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How to choose the best Brisbane personal trainer

CHOOSING A BRISBANE PERSONAL TRAINER

Choosing a Brisbane Personal Trainer can be challenging, especially considering how much the industry has grown in the last 20 years. A quick Google search reveals one thing: all personal trainers in Brisbane are not equally qualified.

 

WHAT IS A QUALIFIED PERSONAL TRAINER?

The minimum qualification required for a registration with Fitness Australia (and associated insurance) as a Personal Trainer (PT) is currently a Certificate IV in Fitness. From there, PTs are required to complete further education during each period of registration in order to maintain industry currency.

At the time of writing, the ability for a student to go from knowing nothing about the health and fitness industry or the human body to possessing the minimum personal trainer qualification can be as little as 12-14 weeks. Grasping the basics of anatomy, physiology and exercise prescription and programming in this time frame is a tough ask of anyone.

For this reason, the choice of further education from a Certificate IV level onwards is what separates a general PT from a specialised health and fitness industry professional. If a trainer’s best qualification is their Certificate IV, they’re either new to the industry or not committed to furthering their knowledge in order to benefit their clients.

DOES YOUR BRISBANE PERSONAL TRAINER UNDERTAKE PD?

Professional Development (PD) is an important part of every profession. Quality personal training can only transpire if your Brisbane Personal Trainer continuously develops their knowledge and skills.

As such, the next step after a Certificate IV is a Diploma of Fitness. Diploma of Fitness graduates generally have better knowledge of exercise for special populations (such as those with diabetes or asthma), but their knowledge is still general and not all encompassing.

From there, you move to Accredited Exercise Scientists (AES) and Accredited Exercise Physiologists (AEP); both are degree qualified exercise professionals who are registered with Exercise and Sports Science Australia. Exercise Science degrees are generally 3 years in duration with Exercise Physiology degrees 12 months longer. AES’s and AEP’s who work as personal trainers also hold the minimum Certificate IV in Fitness qualification to align their in-depth knowledge of the human body and exercise to the personal training profession.

A GOOD PT WILL HELP YOU MANAGE YOUR EXPECTATIONS AND BE REALISTIC

Quality PTs will understand that achieving a goal is a balancing act between changes required to reach that specific goal and the continuance of your everyday life. Some things in our lives, such as commitments to work or family can not always be changed or modified to align perfectly with our goals and your PT needs to recognise this and work with you to create an understanding of how to navigate these difficulties and how this will affect your timelines. Our Director and Principal Physiotherapist/Exercise Scientist, Matt Bushell contributed to an article on Managing Client Expectations recently for www.becomeapersonaltrainer.org.

DO NOT JUST CONTACT ONE BRISBANE PT

When beginning your search for a new Personal Trainer in Brisbane, I recommend calling at least two or three PTs who deliver personal training sessions in your area and gauging their professionalism, their experience in working with people who have similar goals to you, and whether you feel you can create a successful professional relationship. Achieving goals through personal training takes time and is a collaborative effort between trainer and client. So it’s important to have mutual respect and be able to maintain open communication at all times.

PRICE IS IMPORTANT, BUT IT ISN’T EVERYTHING

Price is also an all important factor for most of us. Just don’t let price be the only factor you consider when making a decision on which personal trainer in Brisbane to work with.

There are experienced PTs who align their service costs with the market average. And, the added value their education and experience brings to your health, fitness or weight loss journey is more than worth it in the long run.

Nonetheless, it is possible to find affordable Personal Trainers in Brisbane who know their stuff. We know, because KineticsCorrect is one them! In fact, we also clearly disclose our Personal Training prices.