Finding a Personal Trainer
Getting personal instruction at least three times is valuable for anyone who lifts weights. If you join a club, you should automatically get a free training session on top of a fitness evaluation. Ask in advance, and you may even get extra free sessions. If you lift weights at home, you can hire a trainer for a couple of sessions to get you up and running. (If a trainer isn't an option for you, a good video or DVD can help, but when you're an absolute beginner, a video or DVD is no substitute for hands-on instruction.)
Finding fitness help: What a trainer can do for you
Personal trainers are famous for performing award-winning actions to firm bodies quickly with amazing results for prizefighters, action heroes, and models, but a good fitness trainer can do that for you, too.
Perfecting your technique
A trainer can offer subtle pointers to improve your weight lifting form. Even if you do your best to follow instructions like, "Keep your arm parallel to the floor," you may not be able to tell whether your arm is in precisely the right position. After you know what it feels like to correctly perform an exercise, you're likely to keep using good techniques when you're on your own.
Showing you alternative exercises
A trainer can help you build on exercises, showing you additional moves that meet your specific needs and preferences. If you're pregnant, a trainer can show you how to perform abdominal exercises without lying on your back and hamstring exercises without lying on your stomach. If you suffer from arthritis, a personal trainer can show you how to stretch and strengthen your muscles while alleviating some pain and fatigue.
Introducing you to the equipment
Each brand of equipment has its own quirks. The seat adjustment for one Lat Pulldown machine may work by a different mechanism than it does for another, even though the machines strengthen your back muscles in the same way. A trainer can tell you about the intricacies of each machine in your health club or home gym.
Designing or updating your program
If you wanted to, you could come up with a new routine every day for the rest of your life. A trainer can help you expand on our workout suggestions and design routines that fit your specific schedule, whether you work out 3 days a week for 20 minutes or twice a week for an hour.
Keeping you motivated
Some people wouldn't even consider getting out of bed, let alone lifting a weight, if they didn't have a trainer standing over them saying, "Okay, Larry, ten shoulder presses, now!" Others manage with a motivational boost every month or two, working out on their own the rest of the time. And then some people rely so much on their trainers for inspiration that they actually bring them along on vacation.
Finding a qualified trainer
Fitness trainer is about as meaningful a term as Internet consultant or marketing liaison. In terms of skills and education, the term doesn't mean a darn thing.
Looking for the certification
Although no laws exist on the books requiring trainers to have any particular training or certification, professional organizations and university programs are certifying more and more trainers. Many health clubs now require their trainers to have at least one certification, and as the personal training profession becomes increasingly competitive, many private trainers are earning certifications in order to stay ahead of the competition.
A number of certifications require several days of seminars taught by fitness experts and a passing grade on a written exam. But beware: Some trainers might be certified by answering a few questions online and paying $90.
The following organizations are among the most reputable certifying agents:
- American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM)
- National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA)
- American Council on Exercise (ACE)
Hiring an experienced trainer
Don't be shy: Ask for references and call a few. Do as good a job screening potential trainers as you'd do checking out potential employees. Ask for a resume.
Making sure that your personalities mesh
Trainers are human beings, which means that they come in all different personality types. Some are enthusiastic. Some are downright perky. Others are drill sergeants.
Interview a few trainers and choose one who makes you feel comfortable. Your trainer doesn't need to be your best friend. In order to act as an objective professional, your trainer — like your doctor or lawyer — may need some distance from you.
Expecting good teaching skills
Even if your trainer has a PhD in physiology and is more congenial than Oprah, there's no guarantee that he can show you how to perform a push-up correctly. The ability to get a point across is a skill in and of itself. Good trainers speak to you in your native tongue, not in jargon. If you don't understand something, a trainer should be able to find another way of explaining the point. Also, good trainers prepare you to venture out into the world alone. They make sure that you understand not only how to adjust the seat on the Leg Extension machine, but also why you're adjusting it that way.
Getting personal attention
Your trainer should shower you with questions about your goals and should thoroughly evaluate your health, strength, cardiovascular fitness, and flexibility. Look for evidence that you're getting a custom-designed routine. Many trainers specialize in certain types of clients, such as seniors, children, pregnant women, multiple sclerosis patients, or ultra-endurance athletes. If you have a specific goal in mind or have special circumstances, it's wise to seek out a trainer who has the training and experience to meet your needs.
Paying a hefty fee
Hollywood stars may pay $200 per weight training session, but you don't need to. Fees vary widely depending on what part of the country you live in, but in many places, you can find a trainer for about $35 an hour. Expect to pay between $75 and $150 per hour if you live in a big city. More experienced trainers generally receive a higher rate. Trainers with additional education in working with people with certain medical conditions or women who're pregnant usually charge higher rates. Yoga and Pilates instructors often charge more, too.
Insisting on liability insurance
Make sure that your trainer carries liability insurance. If you get hurt, you may be looking at thousands of dollars in medical bills, even if you have medical insurance. A trainer's liability coverage may foot the bill if you can prove your injury is a direct result of the trainer's negligence.
