Does your personal trainer have these 5 essential qualities?

If you’re planning on losing weight or starting on a workout routine, one of the most important, yet looked over, details is your trainer. Needless to say, you will be spending a lot of time with your trainer and depending on him or her for development so you need to choose wisely. Here are a few suggestions of what you need to look for.

Passion for fitness

Although it is possible to be a good trainer without being a fit one, try to hire someone who is as fit as you would eventually like to be. Theoretically speaking, one can be a good coach without having played the game but, an effective trainer needs to practice what he or she preaches.

A solid and impressive trainer is passionate, determined, and dedicated towards fitness and is someone who you can be inspired by. But, being passionate about exercise and being passionate about training someone is not the same thing, so hire a trainer who can lead by example.

Understanding of when to push and when not to

To be able to properly motivate a person, one must understand the need of every individual and this is a quality a terrific trainer must possess. Your trainer should know when to push and how much to push and you need to be able to trust him or her to never push too far. Hire a trainer, who will test your limits to an extent you wouldn’t go to yourself, but one who will also pull you back with empathy and understanding when you need it. Choose a trainer who you trust to take care of you and are comfortable with.

Proficiency

When choosing a personal trainer, it isn’t necessary to make the decision based on their degrees or certificates but, you need to know how much how your trainer has learned and where he or she has learned from. Since it’s a trainer’s job to help their clients grow, change and adapt, a trainer must also do the same. And because continued learning is the key to personal growth, choose a trainer who is still learning and growing.

Communication skills

You need to hire a trainer who you feel comfortable enough to properly communicate with but, don’t mistake smooth talking for communication. Make sure you are able to talk to your trainer for him or her to be able to understand you and your needs better. Your trainer is going to be there to guide you on a journey to growth, health, and fitness and for him or her to succeed you need to make your requirements and preferences clear.

Compassion

Since you and your trainer are going to be spending a lot of time together, it is essential that you find someone who is sympathetic to your cause. A trainer who can empathize with you is a trainer whom you can trust to fully understand and cater to your requirements. Also, a compassionate trainer will relate to you better and that will be fabulous and true help during your moments of struggles in the future workout sessions.

So if you feel like you’ve made a genuine connection with a trainer, make sure you hire him or her.

Written by Benjamin Roussey for bodono.

Benjamin Roussey is from Sacramento, CA. He has two master’s degrees and served four years in the US Navy. His bachelor’s degree is from CSUS (1999) where he was on a baseball pitching scholarship. He has an MBA in Global Management from the Univ. of Phoenix (2006) where he attributes his writing prowess. He has worked everywhere from small businesses to large corporations, and also for public agencies. He has lived in Korea and Saudi Arabia where he was an ESL instructor. He misses Saudi food and living in Korea. Benjamin has a tremendous work ethic and is quite focused. Now he writes professionally for several clients that covers one sector of our economy to another. Currently he lives in the Phoenix area after living in Cabo San Lucas, MX for 3 years. He enjoys sports, movies, reading, and current events when he is not working online: www.infinista.com.