You know you want to become a Personal Trainer but which course should you choose? In this feature we set out 5 clear choices making it easy and straight forward for you to find your perfect course and kick-start your new fitness career.
1 – Firstly, which qualification route?
If you’re starting out you will need a Level 2 Fitness Instructor qualification before you can progress onto the Level 3 Personal Trainer course.
Level 2 provides a fantastic grounding building your knowledge on how the human body works, gym-based health and safety, the different types of exercise, client motivation, customer interaction and all important programme design skills.
Choose from the Certificate in Fitness Instructing or the NVQ Diploma in Instructing Exercise and Fitness.
We recommend students look at level 2 as both a springboard into their new fitness career and a stepping stone onto level 3.
So, if you are keen to spend some time in a level 2 Fitness Instructor role working as part of a gym team with the potential to supervisor others the Diploma if well worth considering. This offers advanced Diploma level training enabling you to truly stand out.If on the other hand, your ultimate goal is to become a Personal Trainer, the level 2 Certificate route gives you everything you need. What’s more with this under your belt you can commence your level 3 Personal Trainer course straight away!
At Level 3 you will develop your talents ready to work as a gym-based or freelance Personal Trainer. You will learn how to develop bespoke fitness programmes that fully support your client goals and how to grow a successful business with a Personal Trainer salary to match.
Choose from the Certificate in Personal Training which will give you everything you need to get your new PT career underway or if you’re keen on a more advanced specialist route the Diploma in Personal Training.
Need the Level 2 and the Level 3?
Here a combined package course is the perfect solution. With the benefit of up to 20% saving on individual course fees and the seamless transfer between level 2 and level 3 this tailored programme takes you step by step all the way to becoming a Personal Trainer.
2 – Is budget a decision factor?
So is a more expensive personal training course better and a cheaper course less superior? The good news here is that’s definitely not the case. Your course should ultimately provide all the fitness industry training you need to support the early stages of your new career at a price that fits within your budget.
For some budget is a key factor in their decision making process and our Certificate options provide industry accredited training ready for the work place. Others are able to invest a little more to begin with and here the Diploma route offers advanced training enabling you to focus on specialist aspects of the Personal Trainer role from the outset.
3 – Do you have access to a gym-based workplace?
If you do have access to a workplace gym then the Diploma route leads to a National Vocational Qualification (NVQ) and enables you to gather your own portfolio of workplace evidence to demonstrate your learning.
If you do not have gym access choose the Certificate route. Here, you will complete short answer questions and a practical skills assessment.
4 – Is fast-track important to you?
If you’re keen to qualify as quickly as you can then the Certificate is the ideal choice. Here, you can fast-track your level 2 in just 6 weeks and the same applies to level 3. Alternatively, if you’ve a little more time you can commit the Diploma is well worth considering.
5 – What’s your ultimate career goal?
If a gym-based Personal Trainer job is where you’re heading the Certificate in Fitness Instructing and Certificate in Personal Training are just the ticket.
As a general rule of thumb the more specialist the clients are you’re aspiring to work with the more we’d suggest the Diploma route.
Ready to get started?
If you’re thinking about a career in fitness and would like some help choosing your course you can get in touch here.