Being on your best behavior
Just like you expect a trainer to meet certain qualifications and protocol, you too need to be up to the standard, aligning your behaviors with a willing participant and one that trainers can work with. Follow these tips to get the most out of your training sessions:
- Show up on time. Trainers are professional people with busy schedules and bills to pay, so show them courtesy.
- Have a good attitude. Your trainer doesn't want to hear you whine about your boss or your latest speeding ticket.
- Speak up. The more questions you ask, the more information you're likely to remember.
- Listen to your trainer. When you're advised to perform 12 repetitions per set, don't say, "My stockbroker says that it's better to perform 40 repetitions." Trust that your trainer has more experience than you do (or your stockbroker for that matter).
Fitness Glossary
aeroboxing, kickboxing
A class that takes the moves of a kickboxer’s training and choreographs them to music.
Fitness Glossary
anaerobic threshold
The point at which your body switches from using oxygen as its primary source of energy to using stored sugar. When you’re in poor physical shape, you hit your anaerobic threshold while exercising at relatively low levels of exercise.
Fitness Glossary
barbells
The larger weights (for power lifting in a weight training program) that include a long bar with weights added to each end. You need to use both hands to lift a barbell.
Fitness Glossary
Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis BIA
A method of measuring your body fat in which you lie on your back while a signal travels from an electrode on your foot to an electrode on your hand. The slower the signal, the more fat you have.
Fitness Glossary
blood pressure
A measurement of how open your blood vessels are. Low numbers mean that your heart doesn’t have to work very hard to pump the blood through your blood vessels.
Fitness Glossary
body composition
How much of your body is composed of fat and how much is composed of everything else. Your body composition is also called your body-fat percentage.
Fitness Glossary
body mass index BMI
A way of relating your height and weight to estimate how fat you are. You can use a simple formula to determine your BMI.
Fitness Glossary
body sculpting
A non-aerobic, muscle-toning class, usually focused on core strength.
Fitness Glossary
BOSU
A domed, flexible apparatus that helps to improve balance and can be used in a step aerobics exercise routine. BOSU is an acronym for Both Sides Utilized.
Fitness Glossary
cardio
A term (short for cardiovascular) that is often used interchangeably with aerobic. Aerobic exercise is any repetitive activity that you do long enough and hard enough to challenge your heart and lungs.
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chi
Otherwise known as "life energy," this is the life force that pulses through your body and keeps you vital. Blocked chi can cause sickness or unhappiness.
Fitness Glossary
circuit training
A fast-paced class or exercise routine in which you do one exercise for 30 seconds to 5 minutes and then move on to another exercise at the next station. Combines cardio exercise with strength training.
Fitness Glossary
core
The abdomen, obliques, lower back, butt, and so on, that form the midsection. Many forms of exercise focus on strengthening the body's core.
Fitness Glossary
core conditioning
A non-aerobic, muscle-toning class, usually focused on core strength.
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cross-training
A method of varying your workouts to take your fitness to the next level by adding new forms of training to your current routine.
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Dual-Energy X-ray Absorptiometry DEXA
A method of measuring your body fat that also determines where the fat is located on your body, a more relevant health indicator.
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dumbbells
Smaller weights (for a weight training program) that you can lift with one hand.
Fitness Glossary
elliptical trainer
The hottest trend in cardio machines, which is part stair-climber, part treadmill, part stationary cycle. Your legs travel in an elongated circular movement, and, on some models, you pump arm poles back and forth for an upper-body workout.
Fitness Glossary
exercise ball
A large plastic ball that is an excellent tool for doing challenging exercises (with or without weights) that require varying forms of strength and control.
Fitness Glossary
Fartlek
A type of interval training program that doesn't use an exact measure of time or distance. You just do your intervals whenever you feel like it. The term Fartlek means "speed play" in Swedish.
Fitness Glossary
fitness walking
A faster and more intense walking technique than casual (lifestyle) walking that burns more calories and helps you lose weight. When you fitness walk, you generally move along at a brisk pace of 3.5 to 4.3 miles an hour, covering a mile in 14 to 17 minutes.
Fitness Glossary
flexibility
The range of motion or distance you can move a joint through. Stretching is the key to maintaining your flexibility.
Fitness Glossary
free weights
Portable weights used in a strength training program.
Fitness Glossary
freestyle
The traditional type of swimming movement that uses the front crawl.
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heart rate
The number of times your heart beats per minute.
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high-impact aerobics
A traditional dance-inspired routine that involves jumping or hopping and moves at a slower pace than low-impact aerobics. High/low combines the two types of routines.
Fitness Glossary
in-line skating; Rollerblading
A type of skating in which you wear skates with urethane wheels that enable you to glide, sprint, curve, turn, and spin.
Fitness Glossary
interval training
A training technique in which you alternate short, fairly intense spurts of exercise with periods of relatively easy exercise.
Fitness Glossary
kickboxing; aeroboxing
A class that takes the moves of a kickboxer’s training and choreographs them to music.
Fitness Glossary
lifestyle walking
A casual walking technique that is low to moderate intensity and relatively slow paced. Most lifestyle walkers walk an average of 2.5 to 3.5 miles per hour, which means that they walk about 1 mile every 17 to 24 minutes.
