Sunday, February 5, 2012

Question for a friend, 'How do I become a fitness instructor'?

I am asking this question on behalf of a friend who is soon to leave school with A-levels irrelevant to a career as a 'freelance' priavte fitness instructor.



What does he need to beocme one in the way of qualifications and what is the best way of going about it?



Thanks!Question for a friend, 'How do I become a fitness instructor'?There are several ways to become a fitness instructor but you can only become a freelance personal trainer. For fitness instruction it is possible to gain a certificate though a council gym who will pay for it but that involves working for the gym first, and council qualifications aren't very well recognised within private gyms etc. The other is to pay to do a course. Fitness instructor is normally around 拢200-拢600 with such companies as Premier Global or Train Direct, based in Northern Ireland and England.



www.premier-global.co.uk

http://www.nichem.co.uk/trainDirect/



They provide VTCT qualifications and OCR (Vocational Training and Charitible Trust and Oxford %26amp; Cambridge Recognised) both are very well established and recognised qualifications, but are expensive, but take only several weeks to do. A course within a college can take 1 to 2 yrs, but normally they only offer personal training qualifications. The qualification is cheaper but takes longer to complete.



If your friend is looking to do freelance then I would recommend personal training. It can also be accompanied with sports massage and non-medical nutrition. Premier Global and Train Direct offer package deals, and it is through Train Direct that I completed my VTCT. It is a good course and intense so it takes 6 months to complete (40 hr a week of class plus outside work) but it is very expensive, around 拢4000 for all 3 or 拢1500 for the Personal Training. However you get business and management classes which aim to help you set up freelance if that is your preferred option. The majoity of peope I know had the course paid for by their company. This can mean getting a fitness instructor qualification, joning a gym and waiting until they offer you Personal Training whereby they will pay for the course. Or becoming a coach and seeking funding etc.



One negative side is that these days many of the 'top gyms', now make you complete their own personal courses, on top of any you have completed yourself, before employing you. However these are only such gyms as David Lloyd an LA Fitness who then allow you to charge up to 拢45 an hour, although you then have to pay a gym fee and in the case of LA Fitness its an extortionate amount, I seem to recall a figure around 拢600-拢800!!!



Although if your friend is planning on freelance then these things aren't a worry. Just let him know that he can be a freelance Personal Trainer but not Fitness Instructor.



Good Luck!Question for a friend, 'How do I become a fitness instructor'?I would go to this site and ask them.They have a sports trainer who answers questions like yours I am sure they can help.Good luck.

http://athletictraining.forumsfourfree.c鈥?/a>Question for a friend, 'How do I become a fitness instructor'?Ask the instructors at the local gym what training they have had to get to where they are. Ask for application forms from gyms to see what quals/certifications they are looking for

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