How to become a personal trainer? plz help

S

SmithMachine

0
Hi i am a 16 year old male that has kinda felt lost with what i should do with my life, job wise. Until 2 months ago that i decided to start going to the gym and geting fit and 2 weeks into it i was hooked i tell u. Well once i started seeing the results or more so feeling them! I am skinny and way 59 KG. I left school at year 10 and i live in Brisbane-Australia. I am wondering what some one in my position could do to get into a job of personal training or a job in fitness of some kind as i think i would really enjoy it. can some one please give me a some info on what it takes to become a personal trainer and mayby list some other jobs that are purely just to do with fitness. Is it even posible to get a career in fitness/personal training when u only have your year 10 certificate. I know im not huge now but i intend to keep going until i am well....bigger. It would be great if i could get into studying fitnes the body and health or anything down that road while aktualy improving my self. and at the end of my studys which im guessing would at least be a year id be alot biger and yeah u know what i mean lol Ive come to think of my body as allmost like a car that u can do up haha. Id allso really love giving people the info they need to keep fit as i was once/still am and wasent like those people who have great genes and are fit for no reason other then that. but yes i am very intrested in it so if some people could provide me some valuable and insightfull infomation i would be very thankfull

sorry about my terible spelling :(
 
Congratulations on getting hooked,

For one thing, read a lot, and not just about exercises for your own body type, as every BODY is different and if you really want to excell you will have to know plenty about everyone. The more you read, the more comfortable you will feel with the terminology, (and spelling;) . When you have questions, ask. Getting onto this site was a good idea...

At any rate, you could look into the types of certifications that are available for people without completing their college degree. I know there are things that require college, but I don't know if the others actually requires a high school diploma (I would guess not). At any rate, you will probably spend more than a year learning... I would hope. Don't go get a cert just because they are the easiest and cheapest to get, or you won't know if you really know enough to help anyone anyway. If you really want to be a personal trainer get some time actually working in a gym if possible, maybe not as a trainer, but just to be around people who hopefully know what they are talking about. Who cares if you are just cleaning equipment etc. (for now). Take a college nutrition course or something to be sure you understand the basics (or go to a college bookstore (or online somewhere) and get a used Nutrition 101 book).

Also, you can learn a lot online, but being sure you know how the body works is extrememly important, so be sure you cover all of your bases. Knowing certain exercises is not as important as knowing how the body responds to exercise, and how the muscles work, where they attatch etc, so that you can help stay injury free etc. You don't want to just know WHAT to do, you need to know WHY.

Good luck.:p
 
It's great that you want a job in fitness but whatever you do make sure you stay in eductation long enough to get the highest level of academic qualification available to you. Whatever you do in life, whatever s**t gets thrown your way, the one thing that can never be taken away from you is your eductation and so long as you have that you'll have a fighting chance.

Eductation is your number one contingency plan, if you were badly injured it's possible that a career in fitness wouldn't be practical anymore. An eduction opens more doors if a rainy day comes. A career in fitness can wait
 
hey becoming a personal trainer isnt to hard, a lot of my friends have become one. You dont need to go to college but you need to get some certificate. Doesnt take to long or cost to much. good luck.
 
99% of C-PT's who haven't been to college, that I have seen at least, are absolutely pathetic. If you got the chance to hit the college campus then take it. If not then its best you start educating yourself now in all areas of nutrition/fitness now.
 
and yeah i look at this forum daily but thats what i mean by get my self into shape and kinda just learn the ways then do the certificates as well
 
CCR said:
You don't need it but it's bloody useful. Do whatever it takes to get more of a formal education before you start thinking about a career.
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Education, enthusiasm, and professionalism are what seperates poor trainers from good/excellent trainers, and what makes a job a career, IMO. Listen to CCR: read, study, learn, and then do it some more. Get your education, volunteer and learn from others, and always strive for excellence.
 
I'm assuming your school system works differently than in the States?

Did you quit school after 10th grade, or is that considered finished?

Basically, I'm asking did you finish high school or not?

If not, then finish it, you dope. :)

If so, then go forth and prosper - either by PT certificate or by college.
 
Yeah i found one in Brisbane but its a matter of me not being skinny any more before i go ahead and start the courses...i'm just kinda i guess learning how my own body does it and get my self into the best shape i can before i go ahead to a fitness college...as if go being a 60 kg skinny runt...wow how shame.
 
matt182 said:
hey becoming a personal trainer isnt to hard, a lot of my friends have become one. You dont need to go to college but you need to get some certificate. Doesnt take to long or cost to much. good luck.
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True: being an unqualified, uneducated and ineffective trainer is a fairly easy thing to do.
 
dont get me wrong you need education theres also not so good ones and good ones. But its nothing like getting a degree at university, my friend did an 8 week course and now he can become a trainer, thats what i meant.
 
While an education is important in any field, it does not neccessarily make you a good trainer.

I know some HORRIBLE trainers who have Bachelors and even Masters degrees but are poor trainers. Why? Because they dont know how to work with people. Either they have no inter-personal skills or they think that they are "holier than thou". This attitude usually comes with a closed-mindedness that keeps them from continuing to educate themselves on the up to date information in an ever-changing field. They become stuck in their ways and dont retain clients.

On the other hand, I know some fantastic trainers who have gotten their certifications without having a college degree. Why are they so good? Because they have a true passion for fitness and for helping others. They are constantly educating themselves by reading, researching and attending seminars.

Don't get me wrong; a formal education puts the material right there in front of you, and if you take full advantage of it, there's no beating it!

But if one doesnt have the finances to persue a degree, you can still become a great trainer or even just a well-informed fitness enthusiast by taking the time to read, research and grow.

I spend more time now, reading, researching, studying, and learning about fitness and exercise, than I did during all of my years in college.
 
I agree with Matt and Gymcoch.

You don't have to go to college to be a good, knowledgeable trainer. Also, going to college does not necessarily make you a good, knowledgeable trainer.

It all depends on the individual, and how well they utilize the information they have. Several certifications are good, and you do have to display a better than average knowledge of fitness to get them.

Stay away from stuff like "Billy Joe's skool of pursonal trainrz" and you'll be fine. :p
 
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