Do Personal Fitness Trainers make between $50 to $150 per hour ?  The answer is yes.  Many of the trainers that I know personally make at least that amount and some make more.

As we know, statistics show the average person changes careers every 5 years.  Becoming a Personal Fitness Trainer is one of the fastest growing careers in North America.  For many people fitness is a passion or a hobby, so why not turn that passion into a new career.

You can pay $1,000,000 and up for franchises like Subway or McDonalds or you can open a business like personal training with an incredibly low overhead and make upwards of $100,000/ year.  Add to that the fact that helping people achieve their health and fitness goals is far more fun and rewarding than flipping burgers.  You can also consider keeping your present job and become a part time trainer or instructor and still make another $30K to $50K plus per year.  

The first item of bad news you should know is that not all Personal Fitness Trainers make over $100/hour or $100,000/year. Those Personal Fitness Trainers that I know personally, that are making that kind of money, are among the most dedicated and hardest working professionals that I know of - in any profession!

 The second item of bad news is that not one of those exceptional professionals became a Personal Fitness Trainer because they where looking for "BIG MONEY!" Each and every one of them dedicated their lives to becoming "the best they could be!" They dedicated themselves "to do best job they could, for everyone they could." They dedicated themselves to becoming a "Fitness Professional."

And now for even more BAD NEWS! To earn the distinction of "Fitness Professional" is going to take time, effort and energy. It's going to take hard work!

Like everyone else, I have had many careers in my life.  I taught school, sold cars, built houses, was a personal trainer and even became a health club owner.  A fantastic gym teacher in high school made me decide to become a teacher and 3 years of University at McGill , got me my physical education degree. I always had the passion for fitness as I stated above, but it wasn’t until I became a personal trainer that I felt that I had really found my niche.

You do have to decide to get certified.  No club will hire you unless you are certified.  Most clients will ask for your certifications before taking you on as their trainer.  So, where do you go ?  The big 3 are SPI, Canfit Pro and the YMCA.  The decision is ultimately yours as to where you go.  Just be sure that you are getting the best possible information from the best possible teachers, at the most affordable rates.  Cost dictates what we do in our lives, but as a fitness professional we want the best, most current and honest information to be able to pass the knowledge successfully on to our clients.  

I think that the best trainers also have the highest amount of integrity compared to others.  Your business grows from word of mouth in this industry and integrity is the biggest thing that the clients are looking for and talk about.  Finding business will be easy once you have set yourself up properly and have started to build a reputation.  You’ll find your days are very long and 7 days a week are essential at times, but your freedom, your success stories and your bank account are all worth it !!

Jeff Bergin

Director of Education.