Posted on February 28, 2022April 12, 2022 by W.I.T.S. Content — Leave a comment

How Fitness Trainers Are Helping People Relieve Arthritis

Weak joints and bones are common symptoms of arthritis. As a result, a lot of people suffering from arthritis complain about pain in the joints and limited movements. While the condition generally affects the older population, these days, many young adults suffer from arthritis due to poor health and hereditary issues as well.

This can affect their day-to-day lives and cause them immense pain, which makes them unable to perform basic tasks. The best way for young adults to manage their arthritis is by being physically active. Regular activity, stretching, and moving their joints relieve the pain and improve their joint mobility.

These days a lot of fitness trainers are entering the medical fitness industry by taking courses such as the one offered by W.I.T.S Education to help people with chronic health issues. These fitness trainers can help people with arthritis manage their symptoms better through exercise. Here’s how they do it. Medical Fitness.

What Is Arthritis?

In simple terms, arthritis is the inflammation caused to the lining of a joint that causes the joints to swell. This lining protects the joint from impact and keeps them healthy and safe. Once the lining swells, it can also affect the ligaments and the tendons. This can cause serious damage to the joint and the bones in the long term.

This is why a lot of elderly people with arthritis have difficulty in moving, and some even become wheelchair-bound. In young adults, this issue isn’t as common, but there are still a lot of young adults who suffer from arthritis or its easy signs.

Some Common Myths About Arthritis

Arthritis often goes undiagnosed because people think their joint pains are due to stress and exhaustion. That’s why they don’t follow up with a doctor or get the relevant test done to figure out the cause. Arthritis also has a lot of myths associated with it making it harder for people to seek proper care and medication. Take a look at some of them.

Arthritis Only Affect The Elderly

This is by far the most common myth. People tend to think that arthritis is something that only affects the elderly due to aging, and young people can’t have it.

Osteoarthritis is the most common form of arthritis and is generally found in the elderly. Rheumatoid arthritis is mostly found in young adults, and women tend to be more prone to developing it. Juvenile arthritis is the term used when the patient is under the age of 16. So It’s safe to say that arthritis can affect people of all ages.

It Doesn’t Have A Cure

While it’s true that arthritis is difficult to cure and requires life-long care to prevent it from getting out of hand, it’s not cure-less. The best form of cure is surgery performed to repair the lining of the joints or surgery to repair or replace the bones themselves. However, this isn’t the only cure; if people don’t want to take the route of surgery, they can still maintain their health in various ways.

The number one cure after surgery is through proper exercise and stretching. While it may seem that exercise would put more pressure on the joints and make the situation worse, this isn’t true; exercise especially stretching, helps relax muscles.

People Need To Rest And Not Move

Another common misconception about arthritis is that people should rest all the time and not move unless necessary. There are two issues with this; number one, if people don’t use their joints, their muscles will become stiff and moving them cause more pain and irritation. In the end, the condition will worsen. Number two, moving and keeping your joints in motion is medically proven to relieve arthritis and help people keep it under control.

Ways Fitness Trainers Can Help

As mentioned earlier, working out and stretching helps people with arthritis manage their condition better. However, finding a knowledgeable trainer who can work with people suffering from arthritis can be difficult. But some trainers come from medical backgrounds and can combine their medical skills with fitness ones to develop workout plans for people with arthritis.

Special Exercise Plans

Medical fitness trainers have expertise in developing special exercise plans that cater to the needs of people suffering from arthritis. These exercise programs include special stretching exercises, joint movements, and other forms of exercises that help people relieve pain and reduce the swelling of the joints.

Not just that, but these exercises strengthen their joints and make their arthritis much more bearable. Fitness trainers can develop exercise plans keeping in mind the fitness goals of their clients, their health issues, and by combining different forms of exercises such as yoga and aerobics, so the clients get the best results.

Special Diet Plans

In conjunction with the detailed exercise plans, medical fitness trainers can also work with doctors and nutritionists to help their clients develop diet plans. These diet plans include foods that are high in calcium and vitamins to help strengthen the bones and prevent muscle damage during workouts.

Sometimes, after the recommendation from the doctor, trainers can even introduce supplements in the diet plan to boost their client’s health and help them reach their fitness goals faster without exhausting their body too much. The exercises combined with the diet can help clients keep their arthritis under control and lead healthier lives.

Through Medical Fitness

Medical fitness trainers are trained to keep in mind the medical needs of their clients, but they aren’t doctors and can’t prescribe any medication or cures. But they can work with the client’s doctors to ensure that their chosen exercise program and diet plan doesn’t affect the patients negatively. These trainers can consult the doctors and make changes in their fitness plans on an ongoing basis so the clients can reach their health and fitness goals quickly.

If you are a medical professional who wants to enter the fitness industry, visit W.I.T.S Education’s website today. We are a training institute that offers several courses related to different fields in the fitness industry. Some of these certifications include a personal trainer course, senior fitness course, group exercise instructor course, and medical fitness course. The institute also offers courses related to fitness management for people looking to start their own business.

The great thing about W.I.T.S Education is that we are accredited by the NCCA, and students can earn college credits for their courses. Our courses are divided into online classes along with hands-on in-person practical labs to prepare students for real-world challenges. Check out our course catalog and get in touch with us today to learn more.

Posted on February 26, 2022March 1, 2022 by W.I.T.S. Content — Leave a comment

Role Of Fitness In Sports Training

While the functions of fitness training and sports are essentially the same, i.e., improve our health and help us achieve a fitter body, their principles are different. When it comes to fitness training, people, as well as personal trainers, are more focused on burning fat, achieving a leaner body, building more muscles, and improving bodily functions.

On the other hand, sports training is focused more on building endurance, strength, speed, flexibility, coordination, cognitive abilities, and stamina. Compared to regular people, athletes go through much more intensive training and take fewer breaks in between to reach their peak performance.

The techniques used in sports training and nutrition are also quite different from those used in fitness training. Personal trainers are more focused on making athletes perfect in their field, and hence the trainers need proper certifications such as the one offered by W.I.T.S Education. This training helps trainers understand the athlete’s different requirements and develop training programs accordingly.

What Is Sports Training?

Sports training refers to the process of training an individual to become skilled in any given sport. Sports training is mostly preferred by athletes and involves intense training and workouts to help people reach their peak performance. It is assumed that sports training is only related to physical training, but that’s not true. Instead, sports training includes physical, technical, intellectual, psychological, and moral preparation.

This training is part of the daily routine for athletes, and they undergo exercises to build up strength, endurance, and confidence to succeed in their sport. Besides that, the training methods and techniques used depend on the kind of sport the athlete plays. For example, if it’s football that requires precision footwork, then athletes’ training includes exercises that build and tone leg muscles and give them the agility to be quick on their feet. But if they’re gymnasts, then they need exceptional upper body strength to allow them to perform.

This is why gymnasts work on building their torso muscles and improving their coordination. Due to this, sports training is quite dynamic, and trainers need to develop workout plans depending on the kind of sport the athlete will play.

How Trainers Build A Sports Training program?

