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What You Were Never Taught to Get Your Clients to Do What You Say




by Scott Schutte and Janine Stichter, Ph.D.

“If clients would just do what I tell them to do they would get the results they want.”

Have you ever said this?

I have and I’m willing to bet you have too.

Spoiler Alert: the lack of compliance might be your fault. Let us explain.

I’ve been personal training for almost 20 years now and I used to get frustrated with clients because they said they wanted weight loss, they wanted accountability, and they wanted change.

Yet despite the scientifically sound advice I would give them with the best of intentions, most clients didn’t follow my advice.

So, what did I do?

I learned more.

I pursued more education on training, program design, supplements, nutrition, blood work, and every other subject I thought would be impactful for my clients.

I shadowed MDs, PhDs, and PTs.

All these things improved my ability to help my clients, but there was still something lacking.

Then, about ten years ago I started training a client named Janine. As with all my clients, I like to find a common interest, this creates connection and helps pass the time. But Janine was unique in that she asked a lot of questions.

I soon found out she was a Ph.D. Behaviorist and those questions she asked were challenging some of my assumptions about why people did what they did.

As I got to know more about what Dr. J did, I began to learn why some clients follow my advice while others don’t.

To my surprise, it was more my fault than my clients.

They weren’t necessarily lacking discipline or willpower, I was lacking the ability to properly individualize my approach for each client.

From our early conversions to our current interactions, Dr. J has shared countless insights and lessons with me.

But one particular insight stands out as I look back.

It’s a foundational concept she taught me that changed the path of my career.

This is a great place to let the Doc step in here and bring her expertise to this innovative idea.



Notes from the Doc.

I see three common stages of how coaches approach helping clients change their behavior to get results.

Stage 1- “Stop Doing That.”

Coaches at this stage tell their clients to “just stop doing that” behavior. If for example, your client knows that alcohol on a daily basis is not helping them make progress toward their goals, then the coach instructs their client: “Just stop. If you have willpower and motivation, then just stop doing it.”

Stage 2- “Replace that with this.”

When coaches see that stage 1 is obvious but not effective, they change their approach and start offering replacements. Substitutions like “drink sparkling water instead of wine” or “snack on carrots instead of potato chips.”

Sometimes this approach works, but most times it doesn't or is not sustainable for the client.

Stage 3- Match replacements to root causes.

When coaches continue to see the previous two stages fail, they start to realize that there is something really missing in the typical coaching protocols when it comes to compliance.

And they are right.

As I explained to Scott in one of our early conversations, behavior serves a function.

For any behavior to continue to occur, whether it is desirable or not, it is serving a purpose.

To effectively and sustainably change unhealthy behavior, we need to understand the root cause of that behavior and match our replacements to serve the same purpose.

The research from the field of psychology highlights four primary root causes, and at the Healthy Behavior Institute we called this the EATS model.

Escape - the behavior helps me destress, unwind, and distract me from my stress/day.
Attention - the behavior is a way for me to connect or be accepted by others.
Tangible - the behavior represents a treat, something deserved or earned.
Sensory - the behavior just tastes or feels good.

So even if a well intentioned coach suggests a client replace an unhealthy behavior with a healthier one, if that coach is not matching the root cause, their success rate will be low.

If, for example, a client is drinking wine in the evening for Escape, a replacement like sparkling water is not going to cut it.

But if a client gets that same sense of escape from playing their guitar or taking an epsom salt bath - those might be a great replacement.

If they are drinking wine to connect with their partner after work (Attention), then a new and different kind of sparkling water or kombucha might work well.

If they are drinking that wine because they enjoy fine wines and spending their money on such treats (Tangible) then the replacement might need to be a combination of treats, some including a rotation of the wine and perhaps a little retail therapy that better aligns with the health and fitness goals.

If the root cause is Sensory, then in the case of the wine, it might be more of a focus on fully enjoying it but less often or smaller doses.

- Dr. J



As a trainer I was a bit worried at first about having these kinds of conversations with clients (we’ll get more into effective ways to do that in part 2 of our series) but I was surprised how easy these very conversations were.

I was relieved to discover that I didn’t have to figure out everything for my clients, all I had to do was explain the EATS model and ask them which one they thought it was.

They almost always knew right away.

I then follow up by asking what replacements they think will serve the same root cause.

And again, to my surprise, they had the answer.

Sure, it might take a bit of trial and error, but the approach worked time and time again.

And as a consequence, much of my frustration related to clients not being compliant evaporated while simultaneously my clients’ frustration with repeated failed attempts disappeared as they experienced success after success.

My fitness practice has continued to use and refine this approach and share it with other dedicated coaches.

The EATS model is very powerful and we encourage you to use it when helping your clients with their unhealthy behaviors.

Next month, check out Part 2 of our series:

“What you were never taught but need to know to get your clients to do what you say.”

You can learn more about behavior coaching and how this can improve your income and impact at www.healthybehaviorinstitute.com




 

Janine Stichter & Scott Schutte



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Scott Schutte is a personal trainer, weight loss behavior coach, gym owner, and fitness educator. He has successfully guided thousands of people on their fitness journey. His education and experience have led him to work with many clients and educate other fitness professionals on how to be successful coaches with an emphasis on behavior change.

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Dr. Janine Stichter has been in the field of behavior change for over 20 years as a researcher, author, educator and practitioner. She understands the importance of behavior science for client success. Her career has focused on understanding the why behind behavior and identifying clear practices that are practical and result in sustained change.

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Most recently they co-founded the Healthy Behavior Institute, an educational platform for fitness professionals and gym owners that specialize in behavior modification. Their educational materials provide professionals with a clear system to add an additional service for better client results and increased revenue.


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