Is a personal trainer worth it ? How much is the average session ?

IrishGirl18

I'm looking to get back into a fitness routine in the new year after having a few months break after a back injury.
Before my injury I was doing kickboxing and it was great but felt I wasn't getting toned quick enough as we wouldn't use any equipment except for a few medicine balls and boxing bags.

Before kickboxing I was doing Krav Maga and I loved that as I'd notice new definition every week because we were using equipment. Sadly, I moved jobs and I could no longer attend classes and that's when I joined kickboxing.

Since my back is back to normal I was always interested in going to the gym properly but I wouldn't have the motivation nor the knowledge to do it by myself. I thought a personal trainer would be the best solution so I could really give it my all and finally be confident in myself but I'm not sure how to go about it. I remember researching a personal trainer about two years ago and they wanted 600 upfront for 3 days a week for three months, Surely that's day light robbery ?
Is this how much a trainer would typically cost ?
Is there trainers that do pay as you go ?

TIA!

ouxbbkqtswdfaw

Why don't you just go walking, and perhaps gentle jogging on soft ground. Won't cost anything and you'll get fit.

Mokuba

I personally think most personal trainers are hugely overpriced.

You could look up a beginners weight training program, watch videos of the form and practice just the movements, get comfortable then take it into the gym and add weights. Amount of cardio added depending on your goals.

Diet is the crucial part, you will need to find out your maintenance and eat under or over that depending on your goal.

Alf Veedersane

tqixw0n8ad2hgm wrote: »

Why don't you just go walking, and perhaps gentle jogging on soft ground. Won't cost anything and you'll get fit.

Going to the gym or engaging a trainer isn't just about getting fit. The OP wants results more than gentle jogging on soft ground would yield.

turbot

A great personal trainer is an amazing investment for say 20 sessions - enough to learn how to train.

Then, its a very convenient way to train optimally, that allows you to train more intensely, though can be expensive.

I hired Vinny Gough many years ago - and despite being quite fit, I wanted to get into much better shape for a few reasons.

I thought I knew how to train - having trained 3 times a week for a decade... but the whole experience was a total revelation.
There was so much I had no idea about - when it came to fat loss and getting strong.

Some of the sessions were crazy tough but I got back into the fittest state of my life - where after a year of training like that - I'd never get out of breath when I danced and my resting heart rate went down to mid 40s.

So if you can afford a good PT, its a good investment, at least until you learn how to train smart and what that means.

COH

€600 for 3 personal training sessions a week for 3 months (36 sessions) would be INCREDIBLY cheap.

big syke

IrishGirl18 wrote: »

I'm looking to get back into a fitness routine in the new year after having a few months break after a back injury.
Before my injury I was doing kickboxing and it was great but felt I wasn't getting toned quick enough as we wouldn't use any equipment except for a few medicine balls and boxing bags.

Before kickboxing I was doing Krav Maga and I loved that as I'd notice new definition every week because we were using equipment. Sadly, I moved jobs and I could no longer attend classes and that's when I joined kickboxing.

Since my back is back to normal I was always interested in going to the gym properly but I wouldn't have the motivation nor the knowledge to do it by myself. I thought a personal trainer would be the best solution so I could really give it my all and finally be confident in myself but I'm not sure how to go about it. I remember researching a personal trainer about two years ago and they wanted 600 upfront for 3 days a week for three months, Surely that's day light robbery ?
Is this how much a trainer would typically cost ?
Is there trainers that do pay as you go ?

TIA!

Is it worth it? It can be or it may not be.

Average Cost €20 - €100 per session.

What I am getting at is that personal trainers are absolutely worth it but it depends on the trainer you get and the commitment you have. You will get what you pay for in other words.

I suspect a semi-personal training setting may suit you better and be more affordable.

A good semi personal gym will look at your goals, check your movements and past injuries and tailor your workouts depending on these factors.

People will have lots of recommendations on here but I have to recommend RevFit near glasnevin. Do everything they promise and more. I lost 13+kg in a short time with them.

Alf Veedersane

IrishGirl18 wrote: »

I'm looking to get back into a fitness routine in the new year after having a few months break after a back injury.
Before my injury I was doing kickboxing and it was great but felt I wasn't getting toned quick enough as we wouldn't use any equipment except for a few medicine balls and boxing bags.

Before kickboxing I was doing Krav Maga and I loved that as I'd notice new definition every week because we were using equipment. Sadly, I moved jobs and I could no longer attend classes and that's when I joined kickboxing.

Since my back is back to normal I was always interested in going to the gym properly but I wouldn't have the motivation nor the knowledge to do it by myself. I thought a personal trainer would be the best solution so I could really give it my all and finally be confident in myself but I'm not sure how to go about it. I remember researching a personal trainer about two years ago and they wanted 600 upfront for 3 days a week for three months, Surely that's day light robbery ?
Is this how much a trainer would typically cost ?
Is there trainers that do pay as you go ?

TIA!

Yes there are trainers that you pay by the session.

The cost depends but a good trainer will cost a fair bit more than the 600 for 3 months worth of 3 sessions per week.. You could go once a week and you would have a program to follow.

Is it good value? Depends what you want. For some, having that accountability is worth it on its own. Others have specific things they want to address that you cannot necessarily address by youtube videos alone. Even recording your technique, you won't always know what to look for to tweak.

But maybe you just need a plan or programme to do so you can go in knowing exactly what you need to get done. Having no plan going into the gym means you're just doing aimless exercise and you'll find yourself less motivated to go in again and again.

CIARAN_BOYLE

It's an individual decision rather than a one size fits all solution.

For me if I have to take a break from fitness I attend a personal trainer to make sure that my technique is clean and I do a session once a year or so for the same reason.

if I feel there is a technical issue causing problem in my training I could attend the personal trainer.