A fitness trainer needs to develop an athlete’s training program with care and proper attention because the workouts are intense and can lead to injuries or other damages if not done properly. There are many things that a trainer needs to consider before they can plan a functional program for the athlete. These things include looking at the athlete’s health, fitness, end results, and any underlying injuries that can affect their health during the training. Here are some of the things trainers need to keep in mind.

The Goals Of The Athletes

Before preparing any training program, trainers need to understand the results the athletes are looking for. This just doesn’t depend on the kind of sports they play but also on the areas they need training in and want to improve. This can include endurance, nutrition, physical strength, or cognitive development. As a trainer, it’s your job to understand the goals of the athletes and develop plans that work around them.

In some cases, athletes have the required strength, but they lack the coordination and swift response times that put them at a disadvantage. Other times, they can have the strength and coordination, but they lack the stamina to keep going. In both cases, it’s up to the trainer to create workouts to help them.

The Kind Of Sports

Unlike regular fitness training, where the exercise plans are more or less the same, with some variations depending on the client’s needs, sports training is heavily dependent on the sport. A plan developed for gymnasts cannot work with a cyclist. Similarly, a plan developed for a football athlete can’t work with an ice-hockey player.

Form the stretching, warm up to the actual exercise, and finishers; trainers need to keep in mind the sport their athletes will play. A slight miss in training can compromise the outcome and performance of the athlete. It can also decrease their chances of winning and lead to injuries.

That Age And Health Of The Athlete

It’s no secret that athletes retire at an earlier age than the rest of the working folks. That’s mainly because the amount of physical training and endurance their body requires can only be sustained at a young age. Once the athletes cross the 30-year benchmark, their performance slowly declines. This is because their bodies and joints can no longer take the tough training, and the chances of sustaining a serious injury increase.

This is the reason why athletes start their training at a very young age, and trainers need to make sure that the training program is appropriate for the age and health of the athlete. If the athlete is older, then a demanding exercise plan is not right for them.

Image Filename: Fitness-training-and-cycling

Image Alt Text: Two people cycling

Length Of The Training Session And Recovery Time

Since sports training is quite intensive and can cause serious muscle fatigue, athletes need ample time to rest and let their muscles heal. In addition to this, trainers are tasked with developing sessions that don’t cause any extensive muscle damage because that can lead to injuries. The general rule is that for every workout, an equal amount of rest time is needed to let the muscle heal.

Obviously, it isn’t mandatory for each workout and depends on the health and stamina of the athlete. However, they still need time to rest to heal from the muscle damage. If you’re recommending crash training to your athletes, then they need a day’s rest after each crash training session. Similarly, other forms of training need adequate rest time to let the muscles and joints recover.

Nutritional And Physiological Requirements

Besides the physical training, nutritional and physiological requirements are important as well. If the body isn’t getting the required nutrition, it won’t function properly, and athletes will not be able to give their peak performance. It is estimated that, on average, athletes require 2500 to 3000 calories daily. This is around 500 to 1000 calories more than an average person requires. Not only that, but during active competition, the athletes require even more calories to keep their balance.

The downside is that with these calories, they also need other nutrients. So trainers are asked to develop diet plans while working with nutritionists that can supply the athletes with the required calories without cutting down on the other nutrients.

Additionally, trainers need to focus on the physiological health of the athletes as well. Physiological health is responsible for keeping the body in a healthy state and preventing injuries. It also ensures that the bones and joints are in top health and won’t cause trouble to the athlete.

The Timeline Of Preparation

Athletes always have some deadline to follow when they’re in training mode. That’s why their training should be mindful of the timeline they have before their next performance. This timeline dictates the course of the training and how intense it will be. The shorter the timeline, the more intense the training is.

But this isn’t always good; a shorter timeline would mean that the athletes would have to compromise on the recovery time and push themselves beyond their capabilities. In the long run, this can cause serious side effects. Generally, trainers design plans that span several months to even years before an athlete is fit to perform.

The Kind Of Training Required

After sorting all of the above, it’s time for the trainers to figure out which training is best for the athlete. There are several kinds of training athletes can take part in; some trainers even mix them up for better results.

However, the choice depends largely on the sport the athlete is a part of. Normally crash training is included when it comes to athletes so they can increase their stamina and train their bodies to endure more stress. Another form of training is Fartlek training which means speed play. This training is a combination of continuous training and interval training that emphasizes increasing speed and coordination.

Circuit training is also popular among those looking to increase endurance. This training utilizes diverse types of muscles and is ideal for complete body training. Athletes also require flexibility and mobility training to develop quick reaction times and unlock a wider range of motions.

How Is Sports Training Changing The Fitness World?

While it’s true that sports and athletic training are generally designed for athletes, more and more personal trainers are incorporating elements of sports training in their workout plans. Clients can achieve better and faster results by adding sports training into regular fitness training. Not only that, but it also helps them increase their stamina and develop endurance. Here’s how sports training is influencing the fitness world.

Introduction Of Crash Training

Crash training was originally strictly for athletes and bodybuilders who wanted to train their bodies to handle more stresses. Now, however, fitness enthusiasts can try it as well and expand the bounds of their fitness. Although for regular clients, crash training is toned down not to cause any injury because their bodies are not used to such stresses.

Moreover, this training is usually incorporated into the workout routine along with other exercises to maintain a balance. But despite that, clients can achieve better results and improve their joint functions along with cognitive functions to lead healthier lives.

Interval Training

Interval training is a combination of high-intensity and low-intensity training involving ample rest time. This training involves doing high-intensity training for a short while, followed by low-intensity training to take the body into the normal state slowly. This is followed by a rest period to let the muscles heal. For athletes, this method is great for releasing small bursts of energy and filling the body with oxygen.

This training helps them develop stamina and endurance. This is why when regular folks do it, they see an increase in their stamina and muscle development. The unique aspect of interval training is that it triggers quick muscle development without exhausting the body and causing muscle wastage.

Better Management Of Muscle Damage And Injuries

One of the core components of sports training is handling injuries and muscle damage. Athletic trainers are skilled in prescribing exercises and remedies to heal muscles and help athletes recover from injuries quicker. Personal trainers can take certifications in medical fitness, such as the one offered by W.I.T.S Education to learn more about injuries and how to heal them.

Equipped with the knowledge of medical fitness, personal trainers can help their clients prevent workout injuries and help them recover faster. They can also help clients learn better muscle management and develop exercise programs that work better with their endurance level.

Endurance And Stamina Training

Endurance training is another popular form of sports training in which athletes train their bodies to increase their stamina. Generally, a heavy cardiovascular workout session is required when it comes to endurance training. Personal trainers can add elements of endurance training into their less rigorous workout plans.

For example, they can include running, cycling, or swimming to help clients build endurance. Because all of these activities involve a heavy cardio activity that’ll fill up the body and the brain with oxygen and increase the energy levels of the body. This energy is created when the body breaks down insulin in the body.

Improving Coordination And Flexibility

It’s no secret that the best athletes are the ones that have impeccable coordination and ample flexibility. No matter what sport it is, coordination, agility, and flexibility are important. Coordination training helps improve workout techniques and form to get the best results. When an exercise is performed properly it helps the brain coordinate better and along with reducing the risks of injuries.

