How to Choose the Right Personal Trainer for You

Five things you need to consider while choosing a personal trainer. - Written by Greg Lomason

If you've been struggling to achieve your fitness goals for a while, chances are you've sought out some help. First, I'd like to congratulate you on seeking it. However, like most people, you've probably run into the following issues:

You were called for an assessment, were presented material that showed exercise is more complicated than you first thought, got your butt kicked in a mini-workout, and were then hard sold at the sales desk into a personal training package. You then got put with a trainer that either knew too little or wasn't the right fit, got a little sticker shock from the price you were paying, didn't see results as fast as you had thought you should, and then quit, resulting in a bad taste in your mouth for any trainer and all trainers within the fitness space. Sound a bit familiar?

If it does, don't worry; most people have been in the same position. Unfortunately, that has a lot to do with the fitness industry and little to do with personal trainers. Fortunately enough, as a personal trainer myself who has been involved on all sides of the business (member, sales manager, PT), I'm here to guide you through some best practices when finding the right personal trainer.

Choosing the right personal trainer can be a challenging thing to do. As a PT with ten years of experience in the industry here are some quick and easy tips to consider to make sure your PT is the right fit for you.

Tip #1 - First Experiences Aren't The Best Indicator

First, I encourage you to realize, as, with most things, first experiences are sometimes marred by the emotions we've attached to the multiple factors within that relationship. Do not be fooled; whenever working with someone towards a specific goal, you are in a relationship with that person, albeit, in this case, that relationship is business-minded. Suppose you've had a terrible experience that has left you wanting better results. In that case, I encourage you to reflect on some of the following tips to help bring a new perspective to why your first experience with a personal trainer may not have been the life-changing experience you had hoped for.

Tip #2 - Determine How Much Assistance You Need to Achieve Your Goal

Second, you need to determine how much assistance you need to achieve your goal, and this comes with some self-analyzation. Are you someone that wants to be catered to? Are you someone that wants little assistance with programming? Are you someone that needs an accountability partner? Are you someone that wants the complete package (training, programming, nutrition, cardio, flexibility, agility)? Are you someone that wants to be coached, mentored, trained, or do you need a drill sergeant? Knowing precisely what areas of fitness you're struggling with and what training styles you thrive in will go a long way in determining how much and which type of assistance you need. In short, which of these factors do you need help with: Programming, Motivation, Nutrition?

"Knowing precisely what areas of fitness you're struggling with...will go a long way in determining which type of assistance you need." – Greg Lomason

Tip #3 - Determine How Long Your Goal Will Realistically Take

Third, most people have been conditioned to think that any fitness goal will take less than a year or are under the assumption that they are the exception when it comes to achieving a specific goal. Granted, this is not the fault of the general population. There are some pretty exceptional cases when it comes to achieving goals in a short period. However, most of this can be boiled down to a few factors. One such factor is the volume and fitness "gap," as detailed in my previous post found here: https://www.byronjamesfitness.com/single-post/are-commercial-fitness-facilities-the-cause-of-their-members-injuries in short, the fitness gap is the amount of space between how much fitness activity someone has been doing and the amount of activity they start with when pursuing their fitness goal.

An easy example of this would be a fitness member who has been sitting on the couch for the previous six months. In this example, the member is at a 0% fitness level. In this specific case, if the member were to start working out two days per week for thirty minutes, this increase would be equivalent to a 200% increase in activity. With this in mind, it is relatively easy to say that if this member wanted only to lose 15lbs, they could realistically do it in 6 months or less. However, the struggle with most members is not losing the weight but keeping it off and doing it in a realistically sustainable way.

