What to look for in a Personal Trainer

Selecting a personal trainer to guide you on you health and fitness journey is one of the most important things in determining your success. The very fact that you have chosen to train under the guidence of a trainer suggests that you dont have the knowledge to program your training sessions, or the motivation to push yourself hard in them.
So your trainer must be able to excel in both of these areas for you.
There are such a wide range of training personalities, as well as the fields they specialise in and their training methods that it becomes confusing just trying to choose the one you think is right for you.
To help you with making your choice we have compiled a list of Personal Trainers from right around Australia and a short profile about them to give you a bit of an idea of what they are all about. You can search through the Personal Trainers Directory Here.

Below are several points on what we think are key aspects that you should consider when choosing your trainer, but it is by no means a final list or the only things you need to consider. Make sure you sit down and meet with them first to make sure you think you will get along on a professional level and that you believe they will help you achieve your goals.

1. Physical appearance

A trainer is their own marketing material. They should look fit, healthy, lean and strong. Above all a trainer should practice what they preach and put into effect themselves what they are teaching their clients. You need to ask yourself does your trainer look like something you aspire to achieve? Is their physical appearance motivating to you and does it make you think that they have been there and done that so they will be able to help you achieve your goals as well?. While a trainers knowledge and experience are of the utmost importance, the fact that they themselves are a walking testimony that they have been able to achieve those goals goes a long way in boosting your confidence that they can help you achieve yours.

2. Knowledge

This is a big factor in what trainer you end up choosing – after all you are paying a trainer for their knowledge to get you to your goals because it is something you don’t have yourself. Your trainer should be knowledgeable in ALL aspects of health and fitness, even if there are areas they don’t train people in they still need a basic understanding or the ability to point their client towards the right information.
Your trainer should also be willing and wanting to share their knowledge with you. A trainer is not there to make you dependant on them to reach your goals – they should be imparting their knowledge onto you so that you can reach them yourself and continue to make lifelong gains with your health and fitness.

3. Accreditation and experience

Your trainer must be fully qualified and insured with the correct certifications which can vary from state to state. However, all of that can mean nothing if they don’t have the appropriate experience behind them of what they in turn are teaching you. These days it is possible to become a fully qualified personal trainer through online courses without having ever been in the gym or trained yourself – as long as you pass all the theory and the demonstrations sent via a video you get your qualification. What does this mean for you the client? It means that you have someone getting you to do things they have never themselves experienced. How can they know how much weight to use, how long to rest, what recovery time is needed or just what the workout you are doing feels like if they have not done it? This puts us back to point one where we said the trainer should practice what they preach. Always ask about a trainers own personal experience with training and make sure they are qualified.

4. Price

Always an important factor in determining which trainer you can afford to go with. Prices can range from as little as $35 a session to $150 or more. Some trainers do deals to train you and a friend at the same time at a substantial saving to the both of you, or they offer discounts for a longer training block booked in and payed up front. Prices are influenced by a number of things including:

• Certification – a trainer with a diploma or higher certification will generally charge more then a trainer with a lower level certification.

• Facilities – a trainer who trains clients at a gym will usually charge more then one who trains clients outdoors in a park with no or very basic equipment and a trainer with their own private training studio with lots of gear can generally charge a bit more again for the fully privatised training session.

So the best thing to do is to ring around the local trainers and see where they train their clients and what prices they charge and work out what will suit you best.

5. Facilities

Where do you like to be trained? In a gym with a buzzing atmosphere? In a small studio with a few trainers and other clients around? In a completely private setting with no one else around except for your trainer? – or do you like to be trained outdoors no matter what the weather. What are your training goals? If you are wanting to gain some muscle then you will need an array of strength training equipment like that in a studio or gym, if you want to lean up this can be achieved indoors or outdoors.
If you are going to train in a studio what is the equipment like? Well maintained or old and scruffy looking with tape holding bits together. Is there a good variety to do what you want? Some trainers specialise in using light resistance devices and swiss balls, some have fully decked out strength training studios – make sure the facility will accommodate your training goals.

6. Professionalism and personality

There is nothing worse then a trainer who is texting or speaking on the phone while training their client. It is not a social past time it’s a business and should be treated as such. When you pay for a trainer you are paying for their undivided attention and you should expect to receive it.
What is the trainers personality like? Are they always in good spirits, full of energy and motivating you? Or are they overtired, lacking energy and not all that enthusiastic about being there?
Any unwanted advances of a personal nature from a trainer towards a client is also unacceptable and if it occurs after establishing clearly that the advances are in fact unwanted then training with them must cease immediately.
You should have a meeting with a trainer in order to build rapport with them and see if you are going to be compatible to work together, expect them to be punctual, professional and motivating.


Over all a good Personal Trainer is going to help you succeed where you would not have been able to on your own and will be an indespensible source of knowledge on the most important thing in your life - your health and fitness!

You can look up and find Personal Trainer's in your local area in our ONLINE DIRECTORY.

Personal Trainer's who wish to be listed in the directory can do so HERE.