Want to know the qualities of a good personal trainer? Maybe you’re thinking about pursuing it as a career and trying to work out if it’d suit your personality. Or perhaps you want to know what potential employers are looking for when they hire PTs.
In this article – we look at the skills and qualities that make someone an awesome personal trainer, based on industry research and employer preferences.
What are the Qualities of a Good Personal Trainer?
Knowing which qualities are important for a PT can help you to decide if the career is right for you. They can also help you develop professionally or even land your dream PT job.
So, we analysed personal trainer job descriptions from the leading club operators globally to assess the characteristics that they look for.
We reviewed job adverts from Equinox, Anytime Fitness, Gold’s Gym, YMCA, and Fitness First. As it turns out, there are several requirements that health clubs consistently look for in their PTs.
Some were obvious, but others were quite surprising… So if you’re considering PT as a career or looking to improve your CV, here’s what you need to know…
Top 10 Personal Trainer Qualities
Interested in the traits and characteristics that are needed to be a really good personal trainer? Here are the top 10 qualities of a good trainer according to our research…
- Educator
- Motivator
- Goal-focused
- Program designer
- Authentic
- Knowledgeable
- Process follower
- Customer service oriented
- Passionate
- Committed
Now let’s look at each of these personal trainer qualities in more detail…
#1. Educator
Educating and guiding clients is at the core of a PT’s role. As well as being knowledgeable, you need to be able to communicate that knowledge in a way that’ll resonate with clients. This might be on complex topics like anatomy, training progression, and changing lifestyle habits.
#2. Motivator
Clients want a personal trainer to provide the motivation that they often lack and hold them accountable whilst working towards their fitness goals. Many will know what they need to do to get fit, but struggle to actually take action. So a great PT needs to be able to motivate clients to achieve their fitness goals.
#3. Goal Focused
In addition to being focused on client fitness goals, personal trainers need to achieve other goals too. Health clubs are businesses, so they need PTs who can help them generate revenue (as well as help people). Personal trainers will typically be given sales goals in terms of sessions, programmes, and upsells (like fitness supplements).
You might also like… 35 Genius Ways To Make Money As A Fitness Professional.
#4. Program Designer
Fitness program design, that’s tailored to the client’s specific needs, is what makes training truly personal. This is another essential quality that’s listed on every personal training job specification. It’s not enough to know a lot about the gym and working out – PTs need to be able to design programmes for a huge range of client fitness goals.
#5. Authentic
Personal trainers also need to be authentic. They need to walk the talk by maintaining their own personal health and fitness. This will ensure that you’re seen as a role model that others look up to in the gym. It doesn’t mean you need to be ripped or skinny – but it does mean you’ll need to have mastered the habit of working out consistently.
#6. Knowledgeable
This one’s a no-brainer, but it wouldn’t be a complete list without it! Knowledge in areas like functional exercise, nutrition, and behaviour change is especially valued in personal trainers. Exercise and programming knowledge is a basic requirement, but understanding related areas of health and wellness will help you support clients in a more holistic way.
You might also like… A Complete List of Fitness Industry Education Opportunities.
#7. Process Follower
It might not sound exciting but fitness employers want trainers who can follow processes. Willingness to completing paperwork (like appointment schedules, workout cards, time sheets etc.) is something that they especially appreciate. Boring as admin may be, no-one wants to manage someone who needs constant nagging into doing it.
#8. Customer Service Orientated
Customer service is a huge part of being a personal trainer so you’ll need to be good at it to succeed. Beyond a desire to help people reach their health goals, you need to be focused on delivering an exceptional training experience. This also includes solving issues that arrive quickly so that clients are always well-looked after.
#9. Passionate
Employers look for personal trainers who are passionate about the role. This means being enthusiastic about fitness training and helping others achieve their goals. Bonus points if you can demonstrate this with interests and hobbies outside of your job.
#10. Committed
The personal training industry has a HUGE turnover of staff. So demonstrating that you’re committed for the long term is something that’ll make you more attractive to potential employers. You can do this by thinking about your career ambitions and how a role will help you achieve these in the future.
Essential Personal Trainer Qualities
These were the most common qualities of a good personal trainer that top employers were looking for. So if you’re applying for jobs, then be sure to mention the ones that apply to you in your application and demonstrate them at the fitness interview.
Check out our free personal trainer resume template.
If you already have a job, ask yourself how you can adopt these characteristics more consistently and become an even better PT. But this isn’t intended to be an exhaustive list of qualities of a good personal trainer – different clients will require different approaches. These are really just a starting point to give you a better idea of the key qualities that are needed.
