Hi guys
I have been considering taking a PT course recently. I currently work as a nurse but really want a career change to move towards the fittnes industry. I have a PT myself and he has changed me life, I honestly believe that, he is now a very good friend and I wouldn't have made the changes I have done without him. I have been looking into doing a PT course because I want to be able to help people in this way. I know it won't be easy as I don't just want to be an average PT. I have come to notice that there are some dreadful PT working in some gyms that I wouldn't train with free of charge let alone spend £40 to train with them. I am just after some advice really, lots of people have told me that there isn't really much of a market for female PT's because people prefer to train with men as they are "usually" stronger. All the PT's in my gym are men and they are never short of clients.
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04-17-2012, 05:47 AM #1
- Join Date: Jan 2012
- Location: United Kingdom (Great Britain)
- Age: 40
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Is there a market for female PT's in UK
Winners can try and fail, a failure will fail to try.
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04-17-2012, 05:51 AM #2
Yes there is. I've just spent a weekend at Loughborough University at the FitPro convention. Hundreds of female trainers at it (the convention, although heavily geared towards group x also had a big focus on PT). Whoever is telling you there is no demand for female trainers is wrong. I know lots of females that would prefer to train with a female trainer. I also know lots of females who would only train with a male trainer too. If you want to be a trainer, then go and be a trainer.
***Irish Misc Crew***
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04-17-2012, 06:28 AM #3
- Join Date: Feb 2012
- Location: United Kingdom (Great Britain)
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^^^Absolutly right.
There is a strong demand. But remember that a good trainer is made by what you learn outside of the course. The gym instructor, and PT courses are very basic on the things that matter. They will teach you a load of anatomy which is great, but the real meat of training comes from your programming, teaching, and application of sound training principles suited to your clients needs, wishes, and abilities.
IMHO it is not a good idea to go straight into PT without cutting your teeth in a commercial gym environment first as an instructor for a few years. By doing this you will learn so much. You will meet and train a lot of people- building up your skills. You will deal with a lot of instructors (good and bad) which can also teach you a lot. You'll make a lot of contacts, and it is likely you can get some extra courses for free.
Whatever you do, don't just follow the info provided in the course- this is sadly what is wrong with the industry right now- its full of McTrainers that got the certificate and think thats all they need.
Just remember that the best instructors are not always the most qualified. Read, apply, and read some more. With all the information out there, it can often seem contradictory. So to be a good instructor you must decipher the best for your client, and explain it all in a way the layperson can understand. To do this you need to know what you are talking about intimatly. Again, read, apply, and read some more.
All the best to you whatever you decide.My training log:
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http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=153596291&p=1062453741#post1062453741
[]---[] Equipment Crew #43 []---[]
-!!!---!!!- No Excuses Homemade Equipment Crew #1 -!!!---!!!-
()---() York Barbell Club #4 ()---()
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04-17-2012, 03:13 PM #4
- Join Date: Jun 2009
- Location: Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
- Posts: 9,486
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Our Western society is sexist and ageist, which means that a 19yo woman will find it harder to get clients than a 40yo man. You can counter this prejudice by being fcking good.
To get and keep clients you need to demonstrate competence, establish trust and rapport.And our job is to teach correct movement; whenever someone butchers a movement like a squat, there's always a reason they're moving as they are, what is that reason in each case and how can we sort it out?
Thus the important skills for a trainer are communication, knowledge of exercise physiology and having a large library of exercises to choose from. Very little of those skills are taught in your basic fitness courses, you have to get them by experience. Rather than a commercial gym to begin with, I suggest a community gym like a YMCA. This gives you time to build your skills without the pressure to sell sell sell.
The following are talking about PT in Australia, but it's similar in the UK.
education
employment
assessment
the pt-client relationship
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04-17-2012, 03:53 PM #5
- Join Date: Jan 2012
- Location: United Kingdom (Great Britain)
- Age: 40
- Posts: 84
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Thanks
Thanks for the advise guys, if Im going to do this and I think I am, I going to make sure I put 100% of my efforts into it. I am determined that I will not be one of those PT's who think that once u have a certificate your good enough to train anyone. I see these kind of PTs in the gym often and wonder why people would pay for their advise, no disrespect to any PT's who are enthusiastic and knowledgable but I look at some that think I would be embarrassed to call myself a PT. If I found that once I have started I wasn't very good I would give up, the last thing I would want to do is take someone's money and offer them very little or nothing in return. I intend to do it part time and continue with my nursing career as this is still a passion of mine and would not quit it but it will be good to have a fall back also if I find PT is not for me. Cheers guys. Xx
Winners can try and fail, a failure will fail to try.
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04-18-2012, 11:02 AM #6
Is there a market for trainers in the UK? Yes, of course there is. It's a country of 62 million, 22% of whom are obese. The fact that you're female is not relevant; your ability to improve people's health and fitness has nothing to do with what's between your legs. Good reasons to doubt the wisdom of becoming a PT include no job security or benefits, variable income and long, inconvenient working hours - not your sex.
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04-18-2012, 03:49 PM #7
- Join Date: Jan 2012
- Location: United Kingdom (Great Britain)
- Age: 40
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I know the hours are long and inconvenient but at the minute I am working as a nurse so figure the hours can't be any longer or inconvenient. The way the current goverment is the job security and and benefits working for the NHS are not what they were. Whenever I'm not in work I'm pretty much in the gym anyway.
Winners can try and fail, a failure will fail to try.
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