In the fitness world, most injuries occur due to wrong postures, techniques, and forms. That’s why personal trainers can introduce coordination training exercises to help clients achieve better results.

If you want to advance your career as a personal trainer, check out the certifications offered by W.I.T.S Education. At W.I.T.S Education, you can enroll in a number of certifications related to fitness and become a medical fitness trainer, senior fitness instructor, group fitness instructor, and even youth fitness instructor. You can even enroll in the fitness management course and start your own fitness studio as well.

The courses at W.I.T.S Education are accredited by the NCCA and the American council of education, so students can earn college credits. The courses are divided into online lectures and in-person hands-on practical labs that help students gain valuable skills for real-world challenges and not just be book smart. Get in touch to learn more.

Posted on February 10, 2022October 29, 2022 by W.I.T.S. Content — 1 Comment

The Differences Between Group and Personal Training Education

Group fitness and personal training are two of the most in-demand professions in the fitness world. Not just that, but these professions are one of the highest-paid as well. Both of the fields require extensive fitness training to acquire certifications. Even after that, you might need additional certifications to expand your services and build a client list.

Group fitness instructors work with a number of people with similar goals, while personal trainers work with people on the individual level. People can join group classes for weight loss, wellness, yoga, and even muscle building. On the other hand, personal trainers offer services based on the needs of their clients. Here’s a more in-depth analysis of the two professions and how you can choose which one to pick.

What Do Personal Trainers Do?

Here’s a general breakdown of the services offered by personal trainers.

Individual Training

The main reason people seek personal trainers is that they can work with their client’s schedules and offer personalized training that targets their individual needs. Personal trainers usually take into account their client’s mental and physical needs. For example, any underlying health issues, fat count, and even any allergies or physical injuries that could prevent them from working out in groups. A personal trainer can also help clients reach specific goals like building muscles or losing weight in a dedicated time without causing harm to their bodies.

Training Based On The Client’s Interest

Personal trainers can offer general fitness training, or people can hire trainers who have any specific requirements. People can get a personal wellness coach or a weight-loss instructor depending on what they’re looking for. This is the reason why the field of personal training is quite versatile, and trainers from every industry can become personal trainers after finishing a few certifications. Many athletes have personal trainers who can train them to be the in the sports that they play. For example, footballers would require different fitness routines as compared to tennis players.

Can Work In Gyms And Homes

Another great career option for personal trainers is that they can work with clients one-on-one in their homes or offer training at the gym. Many gyms hire personal trainers keeping in mind their client’s needs. They can offer bodybuilding training or weight loss training. Clients going to the gym need to adhere to the gym’s guidelines, and the level of training they receive is based on their membership. On the other hand, at-home trainers are hired based on the requirement of the client, and they charge a fee accordingly. They’re also required to work with the client’s schedule, not the other way around.

What Do Group Instructors Do?

Just like personal trainers, group instructors can offer several services, but instead of an individual approach, these instructors work with groups. Here are some of the descriptions of their jobs.

Generalized Workouts For Groups

As the name suggests, group instructors work with people with similar fitness goals. For example, people can do yoga with a group instructor, join a running group, or take gym classes with a group instructor. The bottom line is that these instructors train many people in the same time frame. This obviously means that people don’t get a lot of individual attention, but that doesn’t mean the trainer doesn’t consider that at all. The trainer monitors individual progress and helps people who need individualized training, but it’s not on the same level as a personal trainer.

Work With Similarly Aged People

The main reason why people opt for group fitness training is to work with people with similar fitness goals. That’s why most of these groups have people from the same age group or demographic. For example, a group may consist of women who want to do yoga or a group of senior citizens who want to achieve better health. To offer this training, the trainers need to develop sessions that target the needs of these groups. The instructor may change the long-term goals of the group depending on the progress of each member.

Specialized Exercises

Say a group of people want to build abs in the next three months, a group fitness instructor can develop workout routines that can help them achieve these goals. The same goes for any other type of goals the clients might have. Some instructors offer their sessions involving yoga, weight loss, or bodybuilding.

Which One Should You Pick?

If you’re interested in pursuing a career in the fitness world but can’t decide which one of the two you should pick, try looking at the following aspects to come to a conclusion.

Where Do You Like Working?

This plays a huge role in picking your career. Would you prefer working in a gym and fitness center, or would you prefer the client’s home or your own studio? If you like working with a lot of people and you think you can pay attention to their individual goals, you should think about pursuing group instructor certifications. On the other hand, if you like to work with clients one-on-one, you should try for personal training certifications.

What Type Of Workouts Do You Like?

This can also influence your decisions. If you like intense one-on-one training, then you should go for personal training. If you’re interested in leading a group workout, then a group exercise instructor is for you. Your preference can also depend on the type of workouts you offer—for example, senior fitness group, youth fitness group, or weight loss group.

Are You Targeting A Specific Demographic?

It’s easier to deal with a specific demographic if they’re in a group. Personal trainers target a wide audience, while group fitness instructors can pick an age group and develop different workouts for them based on their requirements.

If you’re looking to become a certified personal trainer or a group fitness instructor, you can check the courses offered by W.I.T.S. Education. W.I.T.S. is a fitness training institute that offers several courses. Some other courses offered include youth fitness instructor, medical fitness instructor, and senior fitness instructor. W.I.T.S is also the only institute that is accredited by the NCAA and offers college credits to its students.

They also offer in-person and online hybrid courses that ensure that their students have the relevant practical skills. Their training centers are located all over North America and W.I.T.S. is the only institute that offers hands-on in-person practical labs. Take a look at their courses or get in touch with them today.

Posted on January 25, 2022January 31, 2022 by W.I.T.S. Content — Leave a comment

Why Fitness Needs to Focus on More Than Just Weight Loss

There’s a common misconception in the fitness world that obesity and any other type of fitness management revolve around weight loss and dieting as the first step. After that, the muscles and fitness training comes into play. But that’s not right; excessive calorie restriction and increased physical activity lead to poor health that can lead to the development of many medical issues. These issues can cause weakened bones, poor immune systems, and a lack of stamina.
That’s why extreme dieting and excessive exercises are not good options for people looking to get fit. Personal trainers with credible certifications like the ones offered by W.I.T.S. Education is well aware of such issues, and that’s why they tend to focus more on muscle building and healthy eating habits as opposed to putting clients on unhealthy diets. Bit there are still trainers who believe that the way to a fitter lifestyle is through weight loss.

The Cons Of Focusing On Weight Loss Only

Here are some reasons why you should avoid losing excessive weight.

Nutritional Deficiencies

Traditionally weight loss practices depend on drastically cutting down the food intake and surviving only on the bare minimum each day. The truth is that we need a lot of nutrients, including carbohydrates, to function throughout the day. When cutting down the food intake, we’re effectively depriving our bodies of the daily nutritional requirements. As a result, the body becomes weak and starts shedding weight.
This unhealthy weight loss is praised by many, and a lot of times, people encourage such behavior. Non-certified fitness trainers are often the cause of such unhealthy lifestyle choices, which is why you need to work with a certified trainer to reduce your weight and become fit.

