Exercising with a personal trainer on a regular basis is an incredible investment in your health and therefore, your future. But there are so many trainers and they’re all so different. How do you choose?
An important consideration: unlike the legal, engineering, and healthcare professions, personal trainers are not regulated. They’re not required to abide by a code of ethics or accountable to a governing body whose mandate is to protect the public.
In fact, personal training is the wild, wild west.
Be cautious. Search the internet for personal trainers in your area. Then ask all potential trainers the following questions through email or during your free initial consultation, and definitely before you pay and embark on that first session.
WHAT’S THEIR EDUCATION?
Becoming a personal trainer can be as short as a weekend course, then a brief theoretical and practical exam. Scary, right? As a massage therapist, Sylvia treated many people who’d been hurt by their trainer’s exercise recommendations.
How do you protect yourself?
Look for a personal trainer who’s educated. Make them be specific. What do the letters after their name stand for? How long was that course? What did they learn? Where did they learn?
A kinesiology or human kinetics degree is the obvious choice. Unfortunately, as of yet they are still unregulated (2024), but at least they’ve studied orthopaedics and know how the human musculoskeletal system operates.
A healthcare professional turned personal trainer is another excellent choice, especially if their education included therapeutic exercise, along with orthopaedic studies in anatomy, physiology, and pathology.
WHAT’S THEIR EXPERIENCE?
The type of experience you’re looking for would depend on your goals.
Do you want to be a body builder, learn how to pose, and compete onstage? Or are you looking for sport-specific conditioning? Look for a trainer who has the type of experience you need.
Is your goal to lose weight? Eighty percent of weight loss is what you put in your mouth.
An important fact: the designation “nutritionist” is unregulated and anyone can use it. So unless your trainer is a registered dietician, follow the updated Canada Food Guide.
Is your interest in exercise about a healthier future as you age? Then look for someone older. Only through personal experience will your trainer “get” that jumping rope doesn’t work for you. Or that doing burpees is awkward and will always make your back ache.
WHAT’S THEIR EXERCISE PHILOSOPHY?
Do they believe in the no pain/no gain, boot-camp approach? Or do they have a health-comes-first philosophy? Whatever it is, make sure it works for you.
WHAT’S THEIR REFUND POLICY?
Most trainers require payment of a specific number of sessions up front. Ask them, “If things don’t work out, will you refund my money?”
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The Probationary Period
You’ve done your research, asked the questions, and chosen a personal trainer. However, the scrutiny isn’t over. Consider the initial exercise sessions as your trainer’s probationary period. Here’s what to watch for:
HOW PROFESSIONAL ARE THEY?
Is your personal trainer hung over? Or working while sick?
Do they dress in whatever they picked up off the floor that morning? Or are they groomed, alert and ready to assist your best work out ever?
Does your trainer recommend and sell vitamins, protein powder/bars, or weight-loss pills? If so, that would be a conflict of interest.
ARE THEY WATCHING YOU?
While you perform a weight-training set, your trainer should be quietly making corrections to your posture, form, cadence, and breathing. If instead they’re “doing whatever” on their phone and not paying attention to your movements, then ask for that refund.
ARE THEY LISTENING TO YOU?
“Pain is what the patient says it is, not what you think it ought to be.” This motto is drilled into healthcare professionals.
Remember, it’s your body, your choice. Your consent is necessary for all exercises and there should be zero judgment. If an exercise hurts, then why are you doing it?
ARE THEY RECORDING YOUR RESULTS?
Your personal trainer should be directing your workout from a carefully prepared program that caters to your goals and includes all your muscle groups. Likewise, said trainer should be recording your weight and repetitions for each exercise.
How can you know if you’re improving if there’s no record of what you did a month ago?
WHAT’S THE REASONING BEHIND EACH EXERCISE?
Feel free to ask. Your trainer should understand the risk/benefit ratio of each exercise and find it easy to explain.
ARE THEY WILLING TO TAKE DIRECTION FROM A HEALTHCARE PROFESSIONAL?
Our most pertinent learning to date has come from visiting physiotherapists with our clients. Ask your trainer to accompany you (preferably at no cost) during your physiotherapist visit. Watch how they handle being told what to do.
WHO STRETCHES WHOM?
Does your trainer stretch you? Most trainers have never learned to feel for the soft-tissue, end-range of each joint. Some muscles (like the hip rotators and adductors) are delicate and easily torn. That’s why each stretch needs to be monitored by your sensitivity, not your trainer’s.
Ask your trainer to show you how to stretch on your own. It’ll increase your mind/body awareness. Daily stretching is recommended anyway.
However, if limited range of motion makes it difficult for you to stretch on your own, make sure you tell your trainer to stop when you feel the stretch. A stretch should always feel mild and never painful.
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There you have it! We wish you the best of luck in finding the best personal trainer to accompany you into a long-term, exercise-based relationship.
– LEONG Orthopaedic Health
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