Finally! The long awaited Jom Kurus season 5 has kick-started last week on the 5th of September where 3000 participants around Malaysia are ought to go through a 6 weeks body transformation with their respective team leaders! We are glad to have 3 of them who happens to be our student in our 8th post of ‘100 seconds with 100 Personal Trainers’, sharing their moments with JK1M.
Introducing
Read more to find out what they do at JK1M and where you can find them!
How many seasons have you been with Jom Kurus? And how many participants do you have?
Haniff:
I’ve been with Jom Kurus from Season 1 to Season 4. For the first and second Season, I was Assistant Team Leader for Taman Tasik Titiwangsa. Im officially Team Leader for Season 3 and 4 for kawasan Wangsa Maju. Average participants for every season is 50. And the biggest number of participants I’ve had is 59 which is during season 4.
Desmond:
I started off with season 4 of JK1M and followed up with Kevin Zahri next project which was JKS under the Head Of AllStar TL Kevin Andrew (Jom Kurus Sabah) as the Team Leader of Sandakan. Under JK1M season 4, there were 23 participants and meanwhile JKS there were 14 participants who took part in the journey of getting fit and healthier.
Shah:
My background is in the field of education ( I studied in Egypt ) . I used to be obese – I weighed 130kg at my heaviest. After I reduced to 65kg, I knew that I have to help others who have the same weight problem like me. So, I started to take a certificate to be a trainer.
I am a senior team leader in the Jom Kurus family, I’ve been in charge of 4 seasons of Jom Kurus 1 Malaysia by Kevin Zahri and 1 session of Jom Mantap. My 1st and 2nd season was held in Bandar Melaka, the rest in Seremban. 60 participants registered in every season with me except for season 4, which was 80 participants. And of course, I have co-trainers who help me to ensure everything goes well and smoothly.
Who are the participants? Any age limit?
Haniff:
They come from different backgrounds, mostly are working adults. We have Teachers, Dentists, Bankers, Engineers etc. and they range from 13-57 years old.
Desmond:
Basically, the most dominant participants are females and minority would be male. There is no age limit as this program is targeting those who want to lose weight and learn more about living a healthier lifestyle. So far in JK1M and JKS, approximate age ranges from 20 to 45 years old.
Shah:
They come from all types of backgrounds i.e. government servants, professionals, private sectors, teachers, housewives etc. They range from 19-55 years old, 80% are women while 15% are men. Another 5% are husband and wife who both participated.
What kind of support/training does Kevin Zahri provide to team leaders?
Haniff:
There is no specific training provided. But we do have a briefing session between Team Leader and Kevin Zahri before a program starts to ensure it runs well. As team leaders, we always discuss, share, and help each other make the program run smoothly.
Desmond:
Kevin Zahri does a splendid job in providing and sharing his knowledge and training with us the team leaders. He provides access to his eBooks and Videos to comprehend the needs in this field and it is very beneficial for us to spread it to the participants or even for our own reading pleasure. Besides that, he has created a group chat for all the Team Leaders to share each other experiences’ in this industry.
Shah:
Kevin Zahri gives the opportunity to the trainer to help Malaysians take care of their health and to lose weight in a safe and effective manner. He uses his website to introduce and share the skills of trainers in Malaysia as a Team Leader. He also helps in managing participants before the start of Jom Kurus program in their respective areas.
How do you stay motivated?
Haniff:
I always write down my goal, whether it’s to train for an upcoming race or to increase my fitness level. When I have a clear goal in my head, it really helps me keep focused. As a trainer, when I see a client make a small positive change that makes a big change in their lives, it really motivates me to continue to help people in this way. I love helping people and that is what motivates me. “My business helps others to live their most fit lives”.
Desmond:
I would be lying if there were no ups and downs during the program. There are moments where you have to contemplate with each of the participants’ need and their medical background issues. Staying motivated is a MUST if you really want to be in this field and your PASSION must be PURE and SINCERE in helping them through the journey of JK1M. There are few factors that drive my motivation in JK1M. First, the PARTICIPANTS themselves. When they sign up for this program, it shows that they want CHANGE in their life and wanting to know the appropriate and healthy way in losing weight. Second, the PARTICIPANTS’ MOTIVATION itself. As a coach, when your participants give their very best in the journey, intrinsically, you yourself as the coach will be ignited too and wanting to do more for them.
Shah:
I wish to help fellow Malaysians who have weight problems. I always remind myself to share everything I know as a trainer. I always participate in workshops and courses in FITM to keep myself updated with new information in fitness. And I also take the opportunity to meet the FITM educators and get valuable experiences from them. I have a good relationship with all trainers in Malaysia to improve and add some good values in our career.
