Buyer Beware!

Today, I am seeing the personal training industry heading downhill.  Just like on the west coast many waiters are out of work actors, the same can be said for personal trainers, and I hate being associated with that.  I am a highly qualified and certified personal trainer with a bachelor's degree in Exercise Science and a passion for what I do and I currently work as a personal trainer. Personal Training is a wonderful and rewarding profession and one that I think has potential to do a lot of good in helping people reach their fitness goals. I've met some great and talented personal trainers but with as many great trainers that I have worked with there are twice as many trainers who are the exact opposite, and it's too bad that many of those trainers are giving the industry a bad name. But what is even more concerning are the trainers that are putting people in harm, and risking their client's health and safety by performing unsafe or unwarranted exercises and giving them dangerous advice.  Today's trainers remind me of George Orwell's 1984, where one of the slogans of the book is "Ignorance is Strength."  Not only are some of today's trainers uneducated and inexperienced, they seem to have no desire to take the time to become a talented trainer.

The industry has absolutely no regulation and I can tell you from experience that many trainers working both independently and in gyms have no certification or credentials that qualify them to train others. A regulatory body for personal trainers does not exist. There are countless different personal training certifications or certificates available. Not all are created equal.  It's up to the client to check a trainer's background and qualifications.  Unlike many other professions, such as dietitian, and even massage therapist, personal training requires no state license or major requirements.  By law, for example, a person must meet certain requirements to call himself or herself a dietitian or nutritionist. In contrast, there is no law that stipulates what is required for someone to attach the status "personal trainer" to his or her name, so be wary.  An experienced professional with a bachelor's degree in exercise physiology is probably more qualified than many personal trainers whose only experience comes from their weekend certification course, but unless you know everything about that person's education, background and experience, a well recognized and respected certification is still a good thing to look for.

Look for a personal trainer with a well respected certification or degree.  Many personal trainers get their certifications in a weekend course or even more shocking, are not certified at all.  A reputable certification will require that the person be CPR-certified, take an exam that contains both written and practical application questions, detail the required score the person must achieve to earn certification status, and require continuing education credits to remain certified by that organization.  Well respected certifications include CSCS, ACSM, NSCA, ISSA, and NASM.  In general, the more difficult the exam is known to be, the more in-depth your trainer's knowledge will be.

Every trainer started off as an experienced personal trainer, however the best ones took their time to study their profession.  True personal trainers have a passion for what they do.  They are in the business to help change people's lifestyles, not just collect a paycheck.  Simply being certified—even from one of the best organizations—does not mean that your trainer will be a good one. Personal training requires a person to take a great deal of knowledge and apply it to a wide variety of individualized cases, which is no small feat. This doesn't even get into the other issues like personality fit, motivational style, how well the trainer designs workout plans to your individual needs, or how well the trainer cues you and pays attention to proper form during each exercise.  

All too often, new or inexperienced personal trainers put their clients at extreme risk.  Because of their lack of knowledge, they tend to mimic experienced trainers or surf the web to come up with a exercise routine.  Their workouts have no rhyme or reason, and they end up hopping from machine to machine with no plan of action.  A well designed program does not mean making your clients pass out or throw up.  This is not a well designed program, it put clients is harm's way and can lead to more problems.  Many personal trainers become trainers simply because they like working out, or a friend or gym member told them they should be trainers.  There are tons or diets and fitness programs one could follow to get in shape.  However, one must pick the right routine for them that is safe while also being effective.  Some programs are effective and some are extremely risky.  Just because a trainer is in good shape does not mean that they have the skills to be a trainer.

Certifications do exist for a reason—both to protect the fitness consumer and the trainer. Certifications are based on medically accepted science, safe protocols, good judgment and sound research, among countless other safety measures. While a non-professional may have a good deal of knowledge about exercise, proper training in anatomy, physiology, exercise physiology, exercise assessments and prescriptions and other areas covered by a good certification is essential. What your friend with a six pack read in a magazine may not be accurate, safe or effective for you, even if she feels qualified and experienced to train you. Without having read a personal training manual, studied the material and passed a test, she doesn't know what she might not know.

For the personal training industry, it is "buyer beware".  It is up to the client to weed out the unqualified personal trainers to find one that is well experience with a well respected certification or degree.  Look for the trainers that know the "trade", not the "tricks of the trade".