ITT: Is hiring a personal trainer worth it?

[LegallyBlondee]

Considering hiring a personal trainer to learn new exercises/increase variety in my workouts, etc. Is it a waste of money or worth it? Anyone have a particularly good or bad experience w/ a trainer? How long do you generally work with them for?

[NatK]

I have a trainer and I am so happy that I work with her!! I don't get to meet and work with her in person, because she is in another country (she is one of my role models so I hired her instead of someone here that I knew nothing about). She keeps me interested and listens to what I want and need and like and dislike. She keeps me accountable too. Worth the money IMO.

[LegallyBlondee]

I have a trainer and I am so happy that I work with her!! I don't get to meet and work with her in person, because she is in another country (she is one of my role models so I hired her instead of someone here that I knew nothing about). She keeps me interested and listens to what I want and need and like and dislike. She keeps me accountable too. Worth the money IMO.

Awesome, thx! How often do you keep in touch, daily/weekly basis? Does she provide any nutritional information for you?

[Cvrchak]

A good trainer is definitly worth your money. As for learning technique and for progression. Also, a good trainer is a great motivator. If you are a beginner, hire a trainer, after some time you'll probably need him only for making your programs.

[andrerox80]

like anything else, some trainers are good, some are bad, so you'll hear experiences both good and bad. definitely do your research. maybe watch the trainers train other people, kind of 'interview' them, etc. you asked abt nutritional info. a lot are clueless, all broscience and/or perpetuating myths. so you don't want nutritional advice from a trainer unless s/he has a separate degree or cert in nutrition. you're better off reading info here or finding a really good dietician, if you need more.

[NatK]

Awesome, thx! How often do you keep in touch, daily/weekly basis? Does she provide any nutritional information for you?

Weekly definitely, sometimes more if I need to know any info. Yes she provides me monthly exercise and a nutrition, and supplement plan (which have helped with my health problems that I was having).

[oregonchick76]

A good trainer is very helpful for a newbie, but a bad one is worse than none at all... And most of them suck. If you are explicit with your goals it will be easier to know if they can meet your needs. Make a list of what you want to learn/accomplish.

Once you have the basics, don't be afraid to cut the apron strings. Everyone is fully capable of progressing without someone to hold their hand.

[dsm246]

When I first started I had never picked up a weight. I didn't have any idea how to start and was very intimidated by the weight room in the gym in general. Because of this, I did hire a trainer. I got very lucky because he ended up being really good. He's taught me a lot and I've come further than I really ever thought was possible. That said, a number of friends also got trainers after they saw how much progress I was making. Most of them ended up with terrible trainers. So, as others have pointed out, if you go the training route spend some time researching trainers and if it doesn't work out with the first person don't feel bad about making a change and trying someone else. For me, it was a good investment but your milage may vary as they say.

[PoukieBear]

Trainers are definately worth your money, if you get the right one. Most gyms have a bunch of trainers, and some of them will do a free training session with you if they think that you will hire them.

Talk to your gym, and see if you can get a free session with a trainer you think will be suitable for you. If you don't like him/her, on to the next! Keep trying them out until you find someone you click with.

I've had 2 trainers. The first girl I had was really great and I loved her. She ended up leaving the gym and I was assigned a new trainer. I'm not so fond of him, and am looking forward to being done with him after next week.

[LegallyBlondee]

Weekly definitely, sometimes more if I need to know any info. Yes she provides me monthly exercise and a nutrition, and supplement plan (which have helped with my health problems that I was having).

Repped- ty!!

[LegallyBlondee]

A good trainer is very helpful for a newbie, but a bad one is worse than none at all... And most of them suck. If you are explicit with your goals it will be easier to know if they can meet your needs. Make a list of what you want to learn/accomplish.

Once you have the basics, don't be afraid to cut the apron strings. Everyone is fully capable of progressing without someone to hold their hand.

I would definitely consider myself a newbie, at least at lifting lol

[LegallyBlondee]

Thanks for the input everyone!

[NatK]

This is a good point about how good or not so good trainers are; and it is the reason I hired my favorite fitness model. I liked her experience and her clients have great success, and she looks awesome, we jive too so it made it easy to know I wanted to be training with her.

A good trainer is very helpful for a newbie, but a bad one is worse than none at all... And most of them suck. If you are explicit with your goals it will be easier to know if they can meet your needs. Make a list of what you want to learn/accomplish.

Once you have the basics, don't be afraid to cut the apron strings. Everyone is fully capable of progressing without someone to hold their hand.

[kjake55]

I absolutely adore my trainer!

He has brought me from thinking I knew what I was doing (HA!) to realizing I didn't have a clue what I was doing to now knowing what I am doing and why I'm doing it in a certain way (mostly). The very best part is that I am stronger today than I ever thought I could be and I know that I'm not nearly as strong as I can be. With his help the sky is the limit.

You need to get to know the person, their style and also be pretty sure what you want out of the training. I knew what I wanted and was able to articluate it to him. So now when he puts my programs together we are on the same page. He's also the kind of person that when questioned about why am I doing this lift instead of that one (for example) he will take the time to explain to me the benefits and contrasts.

If for no other reason than to get started I would try it for a bit. You are always worth any investment you make in yourself and that's what this is, it's LegallyBlonde making a lifetime investment in LegallyBlonde!

