The 11 traits of an EXCELLENT personal trainer.

Personal training is booming, and with America’s increased focus on health and wellness, everyone is taking physical fitness more seriously. Choosing the right personal trainer should not be hard, but unfortunately, with all of the different ranges of talent out there, it is. It’s important to know the difference before you put your health, body and money on the line. Once you have an excellent trainer, it will be hard to go to anyone else after you experience the difference in quality. It is PERSONAL training. If you are serious about results, you must find someone who is going to build everything around your needs.

1. Timely

Your time is the most valuable asset. It’s truly the only thing you cannot get back after you use it. Your training starting on time is huge. During your session, an excellent trainer will guide you through each exercise, making sure you accomplish all the work. They keep you focused and on task. They know how to slow down the training session if you need more rest, and they know how to speed it up to challenge you appropriately.

2. Inquisitive

Before your first session, your trainer meets with you and asks questions to understand why you are coming to them. The more questions they ask, the better the chance of them understanding how to properly train you. It also helps the trainer know what worked in the past that you found success with and what hasn't worked. A skilled trainer will go over your medical history and injuries. They get to know you and have an amazing understanding of your needs before you even start.

3. Strategic

When the trainer does their job and discovers your needs properly, they will be able to build you a roadmap to success. This is based on how frequently you can work out, your nutrition needs, and what lifestyle adjustments need to be made. The plan will be simple and easy to follow, a personal treasure map to success. It is 100% tailored to you, and if you can follow it for the first 3 weeks, you are virtually guaranteed to find success.

4. Knowledgeable

An excellent trainer has an outstanding understanding of human anatomy. They know which muscles will be targeted for each exercise. They are able to point out where you will be feeling it in the body. They can even walk you through why each exercise targets that muscle. They can adjust your body position ever so slightly to ensure the tension is placed properly on the right muscle. This is one of the many bits of knowledge needed. It is extremely helpful if they are familiar with physics, biomechanics, and exercise science, understand proper recovery, and understand how the body adapts as well.

5. Attentive

This is 100% the trainer's level of focus and how much they value your results. An excellent trainer is constantly in your ear, reminding you what to focus on. "Push this", "Squeeze that", "keep your eyes there". You know what to do, they have taught you well already. They are just little reminders to help you stay focused and get the absolute most out of each exercise.

We have all seen the trainer who watches quietly during the set and says nothing; it’s awkward.

6. Engaged

It happens in any field. When someone's not interested, doesn't agree, or is sick of the conversation, their body language shows they are not engaged. Trainers with their arms crossed, their body positioned away from you, or leaning on equipment while you're doing your sets are just some of the many signs your trainer is not into it. Your trainer will be facing you at all times with open body language, strong eye contact, nodding, listening to you, and asking more questions.

An excellent trainer will give you their full attention during your sessions, whether it's 30 minutes or 60 minutes. If your trainer ever takes their phone out, checks their smartwatch, or starts talking to another client or trainer about their weekend plans... RUN!

(Working in larger commercial gyms in the past, it was crazy to see how common it is for trainer to be on their phones. Instead of being engaged with their client. If this ever happens to you, I highly recommend you ask for your money back.)

You will feel like you are the main attraction. Because you are… this is your hour.

7. Communicative

Immediate feedback after every set is crucial. Even if it's a good set, your trainer will be letting you know what you did well. Not just that you did well. When a correction has to be made within the set, an excellent trainer stops you immediately and fixes, adjusts, and cues the breakdown. They show you exactly what you are not doing right, what they want you to do, and allow you to practice more. (Demonstration, imitation, repetition) The more a trainer lets it slide when you do a bad rep, the more you teach a bad movement pattern, potentially leading to not targeting the right muscles or worse an injury. It also shows the trainer's lack of care and attention to detail in doing it right.

If you hired a professional plumber to work on your house, would you want him to leave a screw loose and leaking or tighten it up immediately?

8. Adaptable

Now and then, you come in not feeling 100%. Sometimes your body feels slightly off, you had a particularly bad night of sleep, or you have a previous injury that flared up. An excellent trainer is able to adapt the workout on the fly. They know how to regress exercises to match where you are currently at. The workout is not neglected, and the trainer focuses on doing what you can do. It’s an art that comes with experience.

9. Systematic

In your first couple of training sessions, the sessions will feel a bit easier than you think they need to be. The trainer must understand where you are to set an appropriate weight to progress from. Nothing is more demoralizing than being told to do an exercise or use a weight only to find out you cannot do it yet. It keeps you from becoming too sore on the first day and never wanting to work out again.

10. Analytical

This is the execution of a plan. What you don't track doesn't progress. Tracking also helps find where any weak spots may be. Whether the trainer uses pen and paper or an iPad, this allows them to go back in time and compare what you have been doing, where you are, and where you are heading.

Nothing is more rewarding as a trainer than when your clients reach a new peak. They ask what they did on a certain lift 6 months ago, and you can go back, find it, and show them they have doubled their strength.

11. Authentic

It is always important in any field or industry that the professional walks the walk. You would never want to take financial advice from a broke financial advisor. It would be difficult to trust a trainer who doesn’t work out regularly, doesn't eat well 90% of the time, and does 10% of what they ask of you. It’s a good bonus if they have been in a similar position in the past to where you currently are. They are also constantly seeking to improve their skills as an excellent trainer, their personal health, and overall well-being. Lastly, they are positive with the words they use and how they talk about themselves, others, and you!

Conclusion:

Personal training is growing quickly with health and wellness on the rise. People are starting to prioritize their health while taking care of their well-being, and that is amazing. This has also led to an increase in people wanting to share that love for health improvements, confidence, a better figure, and strength gains with little to no experience, misleading the less informed, resulting in not getting the progress they want. Hopefully, this article will help you improve your discernment in choosing an excellent trainer.