative or a pupil.
 
They then move on to bench press where the kid again can't control the bar without it wobbling. The teacher then adds on some weight and says they're going to do 3 sets of 5 reps!!
 
Next onto the preacher bench (right next to me at this point), "Ok, put your arms over there and hold this bar then lift it up". Then over to the incline ab bench where I see he has the kid holding a 10kg disc over his head to do sit ups! Then over to the Roman chair for leg raises.
 
Next is deadlifts where he had the kid lifting the bar up with at least a 10" gap between the bar and his legs. Over to the squat rack again for front squats this time, same stance as before. Hack squats where the kid was on his toes again at the bottom to push back up. I think they may have gone on the leg press at this point but if they did it was only one set. The final straw was then pull ups. The teacher demonstrated this (maybe showing off because it was something he could actually do). The kid quite understandably couldn't do one so rather than help him to the top and let him do a negative he just let him struggle to try a full one where he was swinging all over the place, legs flying about!! Then watched him try a few more half hearted attempts.
 
I'm all for kids training but this was just atrocious. I know I should concentrate on my own training but this was just like rubber necking on a motorway when sometimes you just can't help it. If it hadn't been so bad I would probably have just ignored.
 
Assuming this guy had been a teacher how would they go on for liability in a private gym?

Is this a knighty?

essex_chris


Is this a knighty?

what a switcheroo thread or the guy teaching....

LOL, no it's not a knighty, this is me genuinely witnessing this today.....I have been waiting for a knighty thread in reply

Not been reading as diligently so i thought i might have missed the original.
 
Must have been hard not to say anything. Had the kid got injured i bet you would have regretted not

I think i would've asked an instructor to go over and subtly offer some corrections with suitable explanations.  Even at the risk of the teacher getting offended, he obviously had no clue on safe lifting technique. 
 
If there was no instructor around i would've done it myself, but that's me speaking from a professional standpoint as a Tutor/PT. 
 
As far as insurance purposes go, if the kid has had an induction from a qualified member of the gym team i think the gym is covered.  If it's a case of this "teacher" has shown him how he thinks he should use the kit and he hurts himself, well that's a different story, especially if he doesnt have public liability insurance or any gym quals!

Teachers: Can't live with em, can't legally kill em...

GT_PT, I was seriously tempted to go over and say something but once I heard he was a teacher I didn't want to undermine his 'authority'. It is THE worst instruction I have ever seen in a gym. I'd love to see the teacher train himself cos I bet he trains with poor form too. As for getting someone from the gym to 'take over' there was only one guy on reception yesterday and it's not really my place to tell them to butt in. 

If I ever see really bad form I either give one of the gym instructors a nudge as I know they know their stuff and they'll casually walk over and offer advice.

It's amazing the lack of knowledge that the general public possess about working out.
 
One of the lads at work cracked me up today.  He's just been away on a training course to join the Armed Forces (I won't say too much and give too much about him away).  Anyway, needless to say the course he's been on is physically intense.
 
"Apparently" he was told whilst away, that they've had a spate of people having heart attacks on the course due to creatine consumption vs dehydration problems.  Now either he has been fed some mock-up story by the instructors to 'big-up' how tough the course is, or he is making up a story himself to 'big-it' up to us, his workmates.
 
Either way it's laughable!

Haha, I can believe that. Creatine is a steroid afterall you know!!

You usually see two ends of the spectrum.

The person teaches uses such light weight that their form while showing in flawless (unlike their working sets).
Or the person showing's ego is in play and they form's atrocious as they show how much weight they can move in some sort of motion.
 

The guy never showed the kid what to do. If you're showing someone how to lift you at least demonstrate it yourself not just tell them to stand under a bar and bend at the knees!!

it gets me how much bad technique and comments like the creatine thing above we hear day in day out and everyone thinks they are an expert.
 
Why is it that people like the teacher above who clearly no nothing but dangerous practice seem to think they are the pt of the year. etc..
 
Guy at work must be at least 24 stone, looks a fcuking train wreck, tells people how he cant wait to get home from a night shift so he can get 4 cans of stella down him before going to bed ( at 6.00am !!! ) Big apron type belly thing covering his family jewels etc.
Then starts taking protein powder coz he's dieting. Nothing else changed to his diet or lifestyle, the powders going to get him ripped and hench... and telling others what to do.   Jesus, i just despair at times.
 
 
 

It would certainly not have been wrong had the teacher contacted the gym and explained he had a kid who was interested in weight training and could someone show him the basics rather than make a fool of himself in the eyes of others! I once had someone ask me how to do a snatch and grab (as in the lift no shoplifting haha)....never having done it myself I know I wouldn't be able to explain/demonstrate it properly so I got one of the guys over to show him. I don't feel ashamed for having done that but what a dickhead I would have looked trying to

kitty


Haha, I can believe that. Creatine is a steroid afterall you know!!

Yeh too much creatine made me loose my hair

kitty

Haha, I can believe that. Creatine is a steroid afterall you know!!

Crikey Kitty I didn't realise!! I better stop taking it ;)
 

kitty

The guy never showed the kid what to do. If you're showing someone how to lift you at least demonstrate it yourself not just tell them to stand under a bar and bend at the knees!!

 
Exactly this.
 

RobW

Yeh too much creatine made me loose my hair

You should try BCAAs mate - great for hair regrowth I hear ;)

Now just be careful with creatine Wilks and watch who you advise to take BCAAs, could backfire on you

Sounds like comprehensive advice to me.

you did the right think Kitty, for sure, no point not wanting to undermine the teacher's authority if he was putting the lad at risk of injury, which it sounds like he was doing. 
 
I saw this a lot in the council gym i went to, school groups in who just werent properly supervised or instructed by the teacher with them, or the duty gym supervisor.