[itsagoodday]

I really enjoy working with my trainer. For one thing, I lift heavier in my training sessions, because she pushes me harder and is also my handy dandy spotter. And I don't have to worry about doing anything incorrectly for any length of time, because if I start doing something 'off' when I work on my own, she'll catch it and correct it the next time I see her. I have some old injuries I don't want to aggravate, so it's great to have someone make sure I'm not travelling down the Path of Stupid Mistakes, which I have been known to do. I also love that I never know what I'm going to be doing in my session with her, and that keeps me entertained, as the rest of the week I follow a set program.

[LegallyBlondee]

I really enjoy working with my trainer. For one thing, I lift heavier in my training sessions, because she pushes me harder and is also my handy dandy spotter. And I don't have to worry about doing anything incorrectly for any length of time, because if I start doing something 'off' when I work on my own, she'll catch it and correct it the next time I see her. I have some old injuries I don't want to aggravate, so it's great to have someone make sure I'm not travelling down the Path of Stupid Mistakes, which I have been known to do. I also love that I never know what I'm going to be doing in my session with her, and that keeps me entertained, as the rest of the week I follow a set program.

Yeah I feel as though I would benefit the most from the variety of the workouts that I would be doing. I don't like getting stuck into a routine but it's hard to find new exercises after a while!

[penny0527]

I had a trainer when I started and I don't regret it. I had a great trainer. I had one session once a week for 6 weeks and the other days I worked out by myself based on what he taught me. In 6 weeks I had made a huge amount of progress. That coupled with continually learning from others has helped so much. Since my trainer was so great he was worth every penny.

[LegallyBlondee]

I had a trainer when I started and I don't regret it. I had a great trainer. I had one session once a week for 6 weeks and the other days I worked out by myself based on what he taught me. In 6 weeks I had made a huge amount of progress. That coupled with continually learning from others has helped so much. Since my trainer was so great he was worth every penny.

I'm sure it varies a lot, but what would the average cost be for once a week for 6 weeks? That sounds like a good timeline to be able to assess my progress.

[tylerpritchard_7]

Is a cup of coffee worth 2 dollars? Do we need to buy 40'000 dollar cars over 15'000? Depends on the person and how bad they want it.

[LegallyBlondee]

Is a cup of coffee worth 2 dollars? Do we need to buy 40'000 dollar cars over 15'000? Depends on the person and how bad they want it.

Well, obviously a cup of coffee is worth $2. Probably more if you go to Starbucks. I'm a third year law student so, hard to disagree with that analogy lol.

[BrotherWolf]

A good trainer is worth his weight in gold... just like coffee


depending on your goals, but you can do it without one.. the informations is out there, you just need someone to put you into the right path because there's a lot of **** on the internet
and you have to sift through it

[XSusieqX]

Maybe asked around at the gym you go to and ask for recommendations, i spent months watching the trainers and seeing how they put people through their paces before i picked the trainer I have and i wouldnt change him for the world, i train with him once a week for a hour, but inbetween i speak to him every day in the gym and can text him or call him whenever i need to .Hes actually turned into more of a friend instead of a trainer but that still does'nt stop him pushing me to my limits during our sessions

[MrB1g]

Free workouts online designed by some of the best lifters in history? Yes.

Free nutritional information and free access to academic articles? Yes.

Free form videos on youtube from some of the strongest powerlifters in the world? Yes.


Or you can pay $70/hour for someone who (in all likelihood) completed an outdated and useless online certification to tell you factually wrong information.


Your choice.

[rdferguson]

Some trainers are extremely worth it. A lot of trainers are not.

[LegallyBlondee]

Free workouts online designed by some of the best lifters in history? Yes.

Free nutritional information and free access to academic articles? Yes.

Free form videos on youtube from some of the strongest powerlifters in the world? Yes.


Or you can pay $70/hour for someone who (in all likelihood) completed an outdated and useless online certification to tell you factually wrong information.


Your choice.

I pick choice #3!

[1nstinct]

Some of the benefits to a trainer that I've found is that they (or mine), corrects my form, calls me out when I'm cheating and prods me to really try to my max instead of giving up too early.

If you have the discipline to do the above solo or with just a friend, then you might not need one.

[GetBigs]

Free workouts online designed by some of the best lifters in history? Yes.

Free nutritional information and free access to academic articles? Yes.

Free form videos on youtube from some of the strongest powerlifters in the world? Yes.


Or you can pay $70/hour for someone who (in all likelihood) completed an outdated and useless online certification to tell you factually wrong information.


Your choice.

I agree with you for the most part, but what if this trainer is a professional bodybuilder? lmfao, I'm a beginner, considering hiring him, not so expensive at all, so, would it be worth hiring him?

[ironfirefitness]

Considering hiring a personal trainer to learn new exercises/increase variety in my workouts, etc. Is it a waste of money or worth it? Anyone have a particularly good or bad experience w/ a trainer? How long do you generally work with them for?

Hi

I'm an online trainer, and owner at IronFireFitness.com. We currently have a 25% discount on everything in our store including my online training packages. If you're wanting an online trainer, I'd love to help you. I've been training for years and decided to launch Iron Fire to help as many people as possible. I can help with weight training, nutrition and any other aspects of fitness that you might be interested in.

If you're interested, either PM me on here for details, go to ironfirefitness.com or drop me an email at gemma@ironfirefitness.com.

We can go through what you are looking to achieve and discuss potential plans etc. before you commit to anything - I always want to make sure that potential clients are happy with what I would recommend before they pay for anything.

Like I said, contact me and we can have a chat, if you like.

Take Care,

IFF