Training plan or online coaching: what you really need

What is the difference between a plan and coaching?

A plan is built for you once, and putting it into practice is up to you. In coaching I stay involved: I look at your numbers every week, give you feedback and adjust your training and nutrition when something changes. Both come from the same system. The difference is the support that follows.

This is how a plan works: after you buy it, you fill in a questionnaire about your goal, your daily life, your training level and the equipment you have. The plan is ready within five working days. A Training Plan sets out exercises, sets, reps, intensity and progression for 8 to 12 weeks. A Nutrition Plan gives you calories, macros, sample days and a meal structure. If something does not fit, I adjust it once for free within 30 days.

In Online Coaching you also get an individual training plan and a nutrition strategy. On top of that comes the weekly check-in in the Everfit coaching app, which also holds your plan and videos showing how to perform the exercises. Questions in between you send me on WhatsApp. They come straight to me, there is no team in between.

Plan, workbook and coaching compared

The four options differ mainly in how much support comes with them. In terms of content, they all build on the same foundations.

When is a plan or a workbook enough?

A plan is enough if what you mainly lack is structure and you can carry the rest yourself. That applies to more people than you might think. A plan is a good fit if

• you have been training regularly for a while and know what a hard set feels like (more on that in the article on RIR in strength training),
• you write down weights and reps and can tell for yourself when you can increase the load,
• your week is reasonably predictable and your training does not fall apart every time something gets in the way,
• you have one clear goal, either muscle growth or fat loss, not both at once.

A workbook is the right route if you want to understand why something works and would rather build your plan yourself. To get started, the fill-in training plan template is free, and the calorie calculator works out your calories and shows every step of the calculation. A workbook gives you the knowledge, but nobody checks your progress each week.

When is coaching worth it?

Coaching is worth it when you know what to do but find it hard to keep going for months. Most people drop off in a week that goes differently than planned, because nobody is watching at that point. Typical signs:

• Your progress comes in bursts and then stalls again.
• Your nutrition works for a few weeks and then falls apart in everyday life.
• Every few months you start again from scratch.
• Training and nutrition need to be steered together, for example if you want to build muscle and lose fat at the same time. Six months suits that better than three.

There is also something a plan cannot do: make the right adjustment at the right time. A plan is based on your starting point. If after six weeks the scale stops moving, your strength drops or your job takes away two training days, you decide alone whether to change anything and what. In coaching we see it in the weekly check-in and react before things fall apart. Whether something is really changing is not shown by the scale alone, but also by measurements, photos and strength numbers (more on that in Measuring progress without a scale: waist, photos, strength).

What do studies say about supervised training?

Support can make a measurable difference, but there is less research on it than you might expect. In one study, men with training experience followed the same programme for twelve weeks, one group under direct supervision, the other on their own. The supervised group increased their weights faster and were stronger in the squat and bench press at the end (Mazzetti et al., 2000). Among 46 trained women, those who trained with a personal trainer chose on average around 51% of their maximum weight for ten reps, the others around 42% (Ratamess et al., 2008).

Both studies look at supervision during the training session itself. Online Coaching is something different: I am not standing next to you for every set, but looking at your numbers every week. This fits a review in which regularly recording food, activity or weight was consistently linked to more weight loss, even though the quality of the individual studies was limited (Burke et al., 2011). Habits also take time. In one study, it took between 18 and 254 days for a new behaviour to become largely automatic, and missing a single day made little difference (Lally et al., 2010). That is why it pays to stay for several months: structure only shows over time. You can still start monthly, with no minimum term.

What does each option cost?

A workbook costs €19.90, an individual plan a one-off €79 to €149. Online Coaching costs from €300 a month, Premium Coaching from €850 a month. These monthly prices apply to a six-month term; cancellable monthly, they are somewhat higher. All prices are listed on the Models & prices page.

The gap is large, so be clear about what you are paying for. In coaching you pay for my time: every week I look at your numbers, answer your questions and make adjustments. If you do not need that support, the plan is the more sensible choice.

Five questions to help you decide

Answer these five questions honestly. If two or more apply, there is a lot to be said for coaching. With none or one, a plan or workbook will serve you well.

• Have you started and then dropped a plan more than once in the last two years?
• Does your nutrition regularly fall apart after a few good weeks?
• When you hit a plateau, are you unsure whether to adjust training, calories or sleep?
• Do you want to change your training and nutrition at the same time, or combine muscle growth and fat loss?
• Does it help you when someone asks every week how it went?

This is a rule of thumb, not a test. The decision is not final either: if you start with a plan, you can switch to coaching later. The plan is the first step in the same system.

Online or Premium: when do you need personal sessions?

Premium is worth it if you want to work on your technique or would like someone standing next to you. It includes everything in Online Coaching, plus four fixed 1:1 sessions a month and all e-books for free. If you live in Vorarlberg or the neighbouring Rhine Valley, the sessions take place in person, otherwise live by video. The content is the same: technique, training, progression and whatever you want to change right now. If your exercise technique is solid and you are mainly looking for structure and feedback, Online Coaching is enough.

If you are not sure which model fits, you can book a free 15 to 20 minute introductory call on the Models & prices page. There is no commitment, and in the call we work out whether coaching suits you and which model.