I need to hear from people who have personal trainers?

 Maybe I am overreacting but when I show up for the training session, my pt just asks me to do what he exactly does and that is it. There is no plan. we usually use the machines at the gym. I am a beginner and don't know how to do basic exercises. I just wanted him to teach me but he doesn't. He got mad when I canceled my session I don't know I am having a feeling that he wants to finish the current package quickly so I will have to buy another one soon.

It might be the first and last time I hire a PT.

I have had very good luck with my personal trainer, which may be partly luck but is at least partly because we discuss what my goals are and she works with me to help me attain them.

If you aren't getting that from your personal trainer, I suggest you do one or more of the following:

1. Discuss it with him, either during a session or between sessions
2. If you aren't getting through to him, tell him you are sorry but it doesn't seem to be working between the two
3. Talk to the fitness manager at the club (or the club manager...whoever is in charge of the trainers). You are the customer and your needs are not being met. You'd like a trainer who will work with you to meet your needs, could he suggest someone else.
4. If you do consider training with another trainer, talk to that trainer in advance about what you are looking for.

A personal trainer is like a doctor or hairdresser or anyone else who performs personal services. Some very good ones just don't work out for some people (and to be fair, some who aren't very good will "click" with some clients and do good things for them). It's important that you find someone you are comfortable working with.

Good luck and I hope things work out for you!