I recently saw a post in a Facebook group. It was from a person asking if anyone knew of a personal trainer who “didn’t charge silly prices”. I didn’t know what a ‘silly price’ was to them, but being a trainer who knows my own value, I wasn’t interested in contacting them.
It got me thinking, though - it might be worth letting people know what goes into pricing up a personal trainer’s package fee?
What makes a trainer worth the cost?
Regardless of being new to the profession or having years of experience, good trainers are not only charging for their time to offer exclusive programmes to their clients, but there are several other costs to factor in.
Firstly, they did, of course, pay for their qualification. Trainers who haven’t come straight out of school or done an apprenticeship, like myself, will be self-funded. The level 3 personal training qualification in the UK might cost between the region of £1500 to £3000.
Next, they are likely to be paying for continued professional development (CPD). Shorter courses such as nutrition CPD, and different types of instruction to add to a training portfolio, can be anywhere from £100 to £1000 or more PER COURSE.
Of course, many trainers will pay for additional qualifications to broaden their scope and the range of people they can help. For example, I am currently doing the level 3 Exercise Referral course, which has cost me £425, so that I can be fully qualified to work with people with certain health conditions, and know that I can do safely.
Then - personal trainers have to pay for insurance, and quite likely, many trainers will opt to be First Aid qualified, or hold Emergency First Aid at Work (as I have), which, if they are self-employed, they will have paid for themselves.
On top of that, some trainers will choose to have additional credibility by becoming part of a professional association. In my case, I am a member of CIMPSA. Through these organisations, they can obtain more CPD and show that they hold accredited, recognised qualifications.
But the main ongoing cost for us is our gym rent - paying for the premises in which we operate. These can vary widely depending on the area (such as Manchester compared to London) and the standard of the gym or facility, but it may well be from around £350 to £900 or more per month.
Once you add all these costs up - including general business expenses like transport, uniform, advertising, equipment and so forth - and then factor in that a personal trainer must charge for their time and knowledge, and earn some profit, you can see how a trainer has to set their fee fairly.
A trainer isn’t just charging an ‘hourly rate’
So yes, speaking of “time and knowledge”, one of the key things to remember is that the rate a personal trainer offers isn’t just an ‘hourly rate’.
Independent trainers offering fully tailored programmes will be spending a lot of time outside of the training session to plan a client programme. This adds time on to their ‘hour’ in the gym with them.
They may also keep in touch outside of the training session, as I do, to check how clients are getting along and encourage them to stick to your goals outside of the gym.
Training programmes also need modifying and changing as the client develops, reaches goals, or as they need adapting. This of course means that the trainer is often spending time outside of the session tweaking and modifying. In my case, I also look for additional relevant resources for my clients - podcasts, books or other sources of helpful information, for example.
Charging for ‘experience’
I am a relatively new trainer at the time of posting this article, having qualified early in 2023. This is the reason that I am charging a limited introductory offer on my training packages, for clients signing up during May and June - while I gather experience, and become more established.
I appreciate that if people want a trainer with years of experience, they can find one elsewhere. However, I passed my qualification because I obtained the right knowledge to do so, which means I am fully qualified to train people. This is knowledge that I can pass on to clients, in the form of their training programmes and tailored advice.
As well, my knowledge is very CURRENT. Exercise, health and nutrition science is changing all the time. It is a very fast-moving scientific field. This means that personal training courses and what is being taught also changes. New trainers come out of their courses armed with the most up-to-date education about fitness and personal training.
Unless a long-established personal trainer is staying very updated with what’s new in the field, they may find that some of their knowledge becomes outdated. I’ve seen this especially with regards to nutrition and dietary advice, and sometimes find myself pretty shocked with the advice being given by some personal trainers on social media.
Therefore, choosing a newly qualified personal trainer comes with its own distinct advantages. And new or not, I have also based myself at a fantastic gym which has top-of-the-range equipment, where I know the client training experience will be so much better.
The other thing for me is that I came to personal training with a wealth of prior knowledge about health, sleep, nutrition, stress management and wellness in general - all of which I can apply into what I offer to my clients. I am also so passionately interested in these topics, that I am always learning - reading books and research, listening to podcasts and conversations, and so forth.
Like with anything - with personal training, you get what you pay for. If a client wants fully tailored advice which is geared to their own goals, their health and their body, as well as a more exclusive training experience in an independent gym with premium equipment, with a trainer who keeps their knowledge updated, then the price they will pay is not going to be a “silly price”.
Book a FREE consultation!
Interested in getting a personal training programme where the training is truly personal? You are welcome to book a free consultation with me. You can contact me via WHATSAPP or EMAIL to book a free consultation, or give me a call on 07793537352.
Comments