Is personal training worth it?

I've never done it, but I have always want to have a personal trainer. With my personality, money is a huge motivator, so spending money on something and not using it really annoys me, so that would have been the perfect motivator.

Hi all,
I joined a gym today! But got a hard sell on personal training. He wanted 3x/week for a year.
Is it worth it? Does it make that much of a difference?
Thanks!

You'll get a lot of opinions about whether it's worth it, and it ultimately comes down to whether you have the resources (money and time/commitment), personal goals or conditions (are you training for something, need to lose weight/improve fitness for health reasons, do you have health issues that require assistance, etc.), and quality of self-motivation (can you kick your own butt, or need someone to do it). Weigh those sorts of things out, and you'll determine whether it's worth it to you.

With that being said, a year commitment is ridiculous. If you proceed, start with a 4, 6, or 8 week package of 2 or 3 days/week) and go from there. Anything more is out of line. If you get a PT that's inept, or just have a personality issue with, you'll want to be able to end the sessions without penalty or guilt. If the PT turns out to be awesome, then you can sign up for more/longer sessions.

For me, I think a PT was worth it. I wouldn't be committed to fitness like I am now, if I hadn't hired one. And got lucky with getting a good one who knew just what I needed to do to get started.

With that being said, a year commitment is ridiculous. If you proceed, start with a 4, 6, or 8 week package and go from there. Anything more is out of line. If you get a PT that's inept, or just have a personality issue with, you'll want to be able to end the sessions without penalty or guilt.

Agreed on the lengthy commitment - that's asking for a lot of $$ up front before you know if it's right for you.

I worked with a PT 1x week for over a year - and made amazing progress (-70 lbs). You own the nutrition, they instruct you on how to blend exercises (and do them with proper form) to achieve your specific fitness goals. Some even offer nutrition advice, but I'm a no-nonsense, eat real food person who likes to cook so I didn't really need that instruction.

I did a month-to-month plan and cancelled last year when my trainer left the gym. It's been fine without the PT, but it was scary at first on my own. You don't realize how much you have learned until you have to do it all yourself!

My gym pushed for 2x week, which adds up fast. 1x week was fine for me, and fit into my budget. Here are some of the things I got out of personal training:

1. Progressively harder training sessions forced me to learn that pushing my limits is what achieves the goal
2. Weekly accountability - I knew he would be hard on me, and if I didn't keep up my end of the bargain all the other days of the week, I wouldn't be prepared for the workout
3. Fitness evaluations - usually done in the first visit, forced me to face my current condition and make specific, achievable goals
4. He KNEW I could do more than I thought I could and encouraged me to try. If I really couldn't he would modify the exercise so I could do it safely until I was strong enough to do the 'real' version.
5. Weekly workout charts - an A/B workout form I could re-use as many times as I wanted to. I still go back to the some of the workouts from time to time.

Heading back to one of my old kettlebell workouts tomorrow.....

Good luck at the new gym - whatever you choose to do about PT, you're already on your way to your goals.

They wanted over 9000.

HO-LY BALLS....I'm in the wrong profession. Gonna go home and rethink my life.

I just finished 2 months with my PT.

I definately think it was the right thing for ME. He got me started on the right path with both my nutrition and with excercising. He pushed me to do more than I THOUGHT I could. If it wasn't for him, I'd be stuck on cardio and maybe using 10-20lb weights. He was/is one of my biggest cheerleaders too. I'm hoping that I have gleaned enough with my time with him. He knows I can do it, and he hasn't been wrong yet. I will be checking back with him in November and January to make sure I am on track.

I've done 2 rounds (one 6 and one 3 month contract) with PTs at my gym and though it was ~3000 each time (on a student budget!!!) I still think it was worth it. the first time I lost lots of weight. I was averaging about 10lbs a month, and it was so motivating to know that my monthly assessment was coming up that it was easy to stay on track. The second time around I lost maybe 2 lbs overall, but I lost inched and I'm so much stronger now and I've learned so so so much!

Small group training (<5 people) is a great option too. you still get the accountability with the appointment times and the one-on-one motivation, but at a fraction of the cost!

Good luck with it!!

I'm not sure what the industry norm is but I pay for 10 sessions at a time. I would never commit to a long-term contract. Too many variables (relocation, schedule changes, other time commitments, injury, trainer issues, etc., etc.). Having said that, I've been going to the same trainer for approx. 5 years. So if you find a good one, they can push you harder than you'll push yourself and hold you accountable at times when you need the assist.

There are a lot of factors to consider and it comes down to what you want to achieve. I was a personal trainer for 3 years before I changed careers, I have seen some people just giving money away to guys and gaining nothing that they could have done on their own. It's a business for some PT's and they are just out to make money from people but not all are like that.
My advice would be, if your goal is to drop weight and become healthier and fitter, keep it simple, eat clean healthy whole foods, gentle exercise everyday such as a walk or bike ride and as someone else has already said join group fitness classes. Read books on exercise and well being. Living a healthy life is not hard or complicated its simple once you form the habit and gain a little knowledge.
If your goal is for performance for example competing in sports or completing a marathon then the right personal trainer can be a huge benefit to help with a specialised training/diet plan.
If money is a factor like for most of us, I would recommend spending it on good quality food than pay someone to train you.

Thanks for the advice! Indeed, a year sounded pretty steep. They wanted over 9000. Not in my budget. Not even slightly.

That's seems to be beyond steep. But I suppose it would depend at least partly on just how much time you ended up spending with them. But still $9K ? Sorry, not for me.

I had a trainer I hired for 24 sessions because that's where the biggest price break was. We scheduled twice a week for 12 weeks. Ended up being more like 14 weeks what with missed appointments etc.

Was it worth it? Well, yes. However I had to put on a bit of my game face to work with my trainer. We weren't totally compatible but I decided to make it work; not that I had any choice given the alternative.

If the connection had been any worse than it was then it very well could ended up being wasted money.

After my experience I think 3 months is the longest I'd sign up for because if there are any issues it's going to be a loooonnnngggg 3 months.

There are certainly many reasons to hire a trainer but it's like hiring anybody else whether they are a trainer, a financial advisor or a dog groomer; finding the right ones while not spending an arm and a leg on the wrong ones doing so can be difficult.

Asking for a year commitment is totally out of hand. I believe personal trainers can help a lot, but that request would turn me off from that guy. Go back to him and tell him, yes, you want a trainer, but you'd like to hire someone else in the gym, and ask him who he would recommend.
Jeez.

Like others have said, I think it definitely depends on the individual and the trainer. For me, it has been 100% worth it. I started with a 3 month commitment and just signed up for another 4 months with the same trainer. She pushes me to my limits and works me a lot harder than I would ever have the motivation to work on my own. She develops a new plan for me every 4 weeks, so that my body is constantly changing and improving. I meet with her twice a week and she makes a home program for me to follow on my own once or twice a week as well as providing me with nutritional guidelines and advice. So with all that said, I think with the right trainer, at the right gym, at the right price, is definitely worth it. But I would recommend shopping around before committing.