Personal Trainer Confessions

Are you curious about what goes on in your trainer's head? If you don't have a trainer but are considering getting one, do you want to know what makes him tick? Here are a few important things to know about your trainer that will help you find the right one, or, if you have one already, appreciate her more:

1. What’s his story (background, education and philosophy)?

Each trainer chose the field for his own reasons. You should know what they are so you know what drives him and what he wants out of his career. To give you the best possible experience, serving your needs has to feel like he’s furthering his own goals too. Does his story resonate with you?

There’s also a wide range of rigor in the curriculum of various certifications . The four nationally recognized (NCCA accredited) bodies are ACE, NASM, NSCA and ACSM. Your trainer should be certified by one or more of these organizations to establish a base level of competency. It’s also a good idea to choose one with a broad range of experience with different client profiles and at least five years training full time (ten is better).
Finally, your trainer should have an overall universal guiding principle that’s applicable to all his clients. Mine is balance for improved quality of life.

2. How does she decide what to have you do each session and over the longer term?

Your trainer should have a good idea of what she wants you to accomplish together, be it general fitness, healthy weight loss and improved mobility, strength and injury prevention, athletic performance or some combination of each. That informs her decisions about long-term program progressions and should influence the format for a given workout as well. But variables like injuries, illness, missed work outs, schedule pressures, stress and emotional investment in the plan are all also important factors that affect what you get out of a given work out. So whatever is planned for the day should feel right to you and make sense. You need to be “on-board” so that it’s a true partnership each hour you spend together, as well as over the long haul.

3. Does he have a network of other integrative wellness professionals he works with?

Your trainer is part of your health care team. Often he is the front line. He should be very clear, within his own mind and in communication with you, about the extent and limitations of his scope of practice. And when that’s exceeded, he should have a well-researched and vetted appropriate health care professional to which he can refer you, and one with whom he’s earned the confidence of and from whom he receives referrals as well. This should apply to a broad range of health care professionals who also serve as his “advisory board” whenever guidance is needed in the crossover areas of their respective work. My network includes respected local professionals in the following fields: Physical Therapy, Massage, Acupuncture, Chiropractic and Psychotherapy.

4. How do they decide what to charge per session?

The short answer to this is, of course, supply and demand, which is a function of perceived value, marketing prowess and referrals. Most competent trainers charge between $60 and $120 per hour, or more. Bear in mind that many trainers, like teachers, could likely make more money in another line of work. They spend a good deal of their time doing research, developing exercise programming, networking and promoting, none of which brings in any direct revenue to compensate for the hours invested. In addition, if they work for a gym, they fork over up to 50% of their per-session fee to their employer and if they’re independent, they either pay around 30% of their rate in rent to the facility or around that much in overhead if they are the business owner. Independents also get none of the benefits gym employees enjoy and they pay both sides of their social security tax. So it’s good to realize the work that goes into their hour with you and how much they are actually clearing. Would you really want a trainer who keeps less than $20 per hour?

5. Have you agreed on what makes the value of the experience well worth the price you pay?

The consultation (which should be free with no obligation or pressure to commit) is a great opportunity to clarify, for both you and your prospective trainer, your respective ideas about what you are paying for and expect to get out of the process. You are the boss and she is the expert. Do your visions line up well? Are her ideas in synch with how you believe you should be spending your time? Do you two communicate well? Does her reasoning about how she would approach your training make sense to you and sound like a good fit for your personality, schedule and resources? Prospective clients who have worked with a skilled trainer before generally have a good sense of the value of working with the right one and don’t need to be sold on the benefits. Those who haven’t worked with a trainer need to be informed about the issues covered in this article and given the space and time to decide whether training, and that particular trainer, is right for them. So the trainer shouldn’t try to “sell” them either.

Over the years I’ve been a trainer (since 1998) I’ve learned that the best way to continue to earn business and bring as much value to the experience my clients have is to be as transparent as possible about what they should expect from the process and how to find the right professional for them, even if it’s not me. Consider the issues covered above to make that value-based decision and choose the right one for you.

Dan Taylor, ACE, NASM-CPT, is owner and head trainer at Pleasanton-based Tri Valley Trainer. They offer personal training and small group fitness solutions and an innovative, medically endorsed web-based group healthy eating coaching program.