Prerequisites for Employment As a Personal Trainer
Working as a personal trainer can be personally and financially rewarding. A trainer with the proper qualifications can work for a gym or strike out on his own. To be successful, he must obtain the proper education, gain relevant experience and, most important, practice what he preaches. If he can't follow his own guidelines, neither will his clients.
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Education
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A personal trainer should ideally have a degree in a relevant major. He can obtain his degree through a two- or four-year college, or he can enroll in a specialty school offering a course in personal training. He should research a program thoroughly and make sure that it is an accredited course of study. The major areas of study he will focus on are health, fitness, nutrition and physiology. Biology courses will supplement the others.
Personality
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To get hired as a personal trainer, an individual must possess the right personality. She should be outgoing and able to easily interact with clients. If she is reserved and unable to carry on a conversation, she will not be effective. She should be able to motivate a client to stick with her program. She must be encouraging when clients do well and firm enough to get them back on track when they fall behind.
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Fitness
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An overweight personal trainer is a rare sight. A candidate for a personal trainer position should be physically fit himself. If he is overweight or out of shape, a client will be hesitant to follow his advice. He should perform every technique he teaches with accuracy and efficiency. If he can't demonstrate proper form and technique to his clients, they will not see results. A gym will be hesitant to hire such an individual.
Nutrition
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Most people do not realize that nutrition is the most important aspect of physical fitness. A candidate for a personal trainer position must be aware of this fact. As with fitness, she should follow proper nutritional guidelines if she expects others to do the same. She must balance proper portions of the proper foods at the proper times. She should assess her clients and tailor meal plans to their specific fitness needs.
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References
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- Photo Credit Workout with a Personal Trainer image by Scott Griessel from Fotolia.com
