What Makes A Good Personal Trainer

A Checklist To Ensure You Get Trained Right!

Have you already begun your fitness journey and are now considering taking the next step to take your fitness training up a notch? Well, then getting yourself a good personal trainer is undoubtedly the way to go. Now note that I didn’t just say get any personal trainer because they’re probably a dime a dozen. I said get a ‘good’ one. And what makes a good personal trainer? Continue reading, and this article will tell you just that!

But first, do you understand why you even need a good personal trainer? Since it’s an additional cost, perhaps you’re even wondering, Is a personal trainer worth it? Well, it certainly is. I’m not just saying that because of my experience as a fully qualified personal trainer for over a decade. A gym can be an intimidating place, especially for a newbie. Having someone who understands your fitness requirements to guide you through the various workout routines can help you achieve your fitness goals.

A good fitness trainer motivates you, guides you, helps you reach your goals faster, and gets the most out of your time spent at the gym. But that is not all. A good trainer also ensures you perform the workouts correctly and avoid making these common fitness mistakes to prevent injuries.

Getting a personal trainer can also be a matter of convenience, along with advancing your fitness routine. You can easily hire a personal trainer at the gym where you train. Even if you workout at home, you can get one to come home and train you. Or if you’re a bit more adventurous, then you can also join an outdoor fitness Bootcamp to help you train in an intense fitness routine. 

Neither the location nor the type of fitness routine you do should be an issue. With a little bit of work, you can always find a good personal trainer that fits your needs. But that is where the fine line is. By not doing that little homework, you risk ending up with a trainer who charges you a lot but takes you nowhere. But don’t worry, this article will help you avoid such mistakes and tell precisely what you need to look out for in a personal trainer.

So if you’re wondering What Makes A Good Personal Trainer, then here are 10 points to look out for…

A Good Personal Trainer Comes Armed With Solid Credentials & Certifications

One of the first things you should check out is the credentials and certificates of a potential personal trainer. Sure, experience plays an important role too. But no good personal trainer worth his salt would ever skip out on getting at least some basic education, training, and certificates. 

Most reputed fitness trainers’ certifications cover all the basics of physiology, exercise and training routines, nutrition, etc. Some certifications focus on specialized training programs. These certificates can give you an idea of the kind of training your trainer is well versed in. This can help you decide on the trainer that best fits your needs.

But then again, as we said before, certifications are important, but they’re not enough. The fitness world is continually developing as we learn new things about our body and the effects of various training routines and diets. So make sure you do a bit of research yourself before meeting up with a potential personal trainer. A quick conversation should reveal how up-to-date the goth fitness trainer is with the latest research in the field.

A Good Trainer Has Not Just Studied Fitness Training But Practiced It Too

Learning theory is good, but nothing beats actual groundwork. Applying what you learned on actual clients gives you the opportunity to learn about the various possibilities and outcomes that the various training routines have on different types of people—many of which you don’t find mentioned in any of the theories. So unless you don’t mind being experimented upon by a newbie, it would be wise to go for an experienced personal trainer.

A Good Personal Trainer Will First Asses You Before Starting Anything

Before they get started with you, any good personal trainer will first want to know where you stand. It’s a simple but thorough process that gives the trainer valuable information regarding your fitness, such as your BMI. This data helps provide the trainer with an idea of what you lack, which areas need to improve etc. It sort of lays out the road map. So if the assessment revealed you could lose some fat, then the trainer will set some Smart goals for weight loss. Do you know what’s not smart? Not assessing before starting the training! Avoid such personal trainers.

A Good Personal Trainer Will Have A Gameplan Ready

After a trainer has performed the initial assessment as mentioned above, which includes discussing your fitness goals, diet, lifestyle habits, he or she will do some homework before you return. Having studied the data so far available, a good personal trainer will be ready with a solid gameplan to get you going on your fitness journey. If you’re new to this, then the trainer will generally make a 3-month plan with checkpoints in between to assess your progress. This gameplan also includes rest days. 

In this way, you know the direction you are moving in and also continuously monitor your progress. The instructor who has such a gameplan ready for you right at the start, now that is a good personal trainer. The guy who makes up a training routine as and when you show up, avoid such personal trainers.

