Ever had a personal trainer?

I had three one hour sessions with a personal trainer over the summer. They were very helpful for me. I wanted to be sure that my form was good and that's pretty much what he worked on with me. He created a personalized strength routine, which was made up of the dumbbell equivalent of compound lifts with couple of isolated movements included. It was a really good way for me to start lifting. Youtube videos and the like help somewhat with form but it was good for me to have somebody stand back and say "you're doing this right" or "move your hands more like this" or "push your hips back more," etc.

I just started working with a trainer in December because I wanted to start lifting and do so in a way to get the most benefit without injuring myself. After my initial assessment, she put together a 3 phase plan. She works with me for the first days of each one and as I get more comfortable, I do it on my own. So, At the beginning of a phase, I may work with her twice a week, then one day the following week, then go on my own for a couple weeks. If at any point I'm uncomfortable or uncertain about my form, we get together for her to check it and help. This has really helped me feel comfortable and I can already see gains.

It's apparently also pretty fun for her because a lot of her clients have injuries or limitations that I don't have.

I don't know how rate differences will be wherever you are, but my sessions are usually an hour and $40, so the $60/hour seems a little high for me. Again, that may be a standard rate were you are though.

i've sort of had one - my sister is a personal trainer who lives on baffin island (far north) and i live smack in the middle of southern canada. so we don't meet in person often. she's been extremely helpful with a few trouble spots when we were at the gym together - i have gait issues - and when we're just in contact online i can ask her plenty of questions and it really helps. so, worth it to me!

the going rate around here is $20-25/hr, usually bought in 6 or 10 session packages.

I lucked out recently. Found a girl who is getting her PT certification (she already has a bachelors degree in Physical Education so she knows what she's doing), and she needs to do 30 hours of training to get her certificate... so she's training me for FREE!

I have one. He helped me get my nutrition right as well as teaching me good form in the gym and how to really burn calories fast (not the way I would have thought). He also motivates me to work harder and has taught me to run without injury. Well worth every penny spent.

NOT all trainers are created equal. test drive a few before you zero in on one that is responsive to your needs.

The cost of a personal trainer varies by location. Here in NYC a trainer can cost about 80/hour. My opinion is a trainer is great to learn how to use the equipment and learn routines. They are good if you are trying to change something up about your body. However, they are not needed all the time. Use them here or there and follow their lead.

My personal trianer charges per session. I go in for an hour- an hour and a half and it's only $35. If you do group training it's $25.

I have been using a trainer for about 6 months. I take the special at the gym which was 10, 30 minute sessions for $200. I use my trainer twice a week and sometimes I don't feel as if we are really doing anything. I am working on core now.
I was amazed when I realized that I could do a squat without the chair and I can now also do walking lunges.

I've worked with my trainer for about 3 years. I only pay about $30/session (for 12 sessions), but I started with her when she was pretty new, and there are two of us that train together.

I knew some basic exercises before hand, but she's taught me way more so I can keep my own workouts more interesting. I love that once a week I can just go and be told what to do, there's no thinking involved. She corrects my form, when I wouldn't have known there was a problem otherwise. And, I admit, I'm a chicken when it comes to the gym. I would've NEVER tried weight lifting on my own (aside from dumbbells, maybe). Thanks to her I'm doing squats, deadlifts, chinups (well, modified lol), bench press - all kinds of awesome exercises I would be missing out on if it weren't for her.

So yes, I think trainers are worth it - as long as you get one you like & who will help you reach YOUR goals. And of course having a trainer won't magically make weight drop off or increase strength. They are there to guide & educate, but you have to be willing to put in the work.

DVD workouts can be fun, but depending on how you learn you may not be doing things 100% correctly, and there's no one there to tell you.

I have a very special trainer and the trust is high now. He can read when to push when to stop me, watches form, challenges me, has me try new skills, changes it up so I do not get bored as well as the muscles getting accustom to it. I do cardio on own we talk about it. I also do not do all of my workout with him. He starts me shows me things if needed and monitors so for me it is a lot cheaper. Most days we spend only 10 min together. When we change etc it is longer. He realized I did more alone and pushed harder without him standing over me.