I would not attend one for regular sessions because I am comfortable in myself setting a program and sticking to it.

TCM

Alf Veedersane wrote:

Going to the gym or engaging a trainer isn't just about getting fit. The OP wants results more than gentle jogging on soft ground would yield.

But it a way if starting out & then progress to the gym.

Alf Veedersane

TCM wrote: »

But it a way if starting out & then progress to the gym.

Not really relevant to the OP though.

TCM

Here's a question. How well qualified are these personal trainers? What are the qualifications required? Are the qualifications accredited by any higher level bodies? Is it necessary for them to engage in continuous learning to retain their qualification? Just wondering.

big syke

TCM wrote: »

Here's a question. How well qualified are these personal trainers? What are the qualifications required? Are the qualifications accredited by any higher level bodies? Is it necessary for them to engage in continuous learning to retain their qualification? Just wondering.

Most insurers require some kind of recognised qualification to give insurance cover required.

However any good trainer will, in addition to minimum requirements, have various certs, courses, continuous learning etc and of course about a decade or more experience behind them.

As far as I know two well known posters (and by all accounts beyond excellent trainers) here on boards had a decade or more of learning the ropes and experience behind them before either had their own business.

There are of course others who do a quick course to fufil insurance requirements and then start out training people.

Mixed basket clearly.

IrishGirl18

tqixw0n8ad2hgm wrote: »

Why don't you just go walking, and perhaps gentle jogging on soft ground. Won't cost anything and you'll get fit.

I already do this everyday for an hour, sometimes two on the weekend

big syke

big syke wrote: »

Is it worth it? It can be or it may not be.

Average Cost €20 - €100 per session.

What I am getting at is that personal trainers are absolutely worth it but it depends on the trainer you get and the commitment you have. You will get what you pay for in other words.

I suspect a semi-personal training setting may suit you better and be more affordable.

A good semi personal gym will look at your goals, check your movements and past injuries and tailor your workouts depending on these factors.

People will have lots of recommendations on here but I have to recommend RevFit near glasnevin. Do everything they promise and more. I lost 13+kg in a short time with them.

Also this. Also worth every penny

Mellor

IrishGirl18 wrote: »

I remember researching a personal trainer about two years ago and they wanted 600 upfront for 3 days a week for three months, Surely that's day light robbery ?
)

Robbery?
12-13 weeks, 3 sessions a week. 36-39 hours. That's a standard working week.
What would you expect this person for their time

IrishGirl18

Its a lot to hand out all at once, I wouldn't mind paying it in installments and but there was a strict no refund

Mellor

IrishGirl18 wrote: »

Its a lot to hand out all at once, I wouldn't mind paying it in installments and but there was a strict no refund

Relative to the time you are contracting them for it's not a lot of money.
If not different to contracting somebody for a week.

If you want a PAYE arrangement. I'd be surprised if they refused, certainly somebody would, but expect to pay a mark up for obvious reasons.

My 6 month rate would be much lower than my daily/weekly rate.

COH

I would say that if they are charging ~16e a session then it probably isnt worth paying as its too cheap and there is a very high likelihood that they are crap

Cat, meet pigeons.

kalych

My suggestion would be do semi-personal sessions (class of 10-12) for 2-6 months (1 to 3 training cycles), pick up the basics of lifting and understand the level you are at along with how quickly you may expect to progress. This will iron out the basics: staying tight, proper form.

Then look into a few sessions (5-10) with a personal trainer tailored specifically to overcome any leftover form issues and build a plan for your independent training.

After this look into your standard gym with some free classes for members when you feel like it, but mostly follow your own program. At this point you will have enough knowledge to make sense of YouTube training videos and programs from the internet.

This will be applicable to upper body, lower body, core (say trx and bodyweight exercises) or HIIT. Could also do a combination of any of them as gyms usually do "unlimited" offers for classes, but realistically the most you'd be able to do is 2-max 3 upper body sessions (chest and shoulders on separate days).

Transform

COH wrote: »

I would say that if they are charging ~16e a session then it probably isnt worth paying as its too cheap and there is a very high likelihood that they are crap

Cat, meet pigeons.

totally agree with this, no trainer worth their salt would package sessions like that.

Testosterscone

IrishGirl18 wrote: »

Its a lot to hand out all at once, I wouldn't mind paying it in installments and but there was a strict no refund

To be honest this would raise alarm bells.

From a trainers perspective this could be a way of looking for a commitment from their clients for a meaningful long term progression of training.

However very few trainers operate with this mentality.

I have heard of trainers who do this and then postpone sessions, re-arrange and just altogether mess you about and don't care because you have no recourse.

My advise would be that unless you have recieved very solid feedback from previous clients I would be wary of that example however in terms of cost you will find very few in that price range and even fewer worth their salt.

Axtivo

IrishGirl18 wrote: »

Its a lot to hand out all at once, I wouldn't mind paying it in installments and but there was a strict no refund

This is an issue we came across and have tried to address i.e. being able to try lots of things out across Dublin before committing.

A personal trainer may be good but perhaps their personality doesn't suit you, the venue is not great, the other gym goers are not your type etc.

We've come across many people who have paid up front for a course (not just personal fitness, languages, hobbies etc.) only to find that they didn't like it and so lost their non-refundable money.

liamoreilly

...I definitely would recommend the personal trainer...Personally I've learned so much with regards exercises, best way to lose weight and get definition, and have really improved my diet as a result...But I don't see the need for 3 sessions every week...I think 1 a week, and you do the same programme 2 or 3 times would be just as effective, especially when you've had a few sessions...

Axtivo

It can definitely fast-track your learning.

It can take quite a long time, and a lot of mistakes, to master form in lifting weights, for example. Particularly important when doing compound exercises (dead-lift, squat etc).