Personal Trainers with Facial Piercings??

What an interesting question! I'm 50 and find piercings mostly kind of silly, although I would never say anything to someone about them unless they asked for my opinion. Lip and tongue piercings don't bother me unless they interfere with the ability to talk, which happens more often than the owner of the piercing seems aware. If you talk like a kid with a retainer it's going to be difficult for me to take you seriously. On the other hand, eyebrow piercings sort of ick me out.

You might get fewer clients of a certain type but more clients of another type. Since you feel strongly enough about this to change your body over it, it seems to me you should do what seems right to you and ignore the opinions of others.

To me it's not what a person looks like if they are awesome at their industry. I've had a 110 pound girl give me killer workouts due to her knowledge and study of kinesiology. I've also had garbage workouts from muscled up fools that believe what works for them will universally work for everyone.

Even yesterday this concept held true: I went to a Yoga class and the guy was older and not exactly in the best shape. However, by far he explained the movements the best and I am way more sore this morning from a great class.

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61 yrs old here and wouldn't care about piercings, tattoos etc. As long as you treated me with respect and came up with a good programme for me. But then I have just had a large tattoo done on my lower back so I may not be the typical 61 year old.

As others have said, it depends on the type, whether they hinder your speech, or if you are obsessed with playing with them. However, what I do find gross however are those ear things that stretch the hole out to the size of a half dollar. I personally could not stomach that.

With that being said, I am "bothered" by lots of bling and clutter, whether on someone, in an environment, etc. My workplace regulates tattoos, piercings, and jewelry. Even women aren't supposed to wear those dangly charm bracelets, but when one does, I am annoyed by the constant sound of them clattering. I am overly sensitive to things like that. Same with clutter on a table or at a desk- even someone else's.

So probably in all honesty, I wouldn't judge YOU for the piercings, however I would find it irritatingly distracting for myself. Just like if you had 10 fingernails painted in different colors/patterns. But again, more my issue than yours.

PS- This is finding faults of my own, not in you.

Now I should add that as a representative of a profession....I probably would not hire an overly tatooed or obvious pierced individual.
Some jobs it would be fitting. But it would limit opportunity and college/university opportunities.

I have no clue what facial piercings have to do with personal training. Like... none. But I understand what you're saying, there's different kinds of people and some might be put off. Frankly, if you're good at your job, the ones who don't care will keep you plenty busy.

Doesn't bother me a bit when people have tattoos, facial piercings, etc. If you know what you are doing, can explain it clearly, answer questions and don't have poor hygiene then it's all good.

Except for those large gauged earlobe thingies - I find them fascinating in a horrible kind of way and they would be really distracting for me.

This is your job, a source of income, so let's be realistic here. Let me frame what I said earlier another way... I doubt anyone will say "he has no piercings, nope, can't have him as a PT" but I fully believe there are some people out there who might say "I don't like his piercings, I'd rather not taking him on as a PT".

shaf238 wrote: »

This is your job, a source of income, so let's be realistic here. Let me frame what I said earlier another way... I doubt anyone will say "he has no piercings, nope, can't have him as a PT" but I fully believe there are some people out there who might say "I don't like his piercings, I'd rather not taking him on as a PT".

I agree. Especially as someone starting out. He has no credibility established for people to think, "he has facial piercings, I don't like them but he has a kick *kitten* reputation as a trainer so I'll look past them.".

You can say all you want about individuality and personal expression, but that doesn't pay the bills. I live in a mid size city in the midwest. Even thought there are 2 universities here you very seldom see people with facial piercings. My sons, niece and nephew are all in their 20's and none of their friends have facial piercings (I know because I saw this question and asked them). I work for a multinational corporation, facial piercings, unless for religious reasons, are against the US dress code.

If I knew the person was a good trainer, I'd have no problem with the piercings (assuming they didn't mess with speech). but to be honest, if I was picking at random, I wouldn't pick the person. Facial piercings in my area are a bit unusual.

what are we talking about here? What kind of piercings does the OP have? A small nose stud? A lip ring? His tongue pierced (lol).... or is he:



Just like with anything - you can take piercings way to far.

I try not to judge, but piercings look really painful to me lol, it would be uncomfortable for me to look at you. Tattoos however don't really bother me, I have an uncle who has loads and most people around here do have tattoos. I was a lifeguard for a while at the YMCA and had a coworker who had tattoos, the management made him cover them up, and they gave a stern talking to another guy who had a beard... I feel like the beard was over kill, men have beards what's the big deal?

Super interesting and fun topic! I'm enjoying reading all the comments and opinions and appreciate the opportunity to share mine. I'm a 58 year old female who had a relatively conservative upbringing. At age 40 I got a small tattoo on my ankle and have considered another one. I was thrilled when my mom pierced my ears for my 8th birthday. I tried a cartilage piercing on my upper ear when I was in my 30's but it would never heal right, so eventually I gave up. I kind of miss it.

Like others on this thread I try not to judge, but I'm a curious people watcher. I find other humans and their lives pretty fascinating. When I see someone with multiple piercings and/or tattoos I'm interested to look at them. I find myself sneaking glances without trying to stare. Why did they do that? On the one hand, people who are into that must (might?) want attention so maybe looking is ok? A lot of the tattoo work is beautiful and I want to check it out without being rude. On the other hand, it's a personal choice with individual personal reasons so not my business. A bit of a dilemma.

To OP's original question, it wouldn't bother me as long as you were a good trainer. For others, I'd say it will totally depend on where you get a job and the demographic of the clients. Do your research before an interview. Check out the place and the trainers in advance to see what the norm is there. You might consider removing the piercings for an interview. That's no different than choosing to wear a tie or conservative clothing. You can always ask about their policy if you get a job offer.

Re: body modification in general. People have been doing this in some form for millenia. Trends change. The future might be much different than now. My only recommendation for young people who haven't yet entered the job market is to really think about where they want to be/work in 10-20 years. Tattoos are pretty permanent. Some professions lend themselves well to body art, others do not. For example: one of my nieces has many tattoos including a skull on her neck. At 30 she is still struggling to get a decent job. She has said she definitely regrets the skull but can't afford to have it removed. Another niece had eyebrow, lip and nose piercings. After working as a hotel maid for years she went back to school to become a medical assistant. She just graduated and got a job at a hospital. All the facial piercings are gone (only the holes remain). I see many beautiful young people completely covered in tattoos. I do think about what they will look like when they get to be my age (and older). Again, not my business but something I have taken into consideration when thinking about another one myself. We don't stay young forever.