Personal Trainer: Job Profile and Role

Heidi Klum, Chris Evans, and – we dare say – even Chris Hemsworth have one: a personal trainer who helps these celebrities stay in shape and make us jealous or wow us with their perfect bodies. These background stars do way more than “torment” them daily to do their workouts. They are also responsible for their nutrition and overall health and passionate and deeply knowledgeable about all fitness-related aspects.

Maybe you see yourself in these personal trainers which is why you have always wanted to become one. This blog will help you make up your mind. After you have found out all about the required qualifications and skills, your expected salaries, employers, and job options, you will know if the job as a personal trainer is the right fit for you. To be absolutely sure, you will also get a few insights into the working day of a personal trainer and valuable tips for thriving.

Short Summary

• As a personal trainer, you are required to conduct fitness lessons that adhere to all health and safety regulations which makes training in this area mandatory.
• As a personal trainer, you are in charge of researching, planning, and developing bespoke exercises that meet the fitness levels and needs of your clients.
• As a personal trainer, you must practise what you preach and spend time on your personal workout. This makes you professional as well as your clients’ inspiration.

Job description

It is your job as a personal trainer to plan and develop tailor-made lessons that meet your clients’ physical and nutritional needs. You need to ensure that all exercises are conducted safely and offer first aid/CPR if and when needed. You must assess the fitness levels and progress of your clients regularly and adapt your lessons accordingly. You also show support and patience to your clients to ensure their continuous improvement and willingness to stay fit and healthy.

Responsibilities

• Fitness Assessment
• Monitoring Progress
• Education and Advice
• Client Communication
• Business Management
• Motivation and Support
• Instruction and Guidance
• Safety/Risk Management
• Providing Nutritional Advice
• Customised Exercise Programs

Different types of Personal Trainers

• Functional Movement Specialist
• Strength/Conditioning Coach
• Nutrition/Wellness Coach
• Group Fitness Instructor
• Weight Loss Specialist

Salary

When starting as a personal trainer, you can expect an annual salary of around ￡23,000. With work experience and a possibly more senior position, you can earn up to ￡44,000 per year. Typically, your average annual salary will amount to about ￡31,000. This number can be both lower and higher, depending on a) your employer and b) the location. As a general rule, you may find the highest annual wages in metropolitan areas as opposed to more rural regions. Keep in mind that further qualifications can also have a positive influence on your annual wages.

Working hours

As a personal trainer, your working hours will be as flexible as you. In general, you are expected to work between 32 and 34 hours a week. This may vary depending on your employer and the number of clients. You should also factor in working in the evenings and at the weekends. Even working during the holidays may be required of you. Again, this depends mainly on your clients. As a personal trainer, you can also work remotely by offering online fitness classes which can give you more leeway in your weekly workload.

Employers

As a personal trainer, your first employment port of call is gyms and health clubs. These can also be found in hotels and (wellness) resorts, where you can also apply for a job. Other employment options are sports clubs or sports teams that may also need a personal trainer for their athletes. 

Depending on your qualifications and certifications, you may also be able to look for work in the health sector, for example, as a physiotherapist/personal trainer. Another option which might be interesting for you is to be a freelancer. While this gives you the highest flexibility in both working hours and salary, it is also a challenging career path to enter. 

Qualifications

If you want to become a personal trainer, having the following qualifications will be useful (if not even required): GCSEs at grades 9 to 3 (A* to D) or at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C). These qualify you to enter either an apprenticeship or a college course, which tend to be the most common approaches to training as a personal trainer. Besides, you should be familiar with the most popular fitness software, such as Everfit and Virtuagym, and time-management software like Clockify and Toggl Track.

Skills

Empathy and a supportive nature are two skills which you should have if you want to work as a personal trainer. These characteristics help you to understand your clients, their fitness levels, and their needs. Naturally, there are further skills that will benefit both you and your clients. Before we take a look at three more of those competencies, we advise you to always check the job ads for the skills required by your employer.

Physical Fitness and Stamina

Needless to say, physical fitness, endurance, and stamina are the most important skills you have to have if you want to become and stay a personal trainer. Being fit and physically flexible will help you demonstrate fitness exercises with both dexterity and grace. These skills are also vital if your clients are to take you seriously. Because let’s face it – no one will believe a word you say if you do not practise what you preach.

Teaching Skills

Speaking of practising: teaching skills are equally important if you want to work successfully as a personal trainer. You not only need to know how to communicate the theories behind exercises or nutrition and health, but you also need to demonstrate movements and the way your clients are supposed to bend and flex their limbs. 

Patience

Lastly, patience is a quality you should have (or definitely work on if you are lacking in this department). As with all teaching jobs, you need to accept and respect that not all your students (clients) are on the same fitness level or have the same abilities as you. Therefore, it may take some time to teach certain aspects of your job. And patience will also be useful if you have clients who tend to do whatever they want, regardless of what you are trying to show and teach them.

