How to decide if you should hire a personal trainer
Many people who hire a personal trainer don’t really need one. However, it’s rare that you’ll find the client of a good trainer that thinks they could go it alone. If you have the money to spend on the luxury of a trainer, then by all means, hire away! But if like everyone else, you are feeling the drain of a sagging economy and find yourself reevaluating every monthly expense, then keep reading. You might find that you don’t really need to shell out the extra clams to keep fit.
There are some situations where a trainer is a necessity rather than a luxury. Injury rehabilitation or chronic medical conditions are both cases which warrant the watchful eye of a qualified trainer. In these situations, a trained professional will make recommendations for appropriate activities and the pace at which a client can progress to the next level. Sport specific training is another good reason to hire a coach or personal trainer. An advanced level athlete not only needs a personalized program that is tailored to his specific strengths and weaknesses, but also has the awareness and ability to maximize time and money spent with a coach and turn it into peak performance on game day.
For better or worse, most of us don’t fall into any of those categories. Typically, a trainer’s client is a beginning to intermediate level exerciser who needs extra motivation in the health club to lose weight or maintain a desired level of fitness. Americans pay an average of $58/hour for motivation, structure and accountability. But if a client can eventually provide these factors for themselves they boost self confidence and increase their personal investment and commitment to the program. While the trainer’s input is essential in the early stages, eventually going it alone can improve your chances of long term adherence. Self motivation paves the way. According to exercise physiologist Elizabeth Quinn, “if you ultimately want to learn all the facets of designing your own routines so you don’t need to use a personal trainer, going for a few months may be all you need.” She continues, ” all good personal trainers will teach you the basics of building and modifying a fitness program to achieve maximum results”
Personal trainers are a great resource for sound exercise advice, program design, feedback, and evaluation. But if you need to cut back on expenses, consider learning the basics and training solo to maximize results. If going it alone seems impossible, many trainers are willing to train friends two at a time or even a small group if it means not losing a client. Consider your options and work with your trainer to get the most out of your training dollars.
