Collaborative Post¦ Being a fit, on the go, athletic kind of person has a lot of benefits in life. Feeling strong and healthy, having a lot of energy, and actually using that gym membership you signed up for 6 months ago!
And when you’re an athletic person who feels more in touch with their body, you’re more likely to be drawn to a career where you get to use your physical experience. Enter the world of personal training!
Becoming a PT is certainly possible, but does being athletic translate into having a bigger chance to run a successful PT business? Let’s explore the idea with the points down below.
You’re Going to Need to Showcase Some Experience
It’s quite rare that a personal trainer gains clients without having some kind of experience in personal training already.
Without some clear experience, it’s hard to convince someone that you know how to work with their current level of fitness, as well as any health needs, to support them in achieving their workout goals.
That’s the first thing for you to work on. Even if your experience in being a PT is limited thus far, you can still showcase any knowledge you do have.
Put up a website, make sure it has a portfolio section (where you can list case studies in future), and write about the work you’ve done thus far.
And if you can, try to get any previous clients (even if they were just a friend) to leave you a testimonial. Word of mouth is essential here!
What Do You Know About Fitness Trends?
They come and go just like fashion trends do! But if you’re going to be building your own PT business that relies on finding clients in the local area, you need to know the trends that this same area cares about.
So, what’s popular right now? What seems to be the one thing most people interested in fitness want to try out?
Just attending a class at a bigger, more well established gym will show you what people really like to do. Any class you can’t get in due to being fully booked is a surefire choice for you to start offering tutoring for yourself!
It’s Possible to Work From Home
Being a PT doesn’t mean spending all your time in the gym or travelling to client houses to work with them one on one. You can also do a lot of the work from home, especially if you have a webcam set up and can record yourself or livestream training sessions.
Of course, starting a webcam business can be a bit intimidating for some people, but you don’t have to solely rely on the webcam to connect with your clients. Instead, use it as a supplemental tool that allows you to work with people on a more accessible level.
It could even allow you to get your work onto social media sites like Youtube, where you can build a bigger audience. This can run alongside your usual work, and be another way to monetise your career in the PT sphere.
You May Need More Qualifications
Personal trainers can’t just have a passion for fitness. They need to have qualifications that mean clients are in safe hands when working with them.
As such, you might need to sign up to a course or two and gain some PT certificates that’ll let you turn a profit off of your services. You don’t necessarily need a degree here, but you will need some vocational training that takes time and effort.
You may be able to find a course like this online, and there tend to be plenty of hybrid courses that allow you in-person and at-home training in equal measure. But either way, get signed up, get your proper qualification, and only then begin advertising your services.
Becoming a Successful PT: What to Remember
So, you want to become a PT and build a business that lasts – that’s great! But you’ll need to make sure that you’ve got the issues above covered.
From gaining a bit of physical, client-side experience to finding a simple, effective way to work from home, you’ve got quite a bit of ground to cover before you get up and running.
Do your research, showcase your skill, and work on creating the kind of workout space a client can come to rely on. And if you need to head back to school for a bit, don’t be put off by the requirements!
Cover photo by maxhome fitness on Unsplash