The fitness and wellness industry is booming. Over a quarter of a million people hold jobs in fitness, according to The United States Dept of Labor. Therefore, if a steady and solid client base is desired, personal trainers must set themselves apart from the crowd. To increase a personal training business, fresh tactics and hard work must be applied to be successful.
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Look the Part of a Personal Trainer
The number of personal trainers who aren’t exemplifying fit living is alarming. A personal trainer must be walking the walk. Having a high level of fitness, and living the healthy lifestyle assures potential clients of credibility.
No informed client will want to work with an unfit trainer. Having a lean, muscular body is free walking advertising. People will ask how that body was achieved and want to follow in those footsteps. Be the one people want to look up to, and clientele will naturally build.
Vary Personal Training Venues
Looking for clients at a local gym is generally the way personal trainers begin their business. However, it’s not where the search should end. There are many untapped income sources that trainers can try. Some ideas include:
- Offer group fitness classes
- Work with assisted living homes to help residents
- Create an online training business
- Market in newspapers and local bulletins
- Offer semi-private services to small offices
- Specialize in a unique field and advertise appropriately
- Hold fitness seminars
- Get grants to work with the public school system
- Start a fitness or sporting club to increase potential clients
Be Personable
It’s very important to always be approachable. This goes hand-in-hand with the principle of looking the part. Smiles and an open personality attract people. Abruptness, curtness, and sour faces curtail people from approaching.
People who are genuinely living a fit lifestyle, exude happiness and are highly approachable. Go one step further, and make it a point to make five new contacts a day. It only takes a moment to go up to a stranger, make an opening comment, shake hands, and pass out a personal training business card.
Grocery stores, libraries, parks, and waiting rooms are excellent places to start. Make friends everywhere, and immediately multiply potential clients.
Never be without a smile, a friendly approach, solid business plans, and a stack full of business cards. It’s estimated that employment is expected to increase 29% by 2018 for fitness workers, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Be part of the field of elite trainers and make a positive impact in the world of personal training.
Personal Trainer Courses For Fitness Trainer Certification
Personal trainers are increasingly popular among those who find it hard to motivate themselves to exercise regularly or at all, or to fit in time to go to the gym: they offer flexibility to fit in with a busy modern lifestyle. A personal trainer may be employed to work within a gym or may set up an individual business, working within private gym premises or visiting clients at their homes.
Personal Trainer Qualifications
Personal trainer qualifications are available from a range of different providers and, as a result, there is no single standard qualification: courses are available at various levels and allow for specialisation, for example in yoga or pilates. To become a personal trainer, it is important to ensure that the qualification obtained is one which is respected within the industry, and one which is accredited by a reputable body.
Courses are available at different levels. For example, a student may take a specific general personal trainer qualification (for example, a diploma or certificate); or may choose to specialise in rehabilitation, working with older people on their fitness levels, or offering a tailored service to clients with specific problems.
Personal Trainer Course Providers
There are many providers of personal trainer courses and many options for the potential student. As well as more formal degree courses in health and fitness offered by universities and colleges, there is a range of specific personal trainer courses offered by private companies. These are typically more flexible: a qualification can be obtained within a few months or over a period of years and some companies offer home study courses.
Within the United States, accrediting bodies recognised within the industry include NCCA (National Commission for Certifying Agencies), the Distance Education and Training Council (DETC) or the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA); while in the UK personal trainers are self-regulated by the government-backed Register of Exercise Professionals (REPs), a body which also recognises international qualifications.
The fragmentation of the industry means that there is no complete list of providers. Major providers in the USA include the International Sports Science Association, National Personal Training Institute and the Aerobic Fitness Association of America. In the UK information on providers is available from the National Register of Personal Trainers (NRPT) and from REPS.
Cost of Fitness Trainer Certification
With such a variation in the available options for personal training courses, the cost is inevitably varied. At the upper end, an advanced diploma taken from scratch can cost several thousand dollars, while a conversion course, for example for an applicant who already holds a health and fitness degree, can cost relatively little, typically a few hundred dollars. Some courses are available in stages, while for others financial support may be available.
