Looking for a personal trainer
BY definition, a personal fitness trainer is a fitness professional possessing the knowledge, skills and abilities for safe and effective exercise and fitness program design, instruction and assistance for the purpose of reaching personal health and fitness goals. Now, thanks to TV shows and celebrities who hire trainers, this career path has a much higher profile than it ever has before — which comes with some good effects, but also some bad.
The good: trainers are more and more recognied as being a real and active part of individual goal setting and achieving. The role that trainers play in the success of their clients is increasingly in the spotlight, not hidden in the thankless backdrop. But the bad: a lot of distorted views about what a personal trainer does and how a personal trainer should look.
Passion, purpose, caring and coaching — these qualities make a far greater impac t than the size of a trainer’s biceps. Not that there isn’t something to be said for outward appearance and taking care of the ”cover“but the book has man y pages, and the cover only gets the reader to pick up the book, not to read it. At the baseline, your scope of practice as a personal trainer should look lik e this:
1. Knowledg e of human anatom y and the concepts of functional exercise, basic nutrition and basic exercise science
2. An ability to design individual and group exercise programs tailored to the needs and attainable goals of specific clients
3. An ability to conduc t and understand the need and importance of screening and client assessment, initially and progressively
4. An ability to ex ecute individual fitness program design in a safe and effective way
5. A desire to help clients reach their health and fitness goals through appropriate cardiovascular, flexibility and re- sistance exercise
6. An ability to motivat e others to improve their overall fitness and health
7. A dedication to maintaining personal integrity and your own health and fitness. A good personal trainer delivers safe, effective, fun and interesting workouts (in that order) to all fitness-training clients. The training programs you develop should be varied and progressive, and geared toward improving your clients’ health and wellness. As a trainer, you should be enthusiastic and sup- portive, so that your clients remain interested and stimulated, which helps ensure the y stick with the program — and with you.