A Good Personal Trainer Gives Adequate Importance To Diet

You can sweat it out like crazy at the job and do the most challenging workouts. But without a proper diet in place, you will merely end up doing more harm than good. You won’t even be able to pull off tough workouts for long before getting exhausted. That is because a good diet provides both the fuel needed to work those muscles, as well as repair and build the torn muscles. 

A good personal trainer understands the need for the right nutrition when working on your body. Maybe you need to cut down on carbs or load up on proteins. Depending on your initial assessment and fitness goals, such personal trainers will have a good and realistic diet plan for you to follow. If you have any special requirements, such as athletes or professional fighters, they might even refer you to a sports nutritionist. The point is, a good personal trainer ensures you have and follow a diet plan suitable for you. If they don’t, you better look for another trainer.

Good Personal Trainers Practice What They Preach!

Some of the workouts can be tough, especially if you’re relatively new to the gym. But what if even your trainer is struggling to do them as he or she tries to demonstrate? Or perhaps you know them from outside the gym and have often seen them munching on chips, fries, and other junk food? Maybe they also regularly indulge in drinking and smoking. Now, how the hell do you expect such a fitness trainer to motivate you into doing those tough workouts or sticking to that strict diet plan? Well, the simple and only answer is such a personal trainer cannot motivate you, are a bad influence, and you should probably stay far away from them as far as fitness is concerned.

Reputation Matters! Clients Leave Testimonials For Good Personal Trainers

Achieving fitness goals is not easy. You need solid discipline to keep up with a tough workout routine and a strict diet plan. That is why clients always appreciate a personal trainer who helps them achieve their fitness goals. And good personal trainers know this! That is why they will readily share with you their client testimonials and even connect you with some, so you talk with them directly. And what if the trainer cringes at your request to meet prior clients? Now, why would they be unhappy about it? Well, there’s only one answer, and that is to stay away from such trainers.

If in case you’ve already found a good personal trainer and would like to show your appreciation, then here are some ideas for gifts for a personal trainer

A Good Personal Trainer Is Both Patient and Honest

Fitness is not a quick fix thing. It’s a journey, and journeys take time and commitment. That is why when undertaking a fitness program, patience is key. Not just for you but your trainer as well.

It takes time to get those forms right of the various exercises. Muscle development, too, takes time. Now imagine your trainer to be impatient with the results. Towering over you, screaming to go harder, almost disappointed at your lack of efforts – by their standard. Rather than gain muscle, you’ll certainly lose confidence. I hope you get it now. A good personal trainer is patient.

On the other hand, the trainer should not be too soft and sweet either. Giving you overly positive feedback every time. Even if you yourself can’t notice any progress. This is not an acting class, is it? You’re here to get real results. For that, you need honest feedback on your progress and work accordingly. A good personal trainer will do just that. They will tell you exactly where you stand and what you need to do to improve.

Good Personal Trainers Know How To Keep It, Professional

Sure, you want your trainer to be friendly, but that’s just an additional benefit. You don’t want it to be so friendly that they end up chatting with you more than focussing on the training. And if the trainer is of the opposite sex, then let’s not get started with the time that gets wasted because of flirting! You’re primarily there to improve your fitness, and that is where the primary focus should be. A good personal trainer knows this, and so while being friendly, will also always maintain a professional relationship.

Good Personal Trainers Give You Confidence

Finally, we come to the subtle but paramount quality of a good personal trainer. And that is they believe in you. They have faith in your commitment and abilities. They will continuously encourage you to improve and always acknowledge what you do accomplish. In this way, a good personal trainer gives you the confidence to get through your training no matter how tough it feels at the start.

You must now have a fairly good idea about how to go about selecting a good personal trainer. It is, after all, not an easy task. You need a lot of discipline and commitment, especially since fitness is a long and continuous journey. Not to mention the money spent! A gym membership will cost you some, if not a lot. Then you spend more on a personal trainer. So better a get good personal trainer, right? Here’s How A Personal Trainer Can Help You Get The Most Out Of Your Gym Membership. If you’ve already gotten yourself a personal trainer, then share your experience, whether good or bad, by using the comments below. Your experience might help someone else make the right decision regarding choosing a good personal trainer.