Are you ready for a personal trainer?

By Colleen Kraft, YMCA Personal Trainer

I have been a trainer for 16 years and love meeting new people and helping clients achieve their goals. My clients become friends and I become invested in their lives.  We have a talented and experienced team of trainers that will help you reach your goals, mix up your workouts or help you hold yourself accountable for your health and wellness. I have heard some common misconceptions around personal training and what it entails or why people have made the choice to hire a trainer – or not.

COMMON QUESTIONS AND CONCERNS

• Do I need to be fit to start training? 
• Do I have to have experience before I can hire a trainer for help? 
• It is too expensive to hire a trainer.
• A training schedule does not fit my work and home schedule. 
• How many times a week do I meet with a trainer?
• If I do not like the trainer I pick first, can I change trainers? 

These are all questions and concerns that I and other trainers have heard from potential clients and current clients. First off, training is for EVERYONE!  You can be new to the gym or have little experience with equipment or exercise. You can be a serious athlete and just need someone to give you different ideas or need the extra push. You can be recovering from an injury or need some pre or post-natal exercise tips. Trainers work with it all and have seen it all. I have clients who are in their 80s and need help with balance and I have clients who have specific goals for either a race or a competition. The fun part of training for me is that not one client is the same. Some have experience with training and others just want to purchase a couple sessions to get some new ideas or have a trainer complete a workout plan. Every person is unique in their journey. 

MAKING AN INVESTMENT

When looking at hiring a trainer, sometimes the cost is one of the biggest reasons people decide to either wait or to decline. Like any big investment, weigh your choice and look at the pros and cons. Do you need someone to help keep you be accountable for your health? Do you find yourself searching for equipment or workouts at the gym? Are you bored with your current routine? Did you research the trainer and their style? When I think about these questions, I always go back to this: we only have one body. You need to take care of that body and exercise does not have to be for weight loss or for aesthetic reasons. The cost of hiring a trainer far outweighs the cost of high medical bills if you do not take care of yourself. 

Like any other big investment, the cost may come at a shock at first, but personal trainers cater all workouts to YOU. This is your time, and you hire us to help you. I, personally, make sure my clients feel I am 100% there for them. The hour I am with them is their special time. The workout is ready to go when they arrive, I have an explanation and reason for the workouts and exercises, and I am available to answer any questions you may have. 

A PERSONALIZED APPROACH

Most gym or community centers that provide training services have a big team of trainers with different experience, different training styles and most of all, different schedules. When first contacted about training, I always talk about schedule first. I provide my days and hours that I work, and we try to find a time that will work for both. If that does not work, I will give you another trainer to contact who may also work well with your goals. The awesome thing about our trainers is that we ask each other questions about clients, we reach out with clients who need a different schedule, and we work well together as a team. I support other trainers’ clients and I know the other trainers do the same. 

Trainers have a passion for health and wellness. We are approachable and always help or answer a question you may have.  If we are not working with a client, we will gladly help you any way we can. I love that I get to help people every day. It gives me a sense of fulfillment that I have not found in any other profession I have had. My love for health and wellness is evident and I hope that if you are thinking of hiring a trainer, you will give us a call or come talk to us at the gym; we would love to help you.