This is an interesting question to say the least. In fact, I received a tremendous amount of feedback about a published article of mine from just a couple of weeks ago on this very topic. In my piece for IronMag, I touched upon the recent news of Mr. Olympia Hadi Choopan working with Milos Sarcev. And many of the people who wrote me thought Hadi working with anyone but Hany Ramrod was wrong for doing so. They kept writing about loyalty. This is a concept I’m quite familiar with in physique-based sports, but it’s not what you think..

So many competitors find a coach and then swear by them. Sometime competitors don’t take their preps seriously. Believe me, I’ve been a writer for nearly twenty years. Some people need their hand held; others, might just like cheating. On the flipside, sometimes the competitor does everything right, but the coach lacks the knowledge. And then there’s times where both sides are firing on all cylinders, but it just doesn’t work out – shit happens. Not all pairings must be successful. And other times, competitors just want a change. I’ve seen competitors make the break while doing very well on stage. Most times, however, a competitor would drop a coach if placings didn’t improve.

As you can see from the previous paragraph, there can be any number of ways to begin and end a client-coach relationship. I mean I could literally give you another dozen scenarios. What’s important to understand is to keep things simple. I would advocate putting emotion aside. Emotion is what clouds everyone’s judgment. Even if the pairing isn’t working, loyalty is that poison that can keep everyone in denial for the indefinite future. In other situations, a competitor may not just be loyal to the coach, but also to the team. Leaving a coach and a team behind can be too bold move for some. But you have to do right by you. It’s you – and then – everyone else.

Keep things simple. If you’re a competitor do what works – get rid of everything else. End of story.