The other day I had an In-House Client ask me why I believe so many people work with Personal Trainers. My initial response was for accountability of course. However as I reflected on the context of the question that was asked, I realized that there is much more complexity and dimensions to the Coach/Client relationship than just accountability. It then occurred to me that in my 20+ years of training clients both in person and online, in addition to my 15+ years of writing my weekly blogs, I’ve never fully addressed the reasons why I believe people work with Personal Trainers.
And with good reason – I never have given it much thought.
Wait What?!?!?!
I know what you’re thinking – Why would I start a Personal Training Company if I didn’t understand the value of Personal Training and why anyone would be interested in paying for it? Truth be told, when I was in my late teens (before when I began training clients legally), I never saw the value in Personal Training myself. I was under the impression that Personal Training was a complete waste of money.
Now in my defence, when I first began training in gyms, Personal Training was not as popular as it has become today. And the people that I knew who were Personal Trainers were hardly professional or career-orientated. Looking back, I don’t think any of them were even certified or had their PT Licenses. Most if not all of them would either show up late for their sessions (that is when they did show up), provide copy-and-paste programs to all their clients, and show little to no interest in helping their clients achieve their health and fitness goals.
As a result of the half-ass service that these clients were receiving, along with the “guaranteed results” they were not achieving, most if not all of these people would rarely if ever renew their contract or purchase another training package with these trainers. As someone who was considering going back to school to become a certified trainer so that I could do it legally, this made me question how/if Personal Training could ever become a lucrative career that would provide not only sustainability but also longevity.
Who Needs Personal Training?
Many people view Personal Training as a luxury and not a necessity. And if you’re self-motivated to go to the gym 4-6x/week, follow a structured muscle building/fat loss program that targets all the muscle groups evenly, have at least a basic understanding of human anatomy and physiology, and are seeing/feeling significant results with your physique, then you’re right, you probably don’t need a Personal Trainer.
However, if you’re like most people who struggle to find the motivation to go the gym on your own, lack the discipline to remain consistent with your workouts, and/or don’t have the time/patience to deal with an overly crowded gym where you have to modify your training sessions because every piece of equipment is being occupied or in use, then quite frankly, you do need a Personal Trainer.
What’s The Value Of Personal Training?
As someone who holds both long-term and short-term options in both real estate and the Stock Market, I can tell you that I don’t even waste my time entertaining the idea of a potential “opportunity” that doesn’t offer an annual ROI of at least 10%. Of course there are risks with any investment and some years will deliver lower returns than others. However just like your finances, when it comes to investing in your health, you should be focused primarily on your long-term investments, and even more importantly – their sustainability and profitability. And the reality is that working with a reputable and knowledgeable Personal Trainer is only going to add value to your long-term investment aka your health.
So why are more and more people now working with Personal Trainers than ever before? Well besides the points I made above, I believe the main reason is that these people view Personal Training as high valued investment that will produce a consistent ROI for years/decades to come.
“We can do things the cheap way, the simple way, for the short-term and without regard for the future. Or, we can make the extra effort, do the hard work, absorb the criticism and make decisions that will cause a better future.”
Mike Rounds
Yours in Good Health,
Nick Cosgrove
Forever Fit Performance