What are the challenges ?
Haniff:
To handle a big group like JK1M is really challenging because everyone has different personalities and different styles of learning. So I have to adapt my communication and teaching technique accordingly. Some of them have various health issues like joint problem, asthma, high blood pressure, morbid obesity etc. So I need to pay extra attention to them, regress and progress when needed.
Desmond:
Phew! From trainer’s perspectives, I would classify challenges from different angles:
First, the participant’s background. Second, time. Third, venue.
As a trainer, first thing that I would really put my concern most would be the participant’s background. As I strongly believe, SAFETY of the participants is my top priority. I would not implement plyometric movement on the hard ground as this will worsen my participants condition even though plyometric movement has the advantages of adding more calories burn. Still, creativity beats everything. Plyometric movement could be done with them with aqua workout. Adding propulsion in water based workout has the advantage for my over-weight participants and protecting them from a high impact movement and besides that, my participants really enjoyed it very much (and the instructor suffered the most as he wasn’t conducting it in the water!). I always have alternatives for my participants to make them move and regression for some of the workouts. Not meaning to be soft with them, but in the journey of getting fit and healthy, as a trained trainer, I must informed them the pros and cons of certain movements and what it does to them, especially the ankle, knee, and their back. Different participants will have different kind of medical issues. So far, I have few participants who’ve had c-sections, asthmatic, back problem (prolapsed/herniated disc), high/low blood pressure, hypertension, and knee and ankle problems. Therefore, when it comes to program design, these factors would be my main priority and through Par-Q and verbal-sharing, it helps me to know them and to select proper movements for my participants to enjoy their workout.
Time would be the second. Selecting the correct time for the formal meeting to be held is another problem as all of my participants come from different walks of life. Sometimes, when I wanted to conduct extra activity (out of the formal meeting), some could not make it as it does not align with their working time. At this moment, the formal meeting would be every Sunday where everyone can meet up except if they are outstation, or attending courses which could not be avoided.
Third would be, the venue for training. As a trainer, I really have to be creative in selecting places for the training. I want my participants to feel different kinds of environment in training. Not much of choices could be done in Sandakan but again, it reflects on the creativity side in making good use of the place for training.
Shah:
The biggest challenge is not the exercise session itself but to ensure the participants’ consistency and their efforts to achieve their target. Designing our training is sometimes tiring as we have to make sure all trainees get a quality workout, and at the same time prevent them from injuries.
Do you think having a Personal Trainer Certification provides you an added advantage of becoming a team leader?
Haniff:
To be a Team Leader first you must have passion and willingness to help people change their lifestyle. But when it comes to exercise, being a trainer is not about giving someone a killer workout and celebrate if someone vomits from an intense workout (!!! ) So here’s where the learning comes in – you learn how to regress and progress safely. To show proper exercise form and know the muscle being targeted. Going through the certification also helps me identify if participants exhibit poor posture and movement compensation. So with corrective exercise they will improve functionality and be able to perform activity of daily living (ADL) more easily.
Desmond:
Absolutely! In ACE, I learned a lot about anatomy and human movement (which is ESSENTIAL for trainers to understand the limitations and problems faced by the participants and it is an added bonus as you could explain why they feel discomfort, why they couldn’t squat properly, etc.), nutrition, progression and regression of movements, safety, and training for special population. As the Team Leader, I have to be considerate to my participants. Not all movements suit everyone and in ACE, it helps me to comprehend and cater to their needs by providing safe movements. I would strongly suggest to take up ACE as this is an advantage for all the trainers to gain an insight of how this industry has evolved over time. ACE has a strong network team where they will provide updated information in this industry and it is recognized internationally.
I am honoured to be part of Kevin Zahri’s team in helping those who want to be helped. Through his projects, JK1M, JKS, and future projects, it has (and will) taught me a lot in understand how others care for and appreciate their health. The passion that they have in their journey really fires me up to help them with my best. Thanks Kevin Zahri and FITM for this adventure and exciting experiences in helping our nation to be fit and healthy!
Shah:
Absolutely yes. Certification gives me an advantage as a team leader. I am fully certified in exercise and nutrition, safety and how to handle my participants. You can’t simply claim that you are a qualified trainer if you don’t have a certificate.
The most important thing is, I will always give my very best to them, and always strive to improve myself. Experience and willingness to learn is also the best certification.
All the best to all JK1M participants! We believe you are in good hands with Shah, Desmond and Haniff 🙂
Being a trainer is not about giving someone a killer workout and celebrate if someone vomits from an intense workout!! Be different be an ACE Pro!!
– Haniff Gadaffi, Team Leader JK1M
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