How to Choose a Trainer

This is a challenging task for people who are looking to get the best results from their health and fitness investments. Unfortunately the industry has created a situation where trainers are underpaid and thus under qualified and lacking experience, especially in gyms. When you consider that these are the people into whose hands you are placing your fitness and your body, you should expect that they have a high level of competency!

The truth of the matter is that most trainers working in gyms do not even have a minimum of a one-year full time qualification. Some trainers on the other hand are exceptionally skilled and qualified, but these people are more likely found working in higher-end facilities or working for themselves in studios and boutique gyms. This is because the gym industry in particular does not value well-trained, highly experienced staff because they cost too much to employ!

A good start is to ONLY use a trainer who is registered with REPs (Register of Exercise Professionals). If you are looking for a personal trainer, then they should be registered at a personal training level. By being registered, your trainer has to meet minimum standards and undertake ongoing education. While this can give you some peace-of-mind, the minimum standards are just that – VERY MINIMAL!

Ask your trainer what qualifications they have, and what experience they have. Qualifications are no substitute for experience. On the other hand often experience is no substitute for qualifications, but trainers without any formal qualifications but who have lots of experience can be very good and knowledgeable.I would suggest that you find someone who has both a good qualification and a good level of experience - at least two years of training people for general weight-loss and fitness.

Once you have established that your trainer knows what they are doing, you need to make sure of the following:

Ask your trainer to explain their major training philosophies and why they train that way. If you don’t understand it, and they can’t explain it to you so you can, don’t train with them. Having a personal trainer should be much more than just writing you a ‘train by numbers’ programme and making you do it. You should understand your training and how it is going to help you to reach your goals.

If you don’t ‘click’ with your trainer or they make you feel unsafe, unsure or uncomfortable – find a new trainer! It is better for both you and the trainer that you are happy with each other.

The sort of training they do is the sort of training you WANT to do.

Don’t go see a weight-training specialist if you want to learn how to run marathons! Be clear about your fitness goals so your trainer can refer you to someone more suited if they don’t feel they can train you for what you want to do.

This ties in with what has been said above, your trainer should inspire you to reach your goals without making you feel in anyway unsafe. You should always feel like you can trust your trainer to give you honest feedback and advice.

It is important that your sessions and your training plan is all about you – you’re paying for it!

• ·         Qualified
• ·         Experienced (in what YOU want to train for)
• ·         REPs Registered
• ·         Training makes sense
• ·         Training is what you want to do
• ·         You like them
• ·         You trust them