Poor Immunity

One people start losing weight through these unhealthy habits; it becomes hard for them to break this dangerous cycle. After a while, they begin to notice their immunity decreasing, and they’ll be getting sick easily and more often. Since this drastic change in the diet is not balanced by healthy exercise and nutritional meals, the body’s immune balance trips. This leads to a decrease in immune cells and other important nutrients that reside in the fat cells of your body. With low immunity cells, you’ll more likely catch diseases, and the treatment will take a longer time than usual as well.

Low Energy

Considering all the above-mentioned factors, it’s given that you’ll suffer from low energy. When you indulge in healthy workout routines, your body multiplies cells that play a huge role in improving your stamina and immunity. Once these factors are out of the equation, it’s easy for the body to feel tired all the time.
Some people might even notice a weight gain instead of loss due to this as your body goes into survival mode and starts storing all the fat. This act in itself is not healthy in the long run, and ultimately the body will have severe adverse effects to this unhealthy lifestyle.

Development Of Health Issues

Once your body reaches its limit, the only outcome will be health problems. A lot of young people suffer from a bad digestive system, breathing issues, and even poor bone density. Over time, these issues turn into severe life-long illnesses that prevent people from living normal healthy lives.
The most common health issue is related to calcium deficiency which can lead to weakened knees that’ll stop people from playing sports or, in the worst-case scenario, prevents you from walking on your own. Another common problem is poor digestion sin inflammation. To digest the food, the stomach releases enzymes to break down the food. If the stomach is not full, these excessive enzymes can lead to inflammatory issues.

The Pros Of Focusing On Fitness

Here’s how you can lose weight without straining your body and developing health issues.

Healthy Weight Loss

When you use proper fitness to reduce weight, the main focus isn’t on cutting down the food intake and doing excessive workouts. As a result, your body isn’t deprived of basic nutrients, while the workout routines are designed to replace the fat in your body with muscles. In the end, instead of getting weaker, your body becomes lean and strong. This increases your stamina and allows you to live a healthier life free from health issues. Not just that, but indulging in fitness helps you overcome and manage any chronic health issues you might have.

Muscle Building

A personal trainer will never suggest cutting down your diet in order to lose weight. Instead, they focus on reducing your body’s fat percentage and increasing muscle density. The interesting thing is you may feel yourself getting leaner while your weight stays the same. That’s because fat occupies a larger space in your body as opposed to muscles which are a lot denser.
In the end, you’ll reach your ideal measurements without depriving your body of basic nutrition. That doesn’t mean your diet won’t change, but your trainer will focus on healthier diets instead of the ones that reduce your food intake.

Better Overall Health

With healthy weight loss, you’ll notice yourself having increased stamina, and you’ll no longer be tired all the time. Instead, you’ll see that you’re able to do extra work in the same 24 hours. Moreover, a lot of chronic illnesses are elevated due to the increased fat ratio in the body. By reducing your fat density and developing muscles, you’ll notice how your body can manage your illnesses better. For example, your diabetes will not need constant monitoring, and your blood pressure will stay normal more often. With more muscles, your bones will be healthier, and you’ll be able to live more weight without stressing your body.

If you’re looking to get credible fitness certification, take a look at the ones we offer at W.I.T.S. Education. We are a fitness training institute that specializes in courses for certified personal trainers, senior fitness trainers, and group exercise instructors. Our institute offers the best state-of-the-art training centers that are located in multiple areas in North America. We are also the only institute that gives NCCA accreditation to our graduates.

Not just that, but we are also the only institute with labs that give hands-on training, and our courses are composed of online as well as in-person lessons. This helps our students learn practical skills as opposed to being book smart. Check out our courses and get in touch with us today!

Posted on January 20, 2022February 26, 2022 by W.I.T.S. Content — Leave a comment

Mixing Business and Passions: A Guide to Making the Transition Easy

If you’re one of those people who consider fitness as a way of life as opposed to considering it just a hobby, then starting a fitness business can be beneficial to you. To run a fitness business, you need to be passionate about fitness itself. Throughout your journey, you’ll encounter countless hurdles and hardships that’ll require you to work for less money, work overtime, and be patient for the results.

If you’re truly passionate, you’ll pull through in the times of adversity, and if you aren’t, you won’t be able to make a name for yourself. Starting a fitness business isn’t as easy as starting businesses in other industries. With those businesses, you need to work hard for some time until you’ve established yourself enough. After that, the business runs smoothly. In the case of fitness, you need to constantly work harder and stay at the top of your game.

If your customers aren’t happy with your level of fitness and performance, they’ll leave for competitors. You’ll need to keep learning new trends through courses or training sessions such as the ones offered by W.I.T.S. Education. Only then will your business establish itself, and you can enjoy the fruit of your hard work and passion.

How To Become A Fitness Trainer?

If you’re passionate about opening a fitness business, surely, you’ll be at the top of your fitness. But just being fit and healthy isn’t enough to become a personal trainer, especially if you’ll be responsible for the health of others. The first thing you’ll have to do is get proper certification, that’ll solidify your case and will help you get your first few clients.

In order to get a certification, you’ll need to match their prerequisite requirements. Some require you to have a high school diploma, while others want a college degree or at least that you be enrolled in one. Second, you’ll also have to check the kind of certifications they offer. The fitness industry is huge, and hence there are several courses you can take. To become a personal trainer, you need to take courses that’ll cover all aspects of personal training and teach you different fitness routines.

The courses last from 3 to 6 months, depending on your level and the institute’s requirements. Some may even take longer if you’re a novice. After finishing the course, you can work with a well-known fitness center or gym to get professional experience. Customers like trainers who have industry experience. Only after doing that will you be able to find clients who would hire you.

How To Turn Your Fitness Passion Into A Business?

After you’ve established yourself as a personal trainer, you’re now ready to step into the business world. However, even qualified trainers struggle to take their business off the ground. What you’ll need is to create a brand image for yourself that’ll attract clients and help you scale. Here are a few things that’ll help you solidify your business and help it grow.

Find Your Desired Niche

Even though personal trainers are skilled in many different forms of exercise, it’s still a good idea to start with a niche. You can pick a niche based on what you like the most, but it’s a good practice to research the industry trends and figure out which areas have the biggest market capitalization options and the predicted market growth. For instance, senior fitness and medical fitness are emerging fields with lots of room for development and market capitalization.

Similarly, you can find niches that spark your interest while still being attractive from the business point of view. Besides picking a niche industry, it’s better to determine a demographic you’d like to work with. For example, if you want to train women only, or youth, or even senior citizens. That way, it’ll be easier for you to grow.

Give One-On-One Training

Don’t expect your business to take off at once just because you’re passionate and have the required qualifications. In the beginning, you’ll face many setbacks, so it’s better to start small. You can start your business by scheduling one-on-one training sessions. This is the best way to start getting clients. Clients like trainers who pay attention to them and make themselves available.

