Six Traits of the Successful Personal Fitness Trainer

Personal Fitness Trainer Job Description

If you are passionate about helping people achieve their fitness goals and stay healthy, you may have considered a career as a personal fitness trainer. Creating fitness plans for clients and motivating clients to stay on track are just some of the daily responsibilities of personal fitness trainers. In general, it takes a certain type of personality to really make a difference in people’s lives. If you want to become a personal trainer, these six characteristics and traits will help you be successful in your career:

Traits to Become a Personal Trainer Who Excels in Their Field

• 1: Self-Disciplined - Personal trainers need to ‘walk the walk’ by being disciplined with their own fitness and health regimen. They need to work out regularly, eat healthy foods, and commit to the fitness lifestyle. Doing so helps them lead by example and sets a standard for all of their clients.
• 2: Positive Attitude - Not all of your clients are going to be extremely motivated during each session or have a positive attitude about health and fitness. A personal trainer needs to have a positive attitude that they can share with their clients to help clients get out of a fitness rut, set and achieve goals, and stay motivated for the long haul. Personal trainers are essentially coaches and advisors who need to provide support in a positive and healthy way.
• 3: Patience - As a personal trainer you’ll meet clients from all walks of life and with different types of goals throughout your career. Patience will be required as you work to understand the needs and goals of individual clients. It can take time to truly understand what a client is trying to achieve, what he or she may be struggling with, and what type of personality they have so you can customize a plan that will help in the achievement of specific fitness goals.
• 4: Strong Communication Skills - Whether a personal trainer is walking clients through a new exercise routine or providing support over the phone, excellent communication skills are essential. The personal trainer needs to be able to articulate instructions and information and should also have the ability to motivate and inspire clients. In addition, the trainer should inquire about clients’ preferred communication channels – text, email, or phone calls – in order to help establish rapport and help keep the client on track with fitness goals.
• 5: High Energy Level - In addition to maintaining a positive attitude, personal trainers need to maintain a high energy level and be prepared to work with clients at various times of the day (or night), and in some cases, train clients in back to back appointments. As a personal trainer, this heavy activity load may require you to eat better, get enough sleep, and work that much harder to maintain a healthy lifestyle so that you can sustain a high energy level all day long.
• 6: Teaching Ability - Personal trainers need to lead by example. Not only is it important to demonstrate how to live a healthy lifestyle, but also, personal trainers need to have the ability to teach clients basic fitness principles so the clients can exercise safely and effectively even when working toward fitness goals on their own. The best personal trainers have a strong educational background from a vocational school or college that offers certified personal trainer programs. This type of background provides a solid foundation for teaching and ensures that the trainer will have the knowledge and skills required to truly train and guide clients in safe and effective fitness routines.

Does this sound like a career path you’d be interested in? If you want to learn more about becoming a personal fitness trainer take the time now to request information. We would be happy to talk with you.