Fitness Glossary
low-impact aerobics
A traditional dance-inspired routine in which you always have one foot on the floor — you don’t do any jumping or hopping. High/low combines the two types of routines.
Fitness Glossary
marathon
An organized 26.2-mile race for runners and walkers.
Fitness Glossary
maximum heart rate
The maximum number of times your heart should beat in a minute without dangerously overexerting yourself.
Fitness Glossary
meditation
A mental process involving focused attention, or calm awareness, which is also called mindfulness.
Fitness Glossary
mountain bike
A fat-tire outdoors bicycle with upright handlebars that is built to withstand rough terrain.
Fitness Glossary
multi-gym
A home gym contraption that looks like a bunch of health-club weight machines welded to each other.
Fitness Glossary
muscular failure
In a strength training program, the point at which your last repetition with weights is so difficult that you cannot perform another repetition.
Fitness Glossary
orthotics
Fitted shoe inserts designed by a podiatrist that correct weight distribution along the foot.
Fitness Glossary
periodization
A method of organizing a strength training workout program into several periods, each lasting about four weeks. Each phase has a different emphasis.
Fitness Glossary
Pilates
A form of exercise that emphasizes correct form using your body’s core. Pilates is named after its inventor, Joseph Pilates, who invented the technique for injured dancers.
Fitness Glossary
plantar fasciitis
An inflammation of the tough fibrous band of tissue that runs the length of the bottom of your foot.
Fitness Glossary
pulse
The number of times your heart beats per minute.
Fitness Glossary
Qigong
An element of a T'ai Chi practice that covers many different types of movements that involve using and feeling the body's energy.
Fitness Glossary
recumbent bike
A type of stationary bike with a bucket seat that provides back support so that you pedal straight out in front of you.
Fitness Glossary
repetition rep
One complete motion of an exercise, often used in reference to strength training.
Fitness Glossary
RICE
An acronym that stands for Rest, Ice, Compression, and Elevation — common treatment methods prescribed for runners with training injuries.
Fitness Glossary
road bike
The traditional type of outdoor bicycle with curved handlebars that is built for speed.
Fitness Glossary
rolling stair climber
A cardiovascular machine that resembles a section of a department-store escalator. A set of stairs rotates in a circle so that you climb continuously, but never getting anywhere.
Fitness Glossary
rowing machine
A cardiovascular machine that increases stamina, upper body endurance, strength, and flexibility by mimicking a rowing motion. Also called a rower.
Fitness Glossary
set
A group of consecutive repetitions in a strength training program.
Fitness Glossary
Spinning
A popular group studio cycling program invented by ultra-distance cyclist Johnny G. and licensed by Schwinn, which manufactures the bikes used in these classes.
Fitness Glossary
stair-climber
A cardiovascular machine that has two foot plates you pump up and down to mimic the action of climbing stairs. Also called a stepper.
Fitness Glossary
stationary bike
A cardiovascular machine that comes in two styles: upright bikes and recumbent bikes.
Fitness Glossary
step aerobics
A choreographed routine of stepping up and down on a rectangular, square, or circular platform.
Fitness Glossary
strength training
A type of workout that uses any combination of weight machines and free weights (dumbbells and barbells) to build muscle strength.
Fitness Glossary
stride frequency
The number of strides that a runner takes over a certain time period.
Fitness Glossary
studio cycling
Group exercise classes that are taught on stationary bicycles.
Fitness Glossary
T'ai Chi
An ancient martial art focusing on smooth, slow movements that cultivate inward focus and free energy flow. T'ai Chi is properly pronounced tie-jee.
Fitness Glossary
target heart-rate zone
A range that is between 50 percent and 85 percent of your maximum heart rate that can tell you what heart rate to aim for during a workout.
Fitness Glossary
treadmill
A popular choice for a cardiovascular machine in a home gym if you enjoy fitness walking and jogging (or running).
Fitness Glossary
upright bike
The traditional kind of stationary bike, which resembles a regular bicycle.
Fitness Glossary
walk-run
A workout in which you alternate walking and running. By sprinkling running intervals throughout your walking workout, you can spike up exercise intensity and burn more calories.
Fitness Glossary
water aerobics
Aerobics classes that do traditional workouts in waist- to neck-high water in a swimming pool. The resistance of the water makes the workout feel far more intense, while the water cushions you from the impact.
Fitness Glossary
weight machines
Stationary equipment mostly found at gyms that are easy to use and help you to safely and quickly advance through a strength-training workout.
Fitness Glossary
weight-bearing exercise
A type of exercise in which your skeleton is supporting any sort of weight, as it does when you walk, run, or lift weights.
Fitness Glossary
Wushu
The “martial art” or traditional self-defense activities practiced with or without weapons (includes T'ai Chi).
Fitness Glossary
yin and yang
The terms for opposites that are opposing yet complementary. A concept used throughout all of T’ai Chi and Qigong.
Fitness Glossary
yoga
A series of poses (known as asanas) that you hold from a few seconds to several minutes. The moves — a blend of strength, flexibility, and body-awareness exercises — are intended to promote the union of the mind, body, and spirit.
