Recently I have been asked why do people use the services of a professional personal trainer. It's to help you get started, back on track, or to keep you from becoming bored with workouts by introducing new routines to overcoming plateaus. A personal trainer should be the solution to your fitness problem.

For the purpose of clarification, a personal trainer is a qualified, competent, professional who is up to date in subjects such as exercise physiology, kinesiology, behaviour modification, health assessment, nutrition, weight management and is a mentor. Someone who can help you achieve a given task in a more efficient and streamlined manner. Personal trainers should be mentors that specialize in helping people achieve new levels of positive physical change. (They should  “Walk the talk”).

What do you want and expect from your trainer? 

I myself love training with other trainers for a few different reasons; to learn from them whether good or bad, to experience some of the things that my clients may experience from training with me, to be challenged a little and be made accountable for my actions (yes we need it too).

Every time I train with a trainer I have a list of criteria that I look for, this is to make sure I receive the experience I am paying for. I believe that you must get an experience every session, what do I mean by an experience? An experience is something you really enjoyed and look forward too again and again, absolute value. There is nothing worse than paying for something and feeling it wasn’t worth the value, so make sure you are getting value for your dollar.

How do I judge this value?

I will share what I look for in a trainer and so should you:

• Do they pay attention to me? (Watching my form, posture, facial expressions, weight capacity, or level of fatigue).
• Are they listening to me? (understanding what my needs are)
• Do they motivate/inspire me?
• Are they genuine?
• Do they deliver what they promise?
• Do they have variety in their training?
• Is the training specific to my needs? (exercise, nutrition, intensity etc)
• Do they document what I am doing?
• Do they challenge me?
• Is there a mapped out journey to our training?
• Am I getting results?
• Do they do assessments? (if applicable)
• Do they set goals for me to achieve? 
• Do they have good understanding and knowledge of the game?
• Am I comfortable with them?

I hope this gives you a better idea of what to look for when working with your trainer. They should be able to adjust training to suit your individual needs and goals, empower you with knowledge and inspire you with results.

They should provide you with:

Continual feedback on your progress.

 A program which is regularly modified and varied.

Help you achieve your goals.

Teach you how to utilize the tools of positive thinking.

Remember it is personal training and it’s all about you. You are the one paying for the service ask questions, get feedback, be part of the process and most of all make sure it’s an experience.