how do you feel about personal trainers?

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Replies

  • johnnylakis
    johnnylakis Posts: 812 Member
    Some people need a personal trainer. If so, then its worth the money. No question
  • 111YoYo111
    111YoYo111 Posts: 213 Member
    I would be interested to know if there is a certification one could ask for. Any schlep with a nice body or gym rat can claim to be a personal trainer. Fitness is 80% in the kitchen and only 20% in the gym so how can they totally ignore nutrition? I wasted money on one and wouldn't do it again. I don't need to pay a friend to work out with me.
  • WalkingAlong
    WalkingAlong Posts: 4,926 Member
    ninerbuff wrote: »
    WalkingAlong wrote: »
    FatFreeFrolicking wrote: »
    Kalikel wrote: »
    I wanted one to help me with exercise programs and doing the weights. They were much more interested in trying to show off their little bit of knowledge of the body, some of which they got wrong.

    I tried them, but they aren't really helpful with the one thing I needed help with, so I quit. I just went to a sports medicine doctor and got some helpful advice. It cost more, but he knew what I wanted and gave it to me.

    They should really focus more on the thing people hire them to do, IMO. What they do must be working for them, though.

    Waste of my time and money.

    That's what a personal trainer does...
    Or they stand there and count reps. Or they upsell you on more training and other items for their employer, the gym. Or they tell you about cutting edge concepts like starvation mode and eating six small meals a day.
    No doubt there are many like that. I left 24 Hour Fitness because of issues like that. I'm not big on supplements, but part of being a PT there is making a quota on supplement sales. As well as listening to a lot of the broscience still being passed on throughout the years. But that doesn't mean you can't trust that there are those out there who actually are responsible and are very well informed. The issue is locating them.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
    9285851.png
    Oh I agree. And it's a tough thing because to evaluate them you have to know their field a little bit, and many people who hire one don't. It's not like you can judge based on results from a few sessions.

    I think where many people get benefit is from the accountability. You have an appointment, you paid for it, so you show up and give it your all. And that's a big component of success-- consistency. So it's probably a great tool for many.
  • spally2
    spally2 Posts: 22
    I had a PT once (from a distance) who I asked to help attain a certain time in a 10k run. We would have a phone call once a week to discuss how training was going/ whether exercises needed to be adapted and I logged training on a website. Although I didn't quite get my dream time, I did get a 4 min PB.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,961 Member
    WalkingAlong wrote: »
    ninerbuff wrote: »
    WalkingAlong wrote: »
    FatFreeFrolicking wrote: »
    Kalikel wrote: »
    I wanted one to help me with exercise programs and doing the weights. They were much more interested in trying to show off their little bit of knowledge of the body, some of which they got wrong.

    I tried them, but they aren't really helpful with the one thing I needed help with, so I quit. I just went to a sports medicine doctor and got some helpful advice. It cost more, but he knew what I wanted and gave it to me.

    They should really focus more on the thing people hire them to do, IMO. What they do must be working for them, though.

    Waste of my time and money.

    That's what a personal trainer does...
    Or they stand there and count reps. Or they upsell you on more training and other items for their employer, the gym. Or they tell you about cutting edge concepts like starvation mode and eating six small meals a day.
    No doubt there are many like that. I left 24 Hour Fitness because of issues like that. I'm not big on supplements, but part of being a PT there is making a quota on supplement sales. As well as listening to a lot of the broscience still being passed on throughout the years. But that doesn't mean you can't trust that there are those out there who actually are responsible and are very well informed. The issue is locating them.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
    9285851.png
    Oh I agree. And it's a tough thing because to evaluate them you have to know their field a little bit, and many people who hire one don't. It's not like you can judge based on results from a few sessions.

    I think where many people get benefit is from the accountability. You have an appointment, you paid for it, so you show up and give it your all. And that's a big component of success-- consistency. So it's probably a great tool for many.
    Honestly I have a couple of clients right now that KNOW how to workout. But their reason for hiring me is just that.................if they didn't have a session, they probably wouldn't come to the gym. They don't necessarily hate it. They just don't want to have to figure out what to work out that day, figure out what program to do, and then put in lackluster effort.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
    9285851.png

  • samthepanda
    samthepanda Posts: 569 Member
    Agree - it can be, but depends what you are wanting from it, and getting the right 'fit'. I had a free PT session from gym early on and it was a total waste of time - just generic walk through of the basics paying no attention to what I said i wanted. The guy I use now though is really good. Started working with him after a shoulder injury as that's his specialism, and have stayed with him as he understands my injuries and aging body, and when I'm just having a whine! I thought I'd work well with someone who really pushes me, and shouts etc to keep me going, but he's fairly quiet, but persistent and this is good for me. He's never let me just give up, which is good for my confidence, and has helped me understand more when I really can't do something, and when I probably could do more, just don't want to! I see him 1-2 times a month for 30 min session. We both have to juggle time slots sometimes but we have an agreement that if I cancel he'll make sure I rearrange with a couple of days. I struggle with my mental health at times, and it can be easy to stop exercising even though it generally helps.
  • dbmata
    dbmata Posts: 12,950 Member
    onefootfoward wrote: »
    I have found a great personal trainer but im wondering will it be worth the butt load of cash? I've heard varying opinions on the subject.

    they're so personal.

    Some people feel that investing cash in their health and well being is a worthwhile investment.

