Why Care About Training Older Adults
Focus: To learn why training older adults can be the most rewarding types of clients and how training them can be beneficial to everyone, especially you.
Introduction
What You'll Learn
In lesson you'll learn about why training seniors can be one of the most rewarding clientele and why you should care about training them at all.
Why is This Important?
Seniors now represent 20% to 30% of the population and that's on the rise. Seniors also hold around 80% of the personal wealth of the nation meaning there is one less barrier to training them.
In lesson you'll learn about why training seniors can be one of the most rewarding clientele and why you should care about training them at all.
Why is This Important?
Seniors now represent 20% to 30% of the population and that's on the rise. Seniors also hold around 80% of the personal wealth of the nation meaning there is one less barrier to training them.
Seniors are often a neglected and negatively perceived part of society. Older people are frequently viewed as a ‘burden’, but this viewpoint is misguided for multiple reasons.
Besides a wealth of knowledge, experience and value added to communities through their work and volunteering, 65-year-olds and over contribute £61b a year to the UK economy alone. This figure is similar in other Western countries and forecast to double in the UK by 2030.
Put another way, senior citizens represent a group of 20% to 30% of society, which usually holds around 80% of personal wealth.
They are the only age group still growing and their income and wealth are increasing faster than any other; quite frankly making it foolish not to become an expert in this sector.
Besides a wealth of knowledge, experience and value added to communities through their work and volunteering, 65-year-olds and over contribute £61b a year to the UK economy alone. This figure is similar in other Western countries and forecast to double in the UK by 2030.
Put another way, senior citizens represent a group of 20% to 30% of society, which usually holds around 80% of personal wealth.
They are the only age group still growing and their income and wealth are increasing faster than any other; quite frankly making it foolish not to become an expert in this sector.
Advantages of Training Seniors
You may not perceive training seniors to be as exciting as coaching figure competitors or models, but it has many advantages on top of the aforementioned economic factors.
Firstly, seniors are a loyal customer base. They have already made many of the mistakes you will make and learned plenty of the lessons you will learn, so they are much more understanding as clients.
From personal experience, I’ve found that seniors want to train with you as much for your knowledge, as for who you are as a person. They are honest, caring and will not let you down; both in attendance and payments. They are brought up in a different era where time and expertise are highly valued.
For example, I remember when I was once snowed in and I couldn’t get my car out of the driveway to get to my gym 15 miles away. Meanwhile, my 62-year-old client Ruth put her snowshoes on and left the house early, despite living 6 miles away, to make sure she was not late for our 7 am session. A true story that put me to shame!
Firstly, seniors are a loyal customer base. They have already made many of the mistakes you will make and learned plenty of the lessons you will learn, so they are much more understanding as clients.
From personal experience, I’ve found that seniors want to train with you as much for your knowledge, as for who you are as a person. They are honest, caring and will not let you down; both in attendance and payments. They are brought up in a different era where time and expertise are highly valued.
For example, I remember when I was once snowed in and I couldn’t get my car out of the driveway to get to my gym 15 miles away. Meanwhile, my 62-year-old client Ruth put her snowshoes on and left the house early, despite living 6 miles away, to make sure she was not late for our 7 am session. A true story that put me to shame!
Secondly, seniors often feel neglected. According to Age UK, the biggest British charity dedicated to older adults, 39% of people over 65 thinks that businesses consider little to nothing about their needs as customers.
This opens a massive opportunity for you as a trainer to simply pay attention and listen. And guess what? You will be surprised at what you get from this. I have found that just by talking to my clients, each session has been a valuable lesson in life, business, philosophy, and more! As cliché as it sounds, they are the best group of clients a trainer can ask for.
Lastly, only 10 to 21.7% of older adults currently meet recommendations of strength training at least twice each week, meaning you have almost unlimited potential for your business if you choose to upskill in this area.
This opens a massive opportunity for you as a trainer to simply pay attention and listen. And guess what? You will be surprised at what you get from this. I have found that just by talking to my clients, each session has been a valuable lesson in life, business, philosophy, and more! As cliché as it sounds, they are the best group of clients a trainer can ask for.
Lastly, only 10 to 21.7% of older adults currently meet recommendations of strength training at least twice each week, meaning you have almost unlimited potential for your business if you choose to upskill in this area.
The Bigger Picture
So as you can see, older people are not a burden and neither should they be seen as the demographic that is draining funds. The sooner we recognise their potential and help disassociate this age group from damaging labels, the better. Ironically, holding prejudiced views towards seniors can contribute to old age depression in those very people holding such views, once they reach their senior years.
So, I hope that like me, you are excited about playing a role in breaking this vicious cycle, while expanding your client base, growing your income… and if you’re lucky, picking up some vital life lessons from your new customers along the way.
So, I hope that like me, you are excited about playing a role in breaking this vicious cycle, while expanding your client base, growing your income… and if you’re lucky, picking up some vital life lessons from your new customers along the way.
More Lessons From This Module
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