In most cases, depending on the goal, it is an industry standard that we counsel members to commit to a year-long training regimen. This is because losing weight, gaining muscle, improving aerobic conditioning, increasing flexibility, increasing strength, and any of the ten components to fitness are typically achievable within a year when working out as little as three days per week. However, other factors come into play, such as how many total days per week the member comes in to work out and how much time each session takes. These and a few other factors will determine the length of time it takes someone to achieve a fitness goal. The sustainability of the result of that goal is an entirely different factor of which I counsel my clients will take the majority of the time. As my experience grows, my thoughts on the "length of the program" have shifted, and currently, I would counsel most members to expect to work at their goal for a minimum of three years to see sustainable results.

"Currently I would counsel most members to expect to work a minimum of three years to see sustainable results." – Greg Lomason

Tip #4 - Determine How Much Time Your Willing to Spend in the Gym

Fourth, as mentioned above, you first need to determine how long your goal will realistically take. From that point, you can significantly decrease or increase the amount of time it takes to achieve your goal by how much time you spend in the gym. For example, let's say you've only been able to come in Mon, Wed, Fri because of your busy schedule, and each time you're in the gym, you're only able to dedicate 30 minutes for a workout. Realistically, it will probably take 6-8 weeks for your body to get used to this amount of training volume and "plateau."

At this point, you will need to determine how you're going to increase your volume, as, without this increase, you will cease achieving progress, and your goals will be forestalled. There are only two ways to increase volume for your fitness goal. Number one, you'll have to decide whether or not your schedule allows you to add in an additional day to come into the gym, say like a Sat or Sun. Number two, you'll have to decide on keeping Mon, Wed, Fri as your days and instead increase your 30-minute sessions to 60-minute sessions.

These increases in either days per week or time per session will allow you to make the necessary adjustments to push you past your plateau and continue to see results. So, when it comes to a personal trainer, first determine how many total days you have free during the week. Second, determine how much time your free each day for exercise. Third, choose how many days you can afford to see them, and if you can only afford to see them one time per week, you have to be accountable for the other two days to work out on your own.

- Note - I want to make it abundantly clear that at some point in your program your body will "plateau." This is a good thing. Without your body's ability to plateau we would not be able to increase your performance or help you to achieve weight loss. The plateau is just another tool in the arsenal for us to use to your advantage but it must be managed efficiently.

"There are only two ways to increase your training volume. One, increase your total days. Two, increase your total time per day." – Greg Lomason

Tip #5 - Know What Kind of Personality You are Best Suited For

Lastly, once you've determined the amount of assistance you need, how long your specific goal will take, how much time you're willing to spend in the gym, you'll need to know what kind of personal trainer is best suited for you. Now, every person has a personality type, and each personality type thrives well with another. Sometimes, the first experience you have with a trainer can be terrible simply because the personality type of the trainer just wasn't the one you thrived the most with. Personally, I have a good idea of the clients I'll get along with and those I won't. I've worked with over 20,000 people, and there are some clients I've been lucky enough to call dear friends and others whom I hope to never work with again. This is just the nature of working with people. The same is true when it comes to choosing a personal trainer.

First, I encourage you to look within yourself and determine which personalities you work well with and, most importantly, which type of coaching style you thrive in. Some commonly known training styles are the coach, the friend, the drill sergeant, and the cheerleader. More specifically, we have democratic, autocratic, laissez-faire, holistic, bureaucratic, mindful, and developmental. You can read the pros and cons here: https://online.maryville.edu/blog/types-of-coaching-styles/

Once you determine the coaching style that fits the best, you can be well prepared in making your decision and finding a trainer that will help you be the best version of yourself.

"This is just the nature of working with people." – Greg Lomason

Go forth and prosper!

In conclusion here is a checklist of things you'll need to do before deciding on hiring a personal trainer. Share this post to social media with the links below! Don't forget to hit the 💟 below if you enjoyed this. Follow me on social media and enjoy the free workout below!

How much assistance do I need?

(a lot, a little, just specifics)

What type of assistance do I need?

How long will my goal take?

How much time can I dedicate to the gym?

What type of personality works best for me?

How many times per week can I afford?

Am I ready to commit to myself and a program?