What are clients really looking for?

As fitness professionals, we’re increasingly working with a different kind of client. As well as individuals focused on performance, physique or measurable outputs, people now often arrive needing to work on something less visible – chronic stress, anxiety, low mood or burnout. In many cases, these are the primary reason the client is there. They may not always articulate it in those terms, but it shows up in how they move, how they breathe, how they engage and how consistently they’re able to train.

The challenge is that much of the fitness industry is still structured around a model that prioritises output. We focus on intensity, volume, progression and adaptation. These are valuable tools, and in the right context they are highly effective. They are, however, built on an assumption that the client’s system is ready to receive and respond to stress. Increasingly, that assumption doesn’t hold.

What I’ve come to recognise is that rather than being undertrained, many clients are under-recovered and dysregulated.

When you begin to look through that lens, things start to make more sense. The client who struggles to stay consistent isn’t necessarily lacking discipline – they may be overwhelmed. The client who struggles with high-intensity work might already be operating in a heightened state of stress rather than being unmotivated. Equally, the client who appears flat, disengaged or fatigued may a way to reconnect with their own system instead of more stimulation.

This is where the conversation needs to shift from simply applying stress to developing the ability to regulate it.

At its core, all training is a form of stress. We apply load, the body adapts, and capacity increases. That model works well, but only when recovery capacity is sufficient. When it isn’t, the same stimulus can lead to stagnation, frustration or even regression.

For many clients dealing with anxiety or depression, the issue is that their baseline state is already compromised. In anxiety, the nervous system is often in a prolonged state of sympathetic activation. Breathing becomes shallow, muscles remain tense and the system struggles to downshift. In depression or burnout, the opposite can be true – the system feels depleted, energy is low and engagement becomes difficult.

If we approach both of these states with the same prescription – more effort, more intensity, more push – we risk reinforcing the problem rather than resolving it.

Using tai chi and qigong techniques

These forms of physical activity are often misunderstood, particularly within performance-focused environments. Because they are slow, controlled, and low-impact, tai chi and qigong can be dismissed by fitness professionals as being too gentle to be effective. But that interpretation misses their purpose entirely.

What these practices offer is techniques for regulation that can be applied in teaching all kinds of sport and physical activity, from football to gym training.

When a client moves slowly, with deliberate control, coordinating breath with movement, something important begins to happen. The nervous system shifts. The body is given permission to come out of urgency. Breathing deepens naturally, muscular tension reduces and awareness begins to return to the body.

What’s important here is that this is an active process of recalibration.

For clients who spend most of their time either overstimulated or disconnected, slowing down and focusing can be a completely new experience. Many people have lost the ability to sense what’s happening internally in a useful way. They are either hyper-aware in a way that fuels anxiety or disconnected in a way that contributes to low mood and disengagement.

Rebuilding connection

Through slow, intentional movement, clients begin to notice weight shifting through the feet, alignment through the body and the rhythm of their own breathing. Attention is no longer scattered or externally driven – it becomes anchored.

This has a direct impact on the mind.

One of the most common challenges that clients report is that they ‘can’t switch off’. Their thoughts are constant, often repetitive and difficult to control. Trying to suppress those thoughts rarely works. In fact, it often increases their intensity.

What tai chi and qigong-based practices offer instead is a change in where attention is placed.

Rather than fighting the mind, we give it something else to engage with. Movement becomes the focus. Breath becomes the guide. The result is not the absence of thought, but a reduction in its dominance.

Over time, this develops a different relationship with internal experience. Clients are no longer pulled as strongly by every thought or sensation. There is more space, more stability and more control.

From a coaching perspective, this has clear benefits. A client who can regulate their attention and internal state will train more effectively, recover more efficiently and engage more consistently.

But internal regulation is only part of the picture.

The environment we train in also plays a significant role, and this is where the concept of biophilia becomes highly relevant.

Biophilia

The term biophilia, popularised by Edward O. Wilson in the 1980s, describes the innate human tendency to seek connection with nature and other living systems. It reflects the idea that our physiology and psychology are shaped by the environments we evolved in and that those environments continue to influence how we feel and function.

In practical terms, this means that natural settings are more than just a nice view and actively support regulation.

When clients are exposed to green space, natural light, fresh air and open environments, measurable changes occur. Stress markers reduce, mood improves and attention becomes less strained. There is a sense of ease that doesn’t require effort to maintain.

From a fitness perspective, this is often overlooked. We carefully consider programming variables such as load, volume and intensity, but rarely treat the environment itself as a variable.

Yet it clearly is.

The same session delivered in a confined, artificial space can feel very different from one delivered outdoors. Perceived exertion changes. Engagement changes. Emotional response changes.

When you combine this with mindful practice, the effect becomes even more pronounced.

The internal regulation created by movement and breath is reinforced by the external environment. The client is not working against their surroundings and is instead supported by them.

This creates a powerful feedback loop. The body begins to calm, the environment sustains that calm, and the mind follows.

For clients who feel overwhelmed, this can be transformative. It reduces the reliance on willpower and replaces it with a sense of support. By creating the conditions for a better mental state, any sense of force or pressure is removed.

Practical applications and lasting results

In practical terms, integrating this approach doesn’t require a complete redesign of your current offering. It’s about layering in elements that enhance what you already do.

A session might begin with a few minutes of slow, controlled movement to settle the system before introducing more demanding work. It might end with breath-led movement to support recovery. Where possible, sessions might be taken outdoors, even occasionally, to leverage the benefits of a natural environment.

More importantly, it involves a shift in how we assess and respond to the client in front of us.

In evolving away from a fixed model, we can begin to match the method to the state of the individual. A highly anxious client may need grounding before challenge. A fatigued client may need restoration before progression. A disengaged client may need gentle reintroduction to movement before intensity becomes appropriate.

This is about increasing the precision of how we deliver.

There may be some resistance to this approach within the industry, particularly where intensity is seen as the primary marker of effectiveness. But the reality is that clients who feel better are more likely to stay, more likely to engage and more likely to progress over time.

Perhaps more importantly, it expands our definition of what fitness actually means. A truly fit individual is adaptable as well as strong or conditioned. They can handle stress, but they can also recover from it. They can focus when needed but also switch off when appropriate. They are connected to their body, aware of their state and capable of adjusting accordingly.

Tai chi, qigong and an understanding of biophilia all contribute to these qualities.

Incorporating these techniques enhances traditional training, filling in gaps that are often left unaddressed.

As fitness professionals, we are in a unique position. We see clients regularly. We influence habits, behaviours and perceptions. We often become a consistent point of support in their lives.

In a time where anxiety and depression are increasingly common, that role becomes even more significant.

Expanding our approach to include how we regulate and where we train allows us to support clients more effectively.

It moves us beyond a narrow focus on output and towards a more complete model of human performance – one that includes resilience, recovery and wellbeing.

And ultimately, that’s what many of our clients are really looking for.

About the author

Mark Peters is the lead trainer for Midlands Tai Chi Rehab, a CIMSPA Training Provider Partner specialising in tai chi and qigong for rehabilitation and wellbeing. With over 30 years of experience in teaching tai chi, qigong and movement therapy, Mark’s approach blends traditional tai chi principles with modern rehabilitation science. He is passionate about integrating mind–body awareness into recovery, helping clients reconnect with their bodies, regulate stress and restore confidence in movement.