Post: #1

Yo. I just got a hired as a personal trainer at a fancy, overpriced gym in middtown Manhattan. The pay is pretty great, but it's 100% commission. My main hangup is that I'll be working long, unpaid hours for a good month or so until I establish a decent client base. I'm sure it'll pay off in the long run if I make it...

does anybody have any advice on the business aspect? The manager gave me a long talk about how making people feel happy, special, etc. is more important than great training. This was a bit surprising to me, as my strength is that I'm a good "teacher" of fitness, but he was keeping it real.

Post: #2

I can offer no advice on the financials of this profession, but it HAS to be a crazy slutfest.

Post: #3

I was debating putting an ad up craigslist as a "personal trainer"

My gym allows me to bring one guest any time I go, and I figured since I'm an "amateur personal trainer" I could undercut the larger gyms in the area and possibly pull in some extra scratch.

Thoughts?

Does being a personal trainer require ANY kind of special certification or is being a buff dude who knows whats what good enough?

Chef In Jeans
A culinary website for men

Post: #4

yes, legally being a personal trainer requires certification.
Sure, I know my stuff quite well, but people take me seriously because I have a bachelor's degree in Exercise Science and I am ACSM certified. Neither of these matter when it comes down to GOOD training, but they make you seem legit. A degree is not necessary, but a certification is. Nobody will take you seriously without it (no employers at least.. you can try to free lance, but you can also get sued very easily- obviously not likely to happen).

ACSM, NASM, and NSCA are the 3 best certifications.

Post: #5

Also some gyms expressly forbid using their gym to conduct for-profit personal training unless you're a trainer signed up with them, like Bally.

Business Advice-Talk to the busiest trainers and see if they have prospective clients or specific appointments that they can't work into their schedules. Get a business card to give to prospective clients and clients you already have.

Post: #6

(10-12-2011 03:47 PM)travolta Wrote:  Yo. I just got a hired as a personal trainer at a fancy, overpriced gym in middtown Manhattan. The pay is pretty great, but it's 100% commission. My main hangup is that I'll be working long, unpaid hours for a good month or so until I establish a decent client base. I'm sure it'll pay off in the long run if I make it...

does anybody have any advice on the business aspect? The manager gave me a long talk about how making people feel happy, special, etc. is more important than great training. This was a bit surprising to me, as my strength is that I'm a good "teacher" of fitness, but he was keeping it real.

I'm studying for my certificate now...I will probably only do it as a hobby as I already have a career I like but there is heaps of info on the net about marketing strategies ect. if you're interested.

Just google "marketing ideas for personal trainers" or similar and you will get a heap of usefull ideas.

Post: #7

(10-13-2011 12:02 AM)jmoney29 Wrote:  Also some gyms expressly forbid using their gym to conduct for-profit personal training unless you're a trainer signed up with them, like Bally.

Business Advice-Talk to the busiest trainers and see if they have prospective clients or specific appointments that they can't work into their schedules. Get a business card to give to prospective clients and clients you already have.

My gym doesn't staff trainers, they allow you to bring a guest precisely so independent trainers can bring clients there.

I look it up, its about $500 to get certified, at least here in MD, to rich for my blood right now, but its something I"ll keep on the back burner of my mind for the future.

And I do agree, the divergence between "legitimate" and actually knowledgeable seems massive. Even in my gym I've seen some guys who are admittedly in good shape having clients doing some STUPID workouts.

Chef In Jeans
A culinary website for men

Post: #8

Resurrecting this old thread due to a recent interaction (see here): /thread-9856-...pid1466332

I have decided to get serious about getting back in shape. What is the best way to find a personal trainer? They start at $75/hr at my gym. I am not paying that much.

I don't need someone to teach me how to lift. I am in my 40's and have lifted off and on since high school. I boxed golden gloves as a kid and was in great shape when I was in the Marines and when I got hired onto my job.

I really need a cheerleader/motivator/babysitter to get me back over the hump. Once I am back in the groove and am seeing results I should be able keep my forward momentum going.

I'd like to keep this to $25-$30/hr. Is this realistic? I was thinking maybe some guy going to school for exercise physiology would be interested. Thoughts?

And yes, I know that 80% of the results come from diet. But I know myself; when I am working out and feeling good I don't want to eat crap.

CP

Post: #9

(12-18-2016 01:16 PM)Caractacus Potts Wrote:  Resurrecting this old thread due to a recent interaction (see here): /thread-9856-...pid1466332

I have decided to get serious about getting back in shape. What is the best way to find a personal trainer? They start at $75/hr at my gym. I am not paying that much.

I don't need someone to teach me how to lift. I am in my 40's and have lifted off and on since high school. I boxed golden gloves as a kid and was in great shape when I was in the Marines and when I got hired onto my job.

I really need a cheerleader/motivator/babysitter to get me back over the hump. Once I am back in the groove and am seeing results I should be able keep my forward momentum going.

I'd like to keep this to $25-$30/hr. Is this realistic? I was thinking maybe some guy going to school for exercise physiology would be interested. Thoughts?

And yes, I know that 80% of the results come from diet. But I know myself; when I am working out and feeling good I don't want to eat crap.