Career Path

Every professional journey starts with the first step, your education. After you have completed your college course or apprenticeship, you can apply for your first job as a personal trainer. By gaining important experience and a good reputation, you can think about asking for more responsibilities. You can also look into specialising and becoming a Yoga or Pilates instructor, for example, or work in medical rehabilitation. Lastly, you can look into self-employment and start your own personal trainer business.

Educational Background

Typically, you can become a personal trainer by either completing an apprenticeship or a college course. Several viable options will give you all the training and (theoretical) knowledge you need to succeed in your job. 

If you want to do a college course, you can look into the following: a Level 2 Diploma in Instructing Exercise and Fitness, a Level 2 Certificate in Fitness Instructing, and/or a Level 3 Certificate in Personal Training.

If you are more interested in an apprenticeship (this also gives you some practical knowledge), you can complete one of the following: a Personal Trainer Level 3 Advanced Apprenticeship or a physical training instructor apprenticeship offered by the British Army.

Entry Level

Technically, there is no classic entry-level position when you start working as a personal trainer. Therefore, your first job is the job of a personal trainer. By gaining valuable work experience from more senior colleagues, you can later strive to get more responsibilities. This will become even more likely if you spend some time on further qualifications as a personal trainer.

Continuous Learning

Coaching qualifications are one of our recommendations when it comes to your continuous learning as a personal trainer. You can find courses that fit your requirements with UK Coaching, for example. Here, you can earn Level 1 to 3 qualifications and you can take courses in safeguarding both online and real-life classrooms. 

You will also benefit from qualifications in nutrition since teaching your clients about the right foods is an important part of your job. Viable options are the following: a Precision Nutrition Level 1 Certification, and a Diploma in Nutrition and Lifestyle Coaching. You can also become a Registered Nutritionist (RNutr) or a Registered Dietitian (RD).

Whichever qualifications you obtain: always ensure that they are accepted by the Chartered Institute for the Management of Sport and Physical Activity (CIMSPA). This way, you have qualifications that are also accepted by most of your potential employers.

Apprenticeships with the Royal Forces

As mentioned, you can become a personal trainer through an apprenticeship with the British Army. If this is an interesting approach for you, you can visit the websites of the Royal Navy and RAF. The qualifications you earn are also valid in the civilian world and it is likely that you will definitely have a job with the army when you have finished your respective training.

A Day in the Life of a Personal Trainer

Of course, teaching fitness classes is the main part of your working day as a personal trainer. But to get to this point, you will also have to spend some time researching, planning, and developing your lessons. This aspect will not be a daily but a regular occurrence. What other tasks await you in your life as a personal trainer? Continue reading and you will find out!

Digital Interaction

Yes, digital interaction may be a convoluted way to say that you need to be on top of your various inboxes. But it is actually a bit more than that. Your digital interaction also includes replying to enquiries, giving quotes on your hourly rates, and checking with your clients about what specific training and lessons they want or have already booked. This bouquet of tasks sets you up for both the day ahead and the days to come. Also, this kind of interaction can still take place in real life (just saying).

Fitness Assessments

Assessing the fitness levels of your clients is another important task in your job. Granted, it will not occur daily since improvements unfortunately do not appear overnight. But you need to evaluate the progress your clients have made and make the necessary adjustments to their personal lessons. 

Health and Nutrition Advice

Getting physically fit includes more than the right workout. Health aspects and the right nutrition are equally important to ensure that said workouts pay off and are conducted safely. Therefore, giving health and nutrition advice is another task you perform daily as a personal trainer.

Tips for Thriving as a Personal Trainer

Regardless of your qualifications and certifications, there is always room for further improvements, be it on a personal or professional level or both. If you want to thrive as a personal trainer, you should therefore look for opportunities that help you to become even better. In this section, we have three tips/opportunities for you that ensure that you will thrive as a personal trainer:

• Specialisation
• Adaptability
• First Aid

Specialisation

Being a personal trainer can take various directions and specialisations. This job is by no means restricted to teaching your clients about muscle workouts or lifting weights. In the last few years, several alternative workouts have become ever more popular, probably also because they have a celebrity fanbase. Naturally, your personal choice comes into this specialisation equation as well. But if Pilates, various types of Yoga, or Zumba are “your thing”, you should definitely strive to earn the necessary qualifications and certificates that make you stand out in your chosen exercise field.

Adaptability

As a personal trainer, you come up with bespoke exercise and fitness plans. So far, so good – at least, in theory. Unfortunately, not all your best-laid fitness plans will a) come to fruition or b) do not need the odd adjustment. By being adaptable, you can react to the necessary changes in your fitness regime that you have set up for your clients and put them into action. This way, you can contribute to a growing client base since your existing clients will love this competency.

First Aid

Exercise and sports tend to be exhausting – maybe one of the reasons that prompted Churchill’s infamous “No sports!” comment. Be that as it may – accidents and even life-threatening situations can occur during one of your lessons (we hope they do not!). Therefore, you should invest time into your first aid training, including CPR. We also recommend that you do refresher courses every few years to ensure that you still know how to help (and resuscitate).

Frequently Asked Questions