Site Search

"How To Choose A Personal Trainer"

By Timothy Kret

Everyone at Bodylines Fitness thought this would be a great idea to offer a report for those interested in working with a fitness trainer. Like all other services, you have you’re good trainers and bad ones. How do YOU know the difference?

Here is a list of examples and ideas of what to look for.

1) You want to work with a trainer that is a professional in the fitness field. The first step is to determine what a professional trainer is. For the sake of simplicity we define it as someone who is dedicated to providing leadership, honesty, ethics, and continuous service to both their clients and the industry.

We all want to trust the people we believe can help us right? I mean you trust the surgeon knows what he is doing before he makes an incision. They should be honest about the knowledge they have when seeking their expertise. These words alone will exclude anyone that tells you they have “magic pills” or an easy fix to your fitness questions.

That is because when it comes to exercise there is no easy way out. You do not have to kill yourself in the gym, but you need to be willing to accept some discomfort. Unfortunately, ethics is not something synonymous with the fitness industry, and the way it looks it never will be. Large multinational corporations have too much interest in making money from the “6 weeks to a new you” craze to offer anything in you the consumer’s best interest.

But the good news is a trainer that is professional will become a leader by providing the community with an honest, reputable service that is recognized by receiving referral’s from both past and present clients. In the training industry results and testimonials is the benchmarks for quality. This is how we have “happy” customers. Find a trainer that gets the result you want and can afford. Here is an example.

Let’s say I am an Avid golfer, and a 10 handicap. My game is “pretty good” but defiantly could be better. So I decide that my first step is to increase my overall flexibility and then focus on my core abdominal region and trunk rotation to improve my swing. I then would seek a Golf Pro/Trainer that I could work with to begin implementing my plan for improvement. The Trainer I pick will provide proof they can accomplish the goal I seek by referrals, testimonials, pictures, education, and even direct contact with previous clients. This is how I can determine if they can help me meet my goal, and believe they are honest, ethical, and show professionalism.

2) Another very important component of finding a trainer and service you are looking for is to see if they offer a guarantee. This is something that is becoming new to the service industry and specifically the Fitness business. It’s new because it’s bold, and you have to be 100% committed to providing exactly what the customer wants.

When you go out to a restaurant and the waitress serves you a four course meal with your whole family, it’s not like you can receive a refund because you did not like her service. Not unless you make a big scene or do something drastic. Especially if the food was good!

But when it comes to fitness and specifically working with a trainer 100% guarantees are a big deal. If you do not meet your goal (within reason) then you can ask for a refund. Trainers that offer a guarantee have the confidence and knowledge that each session you receive will be top rate and they are ready to prove that to you each and every time you come in to work with them.

In fairness to trainers in the industry one clarification must be made. When progress goals are being set, the instructions in order to reach those goals MUST be adhered to. If a person’s goal is to lose 25 lbs in 3 month’s by working with a trainer 3X weekly for an hour. Yet they decide to drink 1 bottle of wine 4 nights a week, and not follow a diet plan is asking too much. The trainer had recommended cutting down to 1 bottle per week and had a meal plan 6 nights a week, but the client did not modify his behavior. This is not the fault of the trainer, and it’s a very important distinction to make.

3) If it’s weight loss you want, its weight loss you will get. How do we know this? We have a proven system that works!! That’s how. Here at Bodylines Fitness we do have a proven system that works like a charm, and competent trainer’s to guide your success.. This follows along the same line of thought that having testimonials would provide, and that’s proof. Again it is very important that in order to establish credibility with a client the trainer should have a proven system that works.

More importantly they have a system that will meet the goal you have. The training industry is finally becoming standardized and trainers are now becoming more specialized in different population segments. Some specialize in senior care, or athlete specific, and ones like us that are rapid (BUT realistic!) long term weight loss specialists.

4) I mention this part last because it is important and should be mentioned. We feel that part of being a professional trainer has some characteristics that not many people seem to value anymore. Qualities like punctuality, good character, and the ability to communicate and work with a wide variety of individuals. They should have an even temperament and not become easily frustrated or irritable.

A great Trainer should always great you at the door excited to see you and help make your day even better. These personality characteristics go beyond certifications and four year degrees. Although those things are nice, the truth is they do not mean the person really knows what they are doing. Great trainers offer a guarantee of their service, they have clients that will jump at the chance to speak highly of them. And they have years upon years of experience working with people just like you.

In our opinion a good starting point to finding a trainer, is to look for ones that are Full Time. I know this will upset about 80% of the personal Trainers working, but that’s how many are part time, and some of them can be good. But the difference is that a full time trainer relies solely upon providing outstanding results and service so that they can stay in business. Making a career out of personal training is not an easy task. You have to be very good just to make it full time, let alone become exceptional so that one can provide for a family.

This type of trainer is the cream of the crop. The one that has the reputation for producing results, they receive many referrals for new business, and they are a community leader. They will be honest with what they know and can share with you.

And most importantly, like us at Bodylines Fitness they should give you realistic and fair expectations/goal setting. This should set the stage for you to succeed, not fail, and it’s a very important step. A good gage would be to find someone that knows realistic weight loss and bodyfat reduction will fall between 2-3 lbs weight loss per week. And 3-4% bodyfat per month.

What you can do to receive the best service and “get” the most for your money.

Putting all of this together the first step is now covered. You have found a professional, courteous trainer that is a community leader with testimonials that are proof of their good work. What we recommend you do from here is first create a budget of what you can spend per week for 1 on 1 training for the next 6 month’s You can make dramatic changes in less time, but realistically this is a good time frame. Create your budget, and figure out with the trainer you are contacting how a schedule of session and timeframe can be created. Are you going to work solely with one trainer? How many times per week? Once, two times, important to figure these things out with the trainer and WITHIN your budget. At Bodylines we preach consistency is the number one key to success. It really is.

The second part of this equation which is equally important is discipline. Once you have found a competent trainer it is imperative you adhere to the guidelines that are designed for YOUR goals. This is the number one reason why clients fail to reach their goals. They do not adhere to the guidelines (always dietary) that are planned out and become frustrated by the lack of progress. We cannot stress this enough. If you want to meet your goals then you MUST be willing to sacrifice and use self discipline to give yourself a greater chance to succeed.

This covers the most important aspects of finding and being successful when working with a personal fitness trainer. The last few items necessary to cover are the usual aspects of keeping appointments. Really make a SINCERE effort to show up 5 minutes before a session and adequately change and warm-up. After all you are paying for the time and it is you that should be ready to go. Ask your trainer what they prefer that you do for stretching and warm-up before the session begins. And finally, when changing or canceling appointments please be considerate of their time and provide adequate notice. This lets the trainer know you respect their time and effort and they are likely to be that much more accommodating and hard working for your schedule changes.

We wish you the best of luck. Working with a great trainer really can be a life changing event. Utilize their time and resources to impact your life in a really positive way. If you have any questions, or would like to know more about us visit bodylinesfitness.com . To YOUR health!!

Bodylines Fitness
3725 Talbot Ave #C
San Diego, CA
92106

About the Author:

Timothy Kret is the owner of Bodylines Fitness in San Diego, CA. He works with clients that want no gimmicks, games, or hassels, only answers and results. Find out why at www.bodylinesfitness.com