The Best Way to Get Started as a Personal Trainer

If you’re thinking of becoming a personal trainer but aren’t sure where to begin, you’ve come to the right place. Personal training can be a lucrative and rewarding career, and you’ll need to make sure you have the right combination of foundational knowledge, skills, and hands-on experience before you begin applying to jobs and start taking on clients.

Here are the best steps you can do to get started as a personal trainer.

1. Find a degree or certificate-granting program.
   This is by far the best way to get started on your new career as a personal trainer. It may be tempting to jump right to the online certification, which is a “badge” of sorts you earn by taking an online course and passing a test. (Read our previous blog post to learn about the difference between certificates and certifications and why this is important.) Yes, you may need a personal training certification eventually—some gyms require it—but it will not give you nearly the amount of knowledge and preparation you’ll need before training clients. This is why you need a degree or certificate-granting program that teaches you vital, foundational knowledge in topics including kinesiology, anatomy, nutrition, and more—as well as giving you practical, hands-on experience through practice sessions.

   While a degree or certificate-granting program will take longer to complete and cost more than just an online certification, it will be worth it in the long run. You will be much better prepared to train clients, have more industry knowledge, and have a competitive advantage in your career.

2. Complete an online certification.
   Many potential employers will require an online certification, but again, you probably won’t want to have only a certification without an accompanying certificate or a degree. Two of the most well-known personal training certifications are NASM (the National Academy of Sports Medicine) and ACE (American Council on Exercise). These certifications can usually be obtained in just a few weeks. The good news is that many degree/certificate-granting programs partner with organizations like NASM and ACE to give students a discounted rate.

3. Network as much as possible and attend career days.
   In the midst of completing your courses, earning your degree/certificate, and getting your certification, you’ll be meeting a lot of new people: Mentors and teachers, other aspiring personal trainers, other people who work in the fitness industry, and maybe even potential clients. You’ll want to build up a strong network and utilize those connections as much as possible. In the fitness industry especially, many trainers find jobs through word of mouth, and you never know when a connection you make knows about a gym that is hiring new trainers. And many gyms set their new members up with a couple of free sessions with trainers, so you will likely get a lot of new clients that way.

   Also, attend fitness expos or career fairs for people in the fitness industry: The American Academy of Personal Training hosts career days every year with representatives from local gyms. This gives novice trainers direct access to potential employers and is a great way to make sure your personal training style would be a good fit for their gym.

If you want to make a career out of personal training, know that It’s not something that you can just jump right into. It takes time and commitment, but that commitment will ultimately make you a better trainer and get your clients better results.