Once you’ve got a few clients under your belt, you can now start thinking about getting some more. The easiest way is to ask your customers to recommend you to their family or friends. Word-of-mouth is still the most popular form of marketing. You can even offer them exclusive family and friends discounts.

Establish A Clientele

If you’ve been successful in getting clients through word of mouth, it’s not time to invest in a marketing campaign. You can try the traditional way by asking potential customers to sign up for free classes and training sessions, or you can post about your services online. Your marketing campaign strongly depends on your chosen demographic.

If you choose to work with young adults, it’s important to market on social media, but you’ve chosen to work with adults or seniors, you’ll need to apply methods that are relevant to that age group such as newspapers and TV ads. Through this marketing tactic, you’ll be able to find clients outside of the determined customer circle that’ll allow you to tap different areas of the market.

Establish Your Credentials

A good way to attract new clients is to display your credentials and let them speak on your behalf. Your credentials don’t need to be strictly related to your niche. For example, if you have experience in running marathons, you can train people for that as well. People from all age groups part take in marathons, and this will give you a good opportunity to expand your services.

Additionally, you can even display any specializations or certificates you already have to strengthen your claims. You can even display positive client testimonials that’ll give your business a more organic appeal that would surely attract more customers.

Get Extra Certifications

Once you get enough traction with your business, it’s time to work on the expansion. You need to start with yourself. If you’re a certified personal trainer, it’s better to get some additional specializations to add more credibility to your skills. You can take courses related to wellness or medical fitness to broaden your scope of services.

Not only that, but you can collaborate with other fitness centers and offer special courses that focus on different factors like personal training with medical fitness or group exercise training. One more you can do is hire a specialist from different fields. Like you can hire a yoga instructor or an instructor for Pilates.

Expand Your Niche

To grow your fitness business even further, you’ll need to start expanding your niche at the right time. Many people wait too long to expand and lose to their competitors or new businesses. There are two ways you can expand your business. First, you can expand to other niches like weight training, weight loss, maternity fitness. Second, you can find untapped markets within your niche.

If your niche is senior citizens, you can start offering nutritional advice or organizing marathons. If you can’t figure out where to expand, it’s always a good idea to study your competitors’ business practices and find out how they have managed to expand.

Find More Customers

With business expansion, your operational costs will increase as well. You’ll need additional clients to fund the business to keep your profits steady. Generally, your expanded list of services will attract clients on its own if you have made a name for itself. But that doesn’t mean those clients will be enough to keep the business afloat.

You’ll need to offer additional discounts or free trial training to get potential clients interested. You can also schedule visitations around your fitness center and show off your equipment and facilities. Impressive equipment and services are a solid way to bag more clients.

Give Online Lessons

Online lessons are the hottest trend in almost all industries; the same can be said for the fitness industry as well. Many fitness trainers are expanding their clientele by offering convenient and easy-to-access online workout sessions. The sessions can be of two types; pre-recorded video lectures that clients can access anytime they like and make their own schedule and workout plan to follow them.

The other type involves on-demand live training sessions where instructors can interact with clients one-on-one or give training to multiple people at the same time. This type is a bit more demanding, but it allows trainers to be more involved in their client’s fitness, and they can even monitor the progress more closely as opposed to just sharing recorded sessions.

Market Yourself On Social Media

If you’re going towards the route of online lessons, it’s important to market it just right. Social media is a great way to share your work and upload trial video lessons to get potential clients interested. Your social media page can act as your portfolio, and customers can look up your services, read client comments, and even see the latest discounts and pieces of training conveniently.

Not to mention that social media is the most popular method of getting young customers to try out your services; if your page has enough testimonials and a good brand image, people will most likely be interested in giving your services a shot.

Establish A Better Training Facility

With so many services being offered and a huge number of clients to be managed, your training facility must have enough capacity to give clients a relaxed atmosphere. While we know that gyms are commonly loud with people doing different kinds of workouts and the machines being constantly used. However, no one wants a crowded gym.

People want to be able to work out in peace and have a bit of personal space to feel comfortable. If your gym can’t offer that, then it’s time for an upgrade. That doesn’t necessarily mean s you need a new facility; a good remodeling job can add a lot of extra workspaces as well.

Learn Some Fitness Management

It’s easy to keep track of your business when it’s starting out. You won’t need a lot of people to manage it; a few software would do the trick. But the story is completely different once the business starts to grow rapidly. Because you’re the person that’s responsible for all the training your clients get, you’ll dint it hard to keep up with the work while managing the business.

With a fitness management certification, you’ll learn methods to effectively keep the business on track while cutting down your workload. You’ll also learn when to hire more staff or outsource some of your work to maintain a good flow.

Tips On Setting Yourself Apart

Here are a few additional tips on getting even more business after you’ve finished all the steps mentioned above.

Create A Unique Brand Image

In this day and age, setting yourself apart is the most important thing. Previously, businesses were focused on offering the same services as their competitors to maintain a steady supply of customers. But now, it’s all about being unique and different. Your logo, theme colors, interior, and marketing tactics should use the same themes and tone to appear homogenous. Make it a point to make your business be known through your brand image. If people see your adverts or social media posts, they’ll instantly know it’s from you because of your brand image.

Target Under-Served Areas And People

There are a lot of groups that are sort of barred from the fitness industry for being too difficult to work with. Such as people with chronic illnesses or disabilities. But with the developments in medical fitness, trainers can now work easily with these people and help them attain their fitness goals. You, too, can capitalize on this untapped market and grow your business.

Turn your passion into a viable business with W.I.T.S Education’s fitness management course. The course will you all the basics about managing a fitness business, including marketing tactics, how to get clients, and managing risk factors. W.I.T.S Education is a training institute offering multiple fitness-related courses such as youth fitness courses, senior fitness courses, and personal trainer courses.

Through W.I.T.S, you can get NCCA accreditation for the courses you complete. In addition, W.I.T.S is the only institute with state-of-the-art practical labs in different parts of North America where students get hands-on physical training. Besides that, the institute also has online classes for courses to give students an easy learning outlet. This allows students to find good employment opportunities at leading fitness centers. Take a look at the course or get in touch today!

Posted on January 14, 2022October 29, 2022 by W.I.T.S. Content — Leave a comment

Starting Your Own Business in the Fitness Industry–A Guide

In the past decade, people’s attitude towards fitness has changed. Almost everyone these days is involved in some form of fitness to keep themselves in top shape. As a result, the fitness industry has grown quite a lot. Many new businesses are thriving and offering custom services to clients. Despite COVID, the global health industry is projected to grow steadily in the coming years.

This gives perspective to certified personal trainers who wish to start their own fitness business. But starting a business is easier said than done. There are a lot of key factors that need consideration to build a successful business. Here are a few tips to help you get started.

Do Your Research

As an entrepreneur, you’ll need to do a lot more work than regular businesses to get your idea off the ground. This means lots of extensive research, looking up niches, and predicting the next popular trends. Luckily for you, a lot of information will be available on the internet. You can look up business reports of already established companies to understand the industry trends.

Aside from that, you’ll need to figure out the legal stuff that needs to be taken care of before you can start your business—for example, registration, bank accounts, and investments. If you’ve got the finance, you can hire a financial advisor to help you set aside budgets and plan your business.