    Others lack that foresight. Which type are you?
  • 47Jacqueline
    47Jacqueline Posts: 6,993 Member
    As a gym-goer, I worked with a personal trainer once for about 6 months and liked having the personal attention. I found that, once I was on my own, though, I didn't have the motivation to work by myself (to isolated for me) and I switched to going to fitness classes, which are more social.

    Now I am a personal trainer myself and have recently hired a more seaoned trainer to work with while I study for my second certification. I'm meeting with her once a week and it's terrific for reinforcing what my manual is telling me.

    I also have a couple of clients who prefer working with an individual to going to a gym. I work with them weekly to provide guidance on how to improve their activity levels as well as lifestyle. My GP also refers people to me who want to improve their fitness levels, but don't want to put up with gym environment. I interviewed at a large gym chain in town and found they wanted me to meet a certain quota of clients/month as well as get involved with selling nutritional supplements. I like working independently with people and get a lot of satisfaction of seeing people's health and fitness improve.
  • onefootfoward
    onefootfoward Posts: 35 Member
    Any who i went to my first tranning session at a kickboxing gym yesterday it was intense to say the least and my female trainer is super patient.im still not cool with waking up befofe the sun and having my *kitten* handed to me im sure it will grow on me though
  • Cherimoose
    Cherimoose Posts: 5,208 Member
    onefootfoward wrote: »
    im just weary of dropping like two grand on my sessions though they have quiet impressed me with their education and overall knowldege.
    Don't drop 2 grand unless you've tried them out for a few sessions. If they pressure you into buying a big package, that's a big red flag.
    111YoYo111 wrote: »
    I would be interested to know if there is a certification one could ask for. Any schlep with a nice body or gym rat can claim to be a personal trainer. Fitness is 80% in the kitchen and only 20% in the gym so how can they totally ignore nutrition?
    Maintaining a healthy body fat level is 80% in the kitchen. Fitness has many components besides fat levels.. like strength, speed, flexibility, balance, agility, endurance, etc. Those are kinda difficult to train in the kitchen. B)

    Good certifications to look for include NASM, ACSM, and NCSA. Personally i would choose a trainer with at least 1 year experience. One place to search for trainers is IdeaFit.com.

    More on "How to Select a Personal Trainer":
    http://body-improvements.com/articles/industry-articles/how-to-select-a-personal-trainer/

    By the way, trainers CAN discuss nutrition, but they shouldn't give meal plans without proper nutrition credentials.
  • tomatoey
    tomatoey Posts: 5,446 Member
    edited January 2015
    I know two socially. I like them as people (obviously) and their clients get amazing results. I can't afford their services, though, lol.

    My interactions with trainers on the floor haven't been amazing. Lots of selling; one of them was chatting up other customers on my dime - boo! Another gave me a cookie-cutter program and wasn't hearing what I was telling him about how things felt, but it turned out later that my issues would have been way above his pay grade anyway (i.e. physiotherapist level knowledge required). The trainers I'm friends with (and can't afford), on the other hand, would have been aware of these kinds of things and would at minimum have referred me to someone who did know what to do, if they didn't.

    I think if you're basically healthy and can do things with no issues, and have the cash, get a recommendation.

    Aside for trainers reading: it would be great if more trainers took a low-pressure, flexible approach. Selling in packages makes money and it makes sense to do that, but I think a lot of people who can't afford a weekly schedule would be interested in more occasional, one-off sessions.
  • Cherimoose
    Cherimoose Posts: 5,208 Member
    tomatoey wrote: »
    Aside for trainers reading: it would be great if more trainers took a low-pressure, flexible approach. Selling in packages makes money and it makes sense to do that, but I think a lot of people who can't afford a weekly schedule would be interested in more occasional, one-off sessions.

    I agree that trainers should be low-pressure. But learning how to do a good freeweight routine takes more than 1 session. The squat alone can take 20+ minutes for some to "get". And then it can take 20+ minutes to learn any corrective stretches & exercises to fix muscle imbalances that negatively affect form (common). Also, we humans tend to forget about half of what we learn, so the lifts should be repeated a week later (any longer and bad habits get reinforced). The lifts should be repeated again a month later, to ensure that form is still good with much heavier weight (quite common not to). So it takes about 5 sessions at a minimum to learn a basic freeweight routine the right way.
  • jawilder230
    jawilder230 Posts: 8 Member
    Personally I don't see the need for one and will never use one. You neEd for a personal trainer is dependent upon how motivated and dedicated you are to your fitness goals. That means if you want to get in shape a bad enough you will research the proper diet you need to achieve your goals, research how to correctly perform different exercises and have the discipline to go to the gym on a consistent basis. If you do all those things I don't know why you would pay someone to do them for you.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    edited January 2015
    onefootfoward wrote: »
    I have found a great personal trainer but im wondering will it be worth the butt load of cash? I've heard varying opinions on the subject.

    This really just depends on you. I have a coach at the moment, and it's worth it because I'm trying to achieve some very specific goals and I'm doing a lot of technical lifting.

    At some point I will feel comfortable enough to carry on without coaching...so for now it's worth it...in a couple months, probably not...at least not every week, maybe a session per month or something.

    I would also add that I've observed a pretty substantial difference between trainers who are employees of big box, commercial gyms and trainers who either have their own facility or rent space at various establishments. The one's who are employed by a gym tend to be more of the salesman types.

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