WHAT QUALITIES SHOULD I LOOK FOR IN A PERSONAL TRAINER?
When searching for a personal trainer to work with, there are many different qualities and traits that can separate the good from the bad. The difference between a good trainer and a bad trainer can be the difference between safely seeing results, and risking injury while struggling through a plateau. Here are just some of the traits and qualities we feel are important when hiring a personal trainer.
EDUCATION
Like any other profession, education is extremely important in evaluating the effectiveness of your trainer. While most personal trainers only possess a certification, there are a select few who posses a college degree in exercise. This means the client will enjoy a level of knowledge that will be able to help them push through plateaus, prevent injury, and work around barriers that a less educated trainer might not be able to. Unfortunately, it’s become commonplace and almost accepted that a personal trainer can get away with not having a college degree in their field. Would you trust a doctor, lawyer, or an accountant without a degree? A personal trainer is in charge of your health and instructs you on how to perform potentially dangerous movements. It’s extremely important that your trainer has a strong knowledge of exercise science.
EXPERIENCE
Does your trainer have any experience? Experience can be very valuable because even with a lot of education, a lot can be learned through a personal trainers’ experience with clients. Of course, all trainers have to start somewhere and we were all newbies at one time. As a client, if your trainer is green, you just need to know that your experience might be affected by their lack of experience.
PERSONALITY
A client must connect with their trainer on some level. It shouldn’t be social hour, but the fact remains, you should feel comfortable around your trainer and be honest about issues or concerns you may be having about your health and fitness. You should also note if they truly pay attention to you. Does your trainer listen intently about your goals and fears, or do they already have their mind made up about what type of training you’re going to be doing?
REPUTATION
Does your trainer have a good reputation in the community? Do they have any reputation? Maybe you know someone who has used their services. If not, do thorough research online to check out reviews on multiple sites to see what others are saying about their services. Check to see if the reviewers sound like someone who is in your current situation. If you have injuries you’re concerned about while working with a trainer, check to see if there are others who also started with injury concerns who ended up having success.
PHILOSOPHY
While a general training philosophy is important, a trainer shouldn’t always give the same program to every client they have. For example, a 20 year old football player might benefit from doing Olympic style lifts. However, this may not benefit the 70 year old grandmother with osteoporosis. Being able to adapt to each individual client is the sign of a good personal trainer. Ask them what their training philosophy is and how they would go about training someone like yourself.
While this list contains the must haves, there are still other qualities you may be seeking in a trainer, depending on what you’re looking for. At The Summit Fitness Studio, we take these qualities very seriously. We are the only gym or personal training studio in Philadelphia that requires our trainers to have a college degree in exercise. Our extensive hiring process allows the trainers to demonstrate their personality, their experience, and their unique program they apply to each individual client. Because our trainers possess all of these qualities, our reputation is second to none. The Summit Fitness Studio has over 100 5 reviews across the web and we continue to work hard to make improvements so our client experience is unmatched.
If you’re interested in working with one of our personal trainers, contact us today!