If not, you can make use of the countless free sources on the internet to help you out. Keep in mind that the free sources are usually generic. If you want a customized plan, you’ll need to spend some money.

Identify Your Target Market And Get Certifications

The first thing you need to do is figure out your target market. Even in the fitness industry, there are a lot of specific certifications and services that clients look for. This is why it’s important to determine where the majority of your clients would come from. You’ll need to take your qualifications into considerations as well because you can’t offer medical fitness services if you’re only registered as a personal trainer.

If you want to make your mark in an upcoming niche, you’ll need to enroll in courses and get the relevant certifications. On the other hand, you can hire people if you want to capture an upcoming niche. Another thing to keep in mind is the licenses. A lot of fitness niches these days require licenses in addition to proper certifications. For example, in the field of medical fitness and senior fitness, you’ll need the Medical Fitness Facility Certification before you operate your own facility.

Identify Your Competition

This is the most important thing a lot of new entrepreneurs forget is to research their competitors. For wellness and fitness businesses, the one main advantage is that if the competition isn’t in your area, you can somewhat ignore them. If you’re going to be an in-person business, your competition will be the businesses operating in your area that cover the same niche as you. But as we all know, after Covid, everyone is rushing to gain a dedicated online presence. AS a result, your competition can come from anywhere in the country.

You’ll need to study their business model and understand how you can compete against them and create a better service. For example, if your business will offer hybrid training sessions while the competition only has online sessions, you can gain leverage by marketing to the local customers. Or you can offer personalized services that will give clients better results at the same time. The options are many, but it all depends on your approach and business plan.

Create A Business Plan

After doing your market and competitor research, the next step is to develop a business plan to put your findings into action. Business plans essentially follow the same pattern regardless of the nature of the business. These plans are extensive and involve in-depth market research, competitor’s services and analysis, plan for marketing your services, plan for deriving sales, and financial projections. You need to describe all of the mentioned things in great detail so that potential investors will take you seriously.

This is especially important if this is your first business venture and you don’t have any prior experience in setting up or running a business. Because investors only invest their money when they find someone serious and credible, which is difficult if you’re starting out. These metrics and in-depth industry research would strengthen your case, and the financial projections would ensure the investors that your business will thrive in the long run.

Invest In A Good Insurance Policy

Now that you’ve got the basic things done, you’ll need to start worrying about how you’ll offer the services and where you would offer them. For example, if your business provides offline training, you’ll need a facility that can accommodate clients and has the relevant equipment. As an entrepreneur, you won’t be able to purchase such a facility unless you’ve got a lot of money. Instead, you’ll need to lease it for a period of time. Even with the lease, you’ll need a financial guarantor that’ll take responsibility if you’re late on your payments.

For that, you’ll need liability insurance. This insurance will help you protect your personal assets from the business ones in case your business runs into issues. It’ll keep you from going into debt and losing your personal assets. Many companies offer liability insurance plans at an affordable rate. But don’t go for the one that’s the cheapest; contact a few companies and go through their quotes. Figure out which one’s the best option for you, even if it’s a bit pricey.

After that, you’ll need to figure out the insurance of your equipment in case there’s an accident. Gym equipment costs a lot, especially if they’re some specialized medical equipment, and often clients are not careful with their usage and can damage such equipment. You can’t blame the clients as it will show poorly on your business ethics. The next best thing is to get the equipment insured. That way, if there’s an accident, the insurance company will pay for the damages.

Get An Employer Identification Number (ENI)

In order to file taxes and avoid penalties, you’ll need an ENI. ENI is also useful in opening a bank account in your business’s name, taking out loans, speeding up the process, and establishing credit for the business. The ENI can be obtained online by registering through the IRS. After registration, you’ll get your Employer Identification Number within minutes. Keep in mind that if your business is owned solely by you, you won’t be required to get the ENI.

However, if you’re opening your business with partnerships, then you’re legally required to obtain an ENI. Even if your business is operating as a sole proprietorship, it’s a good idea to get an ENI number for the benefits mentioned above. It’ll also help you establish your business as a separate entity and make it easier for you to expand it.

Have An Interactive Website

The first step in giving your business a face has a website. Many new business owners go through all the legal stuff and don’t pay much attention to having an online presence. Everything these days is online; if potential clients want to find a fitness training service, the first thing they’ll do is look online.

If you don’t have a website, chances are you’ll lose good business. An important thing in creating a website is to make it interactive and user-friendly. Many businesses fail to get customers because their website is cluttered, and there’s no proper information regarding their services. These businesses only focus on getting their contact information out so clients can reach them.

You have to understand the dynamic of how things work these days; people want to know as much as they can about a business before they set up an appointment. Meaning, putting out your contact information won’t do your business any good. Instead, try showing your services with descriptions, pictures, and videos to give the clients an understanding of your business. That way, clients will be compelled to get in touch with you, and you’re more likely to get business.

Install The Right Equipment

If you decide to market yourself as an in-person or hybrid trainer, you’ll need to invest in some workout equipment to facilitate your clients. The equipment you’ll need will depend on your services. For example, if you’re offering yoga classes in the park, you’ll need to make sure that all your clients have a yoga mat and relevant yoga equipment like an exercise ball or a resistance band. Having equipment will also make a good impression on the clients, and they’ll consider your services more credible, which is what you need to spread word of mouth to other potential customers.

Similarly, if you’re gearing up to launch a full-blown gym service, you’ll need proper weights, treadmills, stationary bicycles and other exercise equipment that satisfies the needs of all of your clients. Besides getting the equipment, you’ll need to get it insured. Be sure to look up different insurance policies for different pieces of equipment. If the equipment is for medical use, it’ll be a lot harder to repair in case of any damages. So you’ll need to select the policy carefully.

Invest In Online Training Platforms

Being an in-person only or online only trainer will limit your clients. What you need is to offer both services so you can reach local as well as out-of-city clients. But with online programs, you’ll need to do extra research. How will your programs run? Will you offer a bundled-up program for a fixed price, or will your sessions be interactive and delivered through an online learning system?

If you choose the latter, you’ll need to invest in a Learning Management System (LMS) to deliver your lessons and track your client’s progress. On top of that, you’ll need to develop a proper interface so your clients can signup and use the LMS easily.

Brand Image And Marketing

For an online business, brand image is the most important thing. You may have noticed that many brands have great products and services, yet they fail to gain many customers. While some have mediocre services but a high influx of clients. That’s all in the brand image. The more your market your service, the more audience you’ll reach. But it isn’t just about marketing; you’ll need the audience to relate with you. For that, you’ll need to make demographic-specific campaigns to get the attention of the audience.

Social media is a great way to reach youngsters and young adults, but what about the older population? Well, some of them use social media, while some of them don’t. So, you’ll need to employ new and old-school marketing tactics to reach them. This means extensive social media marketing as well as email marketing.

