This is always going to be a hard question to answer, especially within the interwebs. You'll find that its purely based on perspective. And that perspective can either give you great insight, or take you into the weeds and make it more complicated. As a personal Trainer myself, I don't even discuss programming with a client until we have met a couple of times, talked a little bit, did an assessment and got in a workout. Usually I tailor that initial session to a full body workout, based on what I found during our talk and assessment.
In my opinion, the assessment is the most important, because I approach it not only from a physiological metric, but also from a psychological one. In my opinion, I find it equally important to not only know how they move and if they have issues, but what's going on inside their head and heart as to their idea or approach to fitness. Someone may move great and be in ok shape, but are deathly afraid to workout in a gym setting. That's where trainers can have the greatest challenge with prescribing the right things to do for their clients, especially on the days they are training solo.
This is where I feel I excel when working with people. I try to really understand what they need/want, and after I collect all data (physiological and psychological), I then can create the best plan of attack so not only will they succeed, but enjoy the process, even at times it can get uncomfortable.
Now so that the title doesn't seem misleading, I'll break down my way of thinking and approaching training programs for a client.
What are different programs?
There are many ways to create programming. You can simply go on Youtube or Google and literally find thousands of them. Here are a couple of my "go to" program designs:
- Full Body Training
- Upper/Lower Split
- PPL (push, pull, legs)
- Body Part Specific (similar to a bro split)
As stated above, these are my staple go to for programming, as I can take theses 4 models and make it as simple or complex as needed, depending on clients goal. I can even go as far as to combine these into a more long term program based on their progression if needed.
Below are three examples of clients and how I would create a program. Please keep in mind again I don't even get to this point until after a thorough assessment and conversation with them.
Client 1 - Time constraints (work, family or both)
I tend to take a more minimalist approach to this client and their training. Say they only have 2-3 days a week to train, and they assessment was good with no issues, I would go this route:
- Fully body for either 2-3 times per week (Monday/Thursday or Monday/Wednesday/Friday).
- Upper Lower for someone who only has 2 days to train (Monday/Thursday)
Taking this approach, you can create a simple, yet effective way to get them started and going without them feeling they have to sacrifice their careers and family life.
Client 2 - Has time and has some past experience in the gym
This client can give me a little more freedom when programming. If they have at least 3-6 days a week to train and have some rudimentary understanding of the equipment in the gym, I might go some these ways:
- Upper Lower breaking into a 2 upper/lower over the course of 4 days.
- Push Pull Legs for a 3 days a week or to do each one 2 times over course of week (more advanced parameters).
- Body Part Specific (bro split) for someone with the time but has a specific goal in mind.
Client 3 - Totally new to training in a gym
This one can be the easiest or hardest based on the clients assessment. They could have a good physiological assessment, but have crippling anxiety around working out around a bunch of people. A newer client like this, I keep it simple and go with:
- Full body for 2-3 days a week
I also keep it even simpler and have the client stick with only machines for the first 4 weeks then we start slowly introducing things like bands and free weights into their programming. My goal here is to help them build confidence, feel comfortable around working out with people around and more importantly have fun and feel like this gym is a positive experience.
So, to better answer the question presented in the title, the best program for you is:
WHATEVER YOU'LL ENJOY AND STICK WITH
Not earth moving I know, but hopefully will give you some simplicity in understanding it better
See You guys in the gym!
#BIBOK