Getting your personal training business off to a flying start requires a more than just a can-do spirit. There are also health, instruction and safety courses, certifications and qualifications to think about.

What do I need?
The good news is that, in the UK at least, there are no legally required qualifications to become a personal trainer.

That’s the good news.

The bad news is that while there are no legal requirements for qualifications to work as a personal trainer you won’t get very far without them. To get work and maintain a competitive edge either as a self-employed or freelance personal trainer or fitness instructor you will need something to make you stand out and certifications provide a seal of endorsement to do just this.

The more qualifications and experience you can demonstrate the more likely you are to get work and the higher fees you can command. In fact, it’s fair to say that without a basic basic fitness instruction qualification you are unlikely to find much, if any, work.

This is not to say you won’t get work – I know quite a few personal trainers started without any officially recognisied qualifications and who make a comfortable living but even they acknowledge that if they’d had a fitness qualificaton when first starting out getting their fitness business off the ground would have been much easier.

 

Starting Out
When starting out, the best route is to go on an introductory course and certificate to sport, fitness and management. This will allow you to get some knowledge and see if you are really suited to being a personal trainer before spending too much time, energy or money on it.

Typically certificates involve attending a short course and sitting an exam in subjects ranging from human anatomy and physiology to nutrition, health and safety and in some cases instruction and training techniques.

At the very least you should take a course in basic first aid.

 

Moving up – intermediate level Personal Trainer courses
After getting initial certificates, and starting on the road to become a certified personal trainer, the next step many personal trainers take is study for an NVQ Level 2 certificate in fitness instructing from an accredited award bodies. These provide a basic foundation in sports training and typically include attending a course and taking multiple exams to prove knowledge in different subjects, including instructing exercise and fitness,  fitness training, customer care, safety procedures and health assessment techniques.

 
Advanced qualifications for Personal Trainers
Once you’ve got a Level 2 course and qualification under your belt you can consider more demanding courses that demonstrate in-depth expertise and help you stand out and gain a professional recognition, such as a Level 3 NVQ Diploma, again from a recognised award body.

 

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Having said at the start that you can be a personal trainer without such qualification, it should be noted that the majority of personal trainers have this “gold standard” Level 3 or above qualification (this is what is usually meant when you see references to “certified professional trainer”) and this should be your aim if you’re serious about a career in fitness.

 

Specialising and continuing development
With a Level 3 qualification under their belt, many personal trainers then opt to specialise in a particular sector with many going for a Level 4 specialist instructor qualification, enabling them to provide training in medical conditions for example.

SkillsActive – the Sector Skills Council for Active Leisure and Wellbeing, runs a voluntary system of regulation for health and fitness instructors in the UK with a required set of qualifications and expertise in health and fitness.  Aside from initial qualifications, the programme requires personal trainer insurance and continuing professional development (known as CPD) by undertaking further courses each year.

Although not a legal requirement, Membership of The Register of Exercise Professionals – known as REPs – is very popular amongst instructors and trainers and certainly worth considering. For more information visit : http://www.exerciseregister.org/

Learning and developing as a personal trainer doesn’t stop once you’ve passed the first exams and like SkillsActive, membership of REPs for example requires ongoing CPD each year and there are numerous courses and certificates that can be earnt to demonstrate knowledge of specialist subjects including adult fitness, Pilates and Yoga training, nutritional guidance or child fitness.

 

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How long does it take?
How long it takes to become a certified personal trainer depends on several different factors, including your existing your qualifications, whether you can study full time or part-time and the level you wish to achieve. The best advice is to speak to one of the many training organisations and discuss your specific requirements with them. Alternatively, the following provides a rough outline of how long each type of qualification takes.

A basic course in Cardio Pulmonary resuscitation typically takes about about half a day and costs upwards from £30.  St. John’s Ambulance also run a 6 hour Sports first aid course, including resuscitation, sprains and strains and bone, muscle and joint injuries.

Subject specific and basic health and training certificates such as gym instruction usually take around four to six weeks.

A Level 3 Diploma in advanced personal training (see above) typically takes between 1 and 2 months full time but you’ll need to complete lower level courses before hand.

 

Home study and online personal trainer courses
A final and increasingly common option is to take courses via home study, with many fitness instructor courses now available in online or distance learning versions.   The benefits of this format include often lower costs and learning at your own pace and convienience. I’ve discussed their advantages and top providers of online personal trainer courses here.

 

This article is one in a series on how to become a personal trainer, other articles in the series you might find helpful are:

• What does a personal trainer do
• How easy is it to become a personal trainer
• What personal training insurance do you need
• What equipment do personal trainers need

Other articles from the Personal Trainer Training library you may find of interest:

• Personal trainer business plans
• Top five books to help grow your business

 

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Picture: Adrian Clark,
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