Expand Your Expertise

This step comes a little later. Once you’ve established a sizable clientele, you’ll need to expand your services to get more clients and keep the existing ones interested. There is two way to do this; one, you can enroll in other certifications like a medical or senior fitness course, like the ones offered by W.I.T.S. Education and become a certified instructor in these fields. Or you can hire more crew members to give more personalized training. For an online business, it’s easy for you to get further certifications and expand your services.

However, for in-person training, that’s next to impossible. You’ll have new clients and existing ones coming in expecting personal training. You won’t be able to do this alone, so in this scenario, it’s better to hire more experts.

Are you looking for a certification that’ll help you manage your fitness training business? Take a look at W.I.T.S. Education’s Fitness Management Course. This course is specifically designed for people who wish to run their own business in the fitness industry. Besides that, at W.I.T.S., we offer many courses related to fitness training such as Personal Training Course, Health Management Course, and Senior Fitness Course. Each of our courses is designed keeping in mind the latest developments in the industry. Check out our top courses.

Apart from that, college students can take advantage of our NCCA accreditation system and earn credits for their courses toward their college degrees. If you want to learn more, feel free to contact us.

Posted on December 25, 2021October 29, 2022 by W.I.T.S. Content — Leave a comment

Common Marketing Mistakes Personal Trainers Tend to Make

In the age of social media, digital marketing, and a booming fitness and health industry, certified personal trainers (CPTs) need to stay up to date on their marketing strategies. Not doing so will not only cost you business but will affect your public persona and perception as well.

It’s easy to fall into the trap of thinking that your marketing strategy is fine as it is, and your work will speak for itself. While it’s true that the quality of your services is what matters the most, it’s also important to remember that you still need to put in the effort.

Here are some common mistakes that personal trainers make when it comes to their marketing content and strategy, and you should be careful to avoid them:

Setting the bar too high and becoming unrelatable

While you might think it’s inspirational to post workout videos, ‘clean’ meals and expensive, extensive grocery lists, waking up at 5 am to go run or workout, other people may not agree. It’s one thing to look toward your favorite trainer for motivation, but if you’re only projecting an image of perfection, it might be highly unrelatable by being unattainable to the ordinary person.

After all, you do this for a living, and it’s your job to stay fit, healthy, and practice what you preach, but for other people, be it, stay-at-home moms or college students, their routines may not be adaptable for that lifestyle.

In short, the best thing you can do is stay relatable.

Not having a regular posting schedule for content

You’re damaging your online presence by not planning and having a posting schedule. You need to plan your social media and general marketing content ahead of time, building a cohesive sequence of what goes on, when, and how.

Space out and diversify the kind of content you share, including whatever your personal preferences are, from motivational quotes to workout tips and advice to promotional content. Everything must be well-thought-out and balanced because you’ll have a poorly organized feed with random, repetitive content without that.

Additionally, be sure to post consistently and follow a regular schedule. This is necessary for engagement, showing you’re active and indicating that your business profile can be used to reach out to you.

Don’t go weeks or months without posting and expect engagement and responses. This applies to all marketing content, including emails, web content, promotional messages, etc. Consistency is key, and a CPT should know that!

Mundane, repetitive content that doesn’t do much

Beyond just posting consistently and following a schedule, however, you should also work on mixing up the type of content you share. The same motivational videos and quotes can only get you so far.

It’s definitely challenging and an added layer of work to manage, but as a CPT, you need to provide value to your clients through your marketing strategy. Make a combination of text, images, video, and audio content, and continue to diversify your web presence.

You can do this through the aforementioned point regarding planning content, which allows you to curate and create meaningful material rather than just self-promotion and images and videos of yourself.

It’s true that while you are the main service provider, there’s got to be more to your profile than gym selfies and videos. It should be engaging, interactive, and inviting.

Ask questions, get to know your audience, understand what your potential clients are looking for, and think of how you can make your feed more organic. Testimonials, snippets of training sessions, educational information are all excellent options.

Excessively posting sponsored content and material

Another mistake that a lot of fitness experts are often guilty of making is posting excessive sponsored content. Yes, it’s great for your credibility and income to have sponsorships and paid content, but posting too much of that can be off-putting to audiences.

It can make it harder to trust in your abilities and your expertise if you’re continually promoting products, whether they’re skinny teas or supplements or even gym wear. However, as long as it’s spaced out and cushioned by more organic material or other forms of content, you should be good to go.

In addition to that, focus on building your SEO presence and optimizing your existing content for more relevance. Build a website, develop content for that, make your work more accessible and watch that work wonders over typical PPC advertising.

Pricing yourself far below market rates (it’s not a good thing)

You might think that selling your services lower than the average market rate will help you attract more clients, but that works against you. The more you devalue your work, the more people are skeptical.

After all, why would a skilled, qualified CPT charge significantly lower rates than their competitors unless something was wrong? You can, however, use promotional offers and seasonal discounts to build a sense of urgency, but never sell yourself or your services short.

Not targeting the right audience or focusing only on new clients

Don’t be that trainer who’s so focused on attracting new clients that they forget to value their current ones. It’s cheaper and more profitable to retain old clients than constantly bring in new ones, and as a CPT, you should know who to target and how. Find your niche, address that, and attract faces while also highlighting your current clients’ progress and achievements. Their stories, testimonials, reviews, and recommendations are what can make or break your practice

As a personal trainer, you are running a business at the end of the day. Whether you’re selling services independently, as part of a gym or facility, or in affiliation with other programs, you need to have a solid marketing strategy that drives results.

You can also upgrade your marketing strategy with the help of our fitness trainer programs, including marketing and business content. Get in touch with us to register to become a certified personal trainer or upgrade your current education and training!

Posted on December 20, 2021 by W.I.T.S. Content — Leave a comment

Hitting The Gym or Working Out at Home: What’s Best For You?

To become a fitness trainer, being up-to-date with your fitness knowledge and skills is important. That’s mainly because of the extensive continuing education training that is required for us to be mentally and practically fit enough to train others. Not only that, but personal fitness is also important for your physical and mental health. But where should you begin? At home or the gym. Many factors come into play when deciding this. Read on to find out what they are.

What’s Best About Gyms?

Hitting the gym and working up a sweat sounds like an easy way to maintain your fitness. It’s also a great way to start your journey to become a personal trainer. But it can be troublesome with a hectic schedule. On the plus side, you’ll get proper gym equipment and you can even hire a personal trainer of your own to help you along the way.

Another benefit is the tailored training sessions, which are hard to come by when learning from the house. People go to the gym to work out, so naturally, they’re more focused. At home, there are too many distractions. Finally, once you pay for the training, it becomes an obligation to attend the sessions.

Why Working Out At Home Is Good For You?

On the other hand, you are more likely to skip your training at home, but you also get the flexibility to learn any time you want. Not to mention it’s cheaper and you take classes online to help you get started. Additionally, there’s no rush in at-home training and you don’t need to push yourself to reach your goals. Instead, you can learn at your own pace. Aside from that, you also get to choose what type of training you want to do. The only downside is that people tend to lose consistency with their sessions over time.

What’s Best For You?

Generally speaking, the gym is the best option. You get more motivation, and you reach your milestones quicker. But you’ll have to keep up with attending the gym even if your schedule is full. Maybe a combination of the two with virtual training with your trainer from the club to stay safe and on target for your goals.

