personal training?

You are going to pay a great deal of money for a personal trainer through any big name gym; 50.00/hour is average. As such, you need to make sure you’re getting the most qualified person for the job.You need to look for the following things in a personal trainer-

1. A bachelor’s degree in one of the following;health and human development, health promotion, exercise science, exercise physiology, kinesiology, biomechanics, or health enhancement.

2. A reputable personal training certification, preferably from one of the following organizations; American Council on Exercise (ACE), American Council on Sports Medicine (ACSM), or the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA).

If the don’t have a degree in one of the above fields, don’t even bother with them. First of all, most of the reputable certifications require you to have a degree. There are some certification groups that don’t require a degree and the training for certification is a joke. I have worked with a lot of personal trainers without degrees and people are not getting their money’s worth from them. In fact, some of their programming is down right dangerous.

Secondly, if they don’t have one of the degrees described above, they don’t have enough of a background in human anatomy and physiology, exercise physiology, kinesiology (movement science) or biomechanics to put you on anything more than a very, very basic program.

Lastly, if you do pick up a personal trainer with the above qualifications, don’t let them put you on any kind of diet program unless they have a Sports Nutrition certification through a valid group. I worked with a trainer who placed a man on the Atkins diet for 4 months. The man is now a Type 2 diabetic.

I am a Certified ISSA Trainer and to get the most out of your workouts and maximize your results a trainer would be a great idea, especially if you do not have a lot of knowledge on exercise prescription and program development. Trainers like myself can put you on a program that would best suit you. Bally’s is a great place to start, but you don’t have to necessarily pay large monthly dues on top of your cost of training. Try to locate a personal training studio if you want to save some money.