CP

Motivation comes from within.

Post: #10

No buddies who work out or buddies with kids/younger brothers/friends who work out?

I know most people are welcoming when others wanna work out too. To add extra reason for them to get on your case toy could just pay their gym membership for them if you wanted.

Post: #11

Quote:I really need a cheerleader/motivator/babysitter to get me back over the hump.

Look man.


As Rhodey said it, all it comes from within. If you lack motivation, no personal trainer or motivator will be able to help you. You will waste money that way.

Figure something that motivates you (only you can know that) and go from there. For most of us, it was good pussy.


It is all in your head.

Post: #12

Honestly, if you've never set foot inside a gym and have no idea how to lift get a personal trainer. Explain to said trainer that you're looking to learn proper form on all of the major compound lifts.

Once you know how to squat, dead lift, bench, and over head press you'll have a good base to begin attacking other movements.

If you know good form, forgo the trainer. Get a good routine and just do it.

Post: #13

Apart from being MD, I actually got NCSA CSCC a few years back.

I can echo what Beast says above, because you can keep it simple, and basically, if you get stronger, everything will fall into place. The big BUT here is that like he says, you need to do two things:

1. Realize that this is a marathon, not a sprint. You are looking for improvement over YEARS, not short term; for the purposes of this conversation, it doesn't work like that, and you should be looking long term/lifestyle in any case.

2. Learn how to do all the lifts that you ever do, the correct way.

Only advanced people can do weird and stupid shit, and either gain or get away with it.

For any (quasi) beginner, I highly recommend Ian King's book of muscle to get a good idea of basics, full body training, and plans to workout over 30 week periods. You'll get the idea once you go through it and your brain will catch on.

I started Wendler 5/3/1 in February and it's already the end of the year, like I snapped my fingers. I'm stronger.

Now, at my age, it's more about maintenance because of job, energy, and the fact that I physically can't or don't want to be bothered with eating in order to "gain" minimally, and very little aesthetically/cosmetically when it comes to a girl's point of view (all that matters after my own).

Post: #14

It's funny for me to see this thread considering I started it over 5 years ago. I ended up working as a trainer for a few months before quitting. I decided to chase money instead. Earlier this year I decided to stop lifting weights. I still exercise nearly everyday, but now I do other stuff. I only do body weight exercises (pull-ups, pushups, planks), dance, and walk a lot. People will probably disagree with this post, but here's why I stopped:

-It's easy to injure yourself when you start lifting heavy. I was always strict about having good form, but all it takes is 1 small slip and you're fucked up. I've injured myself so many times over the years I cannot remember all of my injuries. All injuries were minor, but they add up over time.
-Everybody tries to justify that they don't care what women think, but let's be honest here- if you lift you're doing it to impress girls. I don't think most women are impressed by a muscular physique. They like it way more if you look "normal" but lean.
-Most of my excess/useless muscle that I put on over the years is gone. Now I'm lean with only a little bit of muscle. Physically I feel much better now. I have a lot of energy and I'm more flexible. I never felt this good when I lifted weights.

I think that over time it puts a lot of stress on your body to lift weights. (Same thing with running). I don't want to destroy my joints when I'm young just so I can have some extra muscle that doesn't do anything useful for me. I mentioned earlier in this post that in the gym I only really do push-ups and pull-ups. Ironically if done correctly, you can get a really good pump from these 2 exercises alone. The trick is to do grip variations so your body doesn't adapt.

Post: #15

I'm glad you landed on a happy/decent medium.

Do what works.

Functional and efficient usually is superior. Cheers.

Post: #16

Delete.

Post: #17

(12-23-2016 07:20 PM)Atlanta Man Wrote:  

(10-12-2011 03:47 PM)travolta Wrote:  Yo. I just got a hired as a personal trainer at a fancy, overpriced gym in middtown Manhattan. The pay is pretty great, but it's 100% commission. My main hangup is that I'll be working long, unpaid hours for a good month or so until I establish a decent client base. I'm sure it'll pay off in the long run if I make it...

does anybody have any advice on the business aspect? The manager gave me a long talk about how making people feel happy, special, etc. is more important than great training. This was a bit surprising to me, as my strength is that I'm a good "teacher" of fitness, but he was keeping it real.

Are you at Equinox? If so follow the training materials they give you.

Post: #18

I used to work as a gym manager at a high-end gym. The personal trainers that did the best were the ones that networked outside of the gym. You want to contact your friends (or make friends with) doctors, nutritionists, physical therapists, etc. Everyone knows that regular exercise is key to overall health. If you can give a little bit of one-on-one time with the professions above, you can show your value in caring about peoples' health needs. Make yourself a partner in the fight to get American fit and healthy again. Approach other professionals with that attitude and politely request that they send their clients your way for a complementary session (if your gym will allow it). You'll get some people who will take advantage of a few freebies, but you should also net some new clients. My best personal trainers never relied solely on acquiring new leads from the existing membership rolls. Get out there and find new bodies to bring into the gym, and you'll boost the gym's revenue as well. Strategize with your gym's GM and show him you care about growing the bottom line. Once you prove your worth, angle for a management spot.