When you decide to get professional assistance with your fitness goals, it’s time to seek out a personal trainer. However, you don’t necessarily want to take the first one you come across when walking into a gym.
Instead, consider these factors when choosing a personal trainer:
- Credentials: Make sure they can show you that they are certified as a personal trainer through an organization like The American Council on Exercise (ACE), the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA), or the National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM). This shows that they have met a certain level of knowledge, competence, skill, and professionalism to serve you well.
- Experience: Find out how long they have been working as a personal trainer. While everyone has to start somewhere and it’s not necessarily a bad thing to start out with someone new, make sure that’s what you are comfortable with. The newest trainers tend to not charge as much as those well-seasoned trainers so this might be one way to make it fit your budget.
- Personality: It’s good to find someone who makes you feel comfortable and often this has to do with their personality. Ask yourself if you want someone who is a cheerleader, a drill sergeant, or somewhere in–between. Maybe you want someone with a good sense of humor because this carries you through the pain of working out.
- Gender: Don’t always assume that you will want to have a personal trainer of the same gender as you. Sometimes, it’s better to go with someone of the opposite sex who can push you more or that may provide a welcome change.
- Philosophy: Think about what type of workouts the personal trainer believes in and see if you feel these are right for your fitness goals. Maybe they stick to free weights or resistance training and you prefer machines. Make sure your philosophies match.
- Specialties: If you are focused on fat-burning or weight loss, you may not want a personal trainer whose specialties is sports fitness programs or weightlifting. Check on what each personal trainer focuses on in terms of their background and preferences.
- Availability: If you have set hours you want to work out, make sure a personal trainer can work within those. Or, if you see a personal trainer who is very flexible with their schedule and that suits your hectic lifestyle better, then pick them.
- Reputation: Many personal trainers have established a reputation as well so it’s good to check them out on the online review sites or ask some of their other clients about their impression in terms of progress and the ability to meet goals.
Come in and check out our personal trainers who are happy to offer an introductory session so you can run this criteria by them to see if they are the right fit for you!
