Choosing between Personal Trainers can be somewhat confusing. Unfortunately, more and more individuals are claiming to be personal trainers with very little in the way of qualifications and experience.  A good Personal Trainer needs to have both.

 

Knowledge

I would say the main qualification to have is a degree in the field of exercise and fitness.  For example, Physical Activity Health and Exercise Science, or Sport and Exercise Science etc. A degree shows great commitment to an area, as courses often last 3-4 yrs or more. This gives lots of time to properly research experiments, challenge concepts and observe participants exercising in a controlled environment. 

This is in contrast to most Personal Training courses, which can take as little as 8-12 weeks! How anyone can learn such a vast amount of information about the human body and to have studied papers and analysed why they were good or bad experiments is beyond me.

A Personal Trainer should also be first aid qualified, and they must also have public liability and public indemnity insurance.

A useful website is the National Register of Personal Trainers (NRPT, at http://www.nrpt.co.uk/index.htm) – where you can find a trainer near you.

The Personal Trainer or weight loss trainer should make an initial assessment and monitor the progress of the client. Make sure you understand how the sessions are going to run, if there are theory sessions, and there is an agreement about absence and lateness, for example if the time is owed etc.

Experience

 

On top of this, the Personal Trainer needs to be friendly, approachable, yet assertive and honest enough to get a client to do what he thinks is appropriate in the best interests of the client. He or she needs to be able to communicate well, explaining why the client is doing what they are doing.

If the client feels as if they cannot ask a question because they do not understand why they are doing what they are doing – the Personal Trainer is probably not compatible with the client.

One Personal Trainer may get on well with one individual but may conflict with another – it can be as simple as a clash of personalities. Conversely, the client may prefer someone who is strict on their form and really pushes them to the maximum.  A good Personal Trainer will be able to pick up on the personality of the client and react in such a way that benefits you – the client.

Testimonials Does the trainer have past clients who have lost weight? Improved their strength? Are these clients achieving what you want to achieve?  For example, somone wanting weight loss would probably be better seeing a trainer who has achieved weight loss in their clients – than say, a trainer who he known for being able to help people’s shoulders, backs and knees etc.

Is it good or bad value for money? How will you feel when you get to that goal of a stone lighter?  Can you put a price on that feeling? To get a better picture of what is good value, you should ideally have a consultation with 2-3 Trainers (if you can) as most will give a consultation for free. 

 

Do you get on with the trainer and do they make you feel at ease? A clash of strong personalities can affect the relationship between a trainer and their client – sometimes affecting results. This is unwanted but sometimes unavoidable. Check at least 2 trainers to compare your first experiences.

 

Do they listen to you? Nobody wants their feelings to go unheard – does the trainer listen to your goals and problems and try to come up with a solution? Does the trainer avoid the question? If the trainer is skirting around the question, then alarm bells should be ringing.

If you have a limited budget – How does the trainer address this? Do they take into account your financial situation too? A good trainer should be able to help – whatever your restrictions.

 

What is their philosophy, and does it makes sense to you? Never be afraid to ask ‘why.’  The trainer should be able to explain why you are doing an exercise or eating a particular food etc. – Do not feel like you’re doing something ‘just because someone told you to.’

After meeting a few Personal Trainers you will get a clearer picture of what is for you and your future.