Otherwise, you’ll end up wasting your money. At the same time, workouts at home are relaxing mentally, convenient, and you don’t have to pay a lot. But again, if you have a tough lifestyle, you’re more likely to skip the sessions. Additionally, you might not find the right training routine for yourself, or the slow progress might put you off. So whatever you choose will depend mostly on your motivation.

If you’re passionate about fitness and want to take your fitness to the next level? Become a certified personal trainer with us. At W.I.T.S. Education, we offer many fitness certifications, including group instructor training, personal trainer programs, and fitness trainer programs. Check out our programs or reach out to us today to learn more.

Posted on December 15, 2021January 14, 2022 by W.I.T.S. Content — Leave a comment

Key Recommendations to Improve Your Relationships with Your Clients

A trainer-client relationship is one of the most important professional relationships you’ll ever develop in your career as a fitness professional. It’s one built on a foundation of trust, mutual respect, and support and needs to be treated as such. As a trainer, you must ensure that your clients trust you and believe in you to help them achieve their health and wellness goals, rather than fearing you.

They should be able to express their concerns and vulnerabilities, knowing that you will be able to help them, and that’s only achievable if you actively work on being approachable and trustworthy.

Here are some great tips on how to improve your relationship with your fitness clients:

Maintain a professional attitude and demeanor

To make a good impression on your clients, you don’t need to have the latest trainers or fancy clothes. There are a few basic tenets of professionalism that can start you off on the right foot; being punctual, honoring commitments, staying pleasant, and being honest are often more than enough. It’s important for trainers to maintain a professional attitude when dealing with clients because it helps them see you as their coach and as someone who is trained in their field and equipped to help them.

Communicate clearly, communicate often

Communicating with your clients is very important. Not just sharing basic need-to-know details like timings and schedules but communicating words of encouragement, approval, recommendations, and even off-day workouts. It helps to show your clients that you’re involved, following up with their progress, and offering them support, advice and feedback even beyond the gym floor.

This also applies to regularly communicating their progress and walking them through their performance, improvements in their form, stats, or general indicators. It’s a great way to build rapport for healthy communication.

Empathize and put yourself in their position

Often trainers forget the importance of empathy. Yes, you’re there to push your clients to do better, work harder, and perform more steadily, testing their limits along the way, but you shouldn’t overlook their struggles either. Put yourself in their shoes for a moment and envision how they feel being yelled at by a trainer on the gym floor–name-calling, body-shaming, mocking, terrorizing are some of the worst practices any trainer can adopt, and you should work to steer clear of them.

Maybe you were genetically blessed and came out of the womb with a six-pack, but maybe you were also heavily bullied for your appearance once upon a time. No matter what the case may be, you should always remember that your client is a person with feelings and emotions before anything else.

Be specific to their needs but remain flexible

Learn to adapt your training style and schedule to your clients’ needs, goals, and requirements. Rather than taking a cookie-cutter generic approach to training, see how you can help your clients achieve their specific fitness, health, and wellness goals through your services, providing them with the tools, knowledge, and expertise that they need.

You might have a trajectory in mind for them, but injuries, accidents, fatigue, physical and mental limitations can all get in the way and how you respond to them as a trainer is what sets you apart. The more adaptive you are while still doing your job, the more your clients respect you.

Set goals for the long run to show commitment

Goal-setting should be a two-way street as you and your client mutually set goals for your training sessions. Where do they see themselves in 3, 6, or 12 months? How do you plan to help them achieve those goals? It’s important to set aside your assumptions and let them take the lead on these goals, sometimes. As a trainer, you might feel like you can tell exactly what your client needs, and while you might be right, you should also work on negotiating with them and meeting them halfway. Remember that not everyone will have the same fitness and exercise goals, and that’s okay, but as long as you’re thinking of both long and short-term goals that are achievable, you’re showing them that you’re with them for the long haul.

Get to know your client on a slightly deeper level

Lastly, you should learn to be your client’s friend. This doesn’t mean you cross professional boundaries and become besties with them, but rather, you hear them out, let them open up to you, and be honest about their fears, challenges, and insecurities, supporting them in more ways than one. A trainer is so much more than just your gym instructor, it’s someone who sees you at your worst, and you’d want that person to treat you as an equal. It also allows you to be vulnerable and open about your own struggles, helping them feel less alone.

As a fitness trainer, your role goes beyond the gym or classes; what you say and do can often impact your clients directly and affect their mental, physical and emotional health in the process. It’s a lot of responsibility to take on. You should never shy away from working on your communication skills and abilities, developing more empathy, and improving your relationship with your clients.

Learn more about improving your services and working as a personal trainer and a certified group exercise instructor through our courses and training modules. We have some of the most highly-rated fitness trainer programs that include both online and in-person components and will equip you with not just the necessary knowledge and skill to train and coach but also provide you with interpersonal skills and insights. View our range of certifications here, or register for one of our other training and specialties today!

Posted on November 8, 2021November 11, 2021 by W.I.T.S. Content — Leave a comment

3 Interesting Specialties to Focus On As a Personal Trainer

Being a personal trainer is one of the best ways to motivate, inspire, and help people around you. It’s a test of your own skills, commitment, and dedication. It also allows you to work with different groups and individuals and push them to be the strongest, fittest and happiest versions of themselves.

But beyond just conventional training styles and specialties, there are several different areas of focus that you can work on. Learn more about these interesting specialties below:

1. Senior training

There’s no denying how important physical fitness is for senior citizens. However, some different variables and factors impede their access to the same kind of physical fitness that younger individuals opt for. From joint health to stamina, there’s a lot to factor in, and a good trainer needs to be familiar with all this. It’s a promising specialty with a high pay-off, both monetarily and in terms of gratification!

2. Chronic illness training

Chronic illnesses can range from mild to severe in terms of symptoms, flare-ups, and effects, with some such as arthritis causing extremely limited mobility and others such as fibromyalgia disrupting energy levels. Trainers working with clients who have various types of chronic illnesses should be able to work around their symptoms, complications and help them manage their conditions through physical fitness and exercise, and for that, special training is absolutely crucial.

3. Group fitness training

Anyone who’s ever set foot in a gym can tell you how vastly different group fitness is from personal training. There are several reasons for this, including the difference in setting, pace, attention, focus, and the structure and style of the class. Each type has its benefits, and trainers should be equipped to keep up with their demands. Training groups, whether for HIIT, Zumba, strength, or other workouts, need specific skillset. This can include dividing attention in multiple places, taking everyone along at the same pace, working with individuals of varying fitness levels and backgrounds, making lesson plans, and being able to help them in case of emergencies.

Knowing these different types of training specialties, you can take your time to figure out which one appeals most to you, meets your preferences, and is something you’re passionate about.

You can become a certified group fitness instructor or join other types of fitness trainer programs through the World Instructor Training that offers a wide range of certifications and renewal courses. Check out some of their certifications here, or find a location near you and register for the training session of your choice. Your dreams are within reach!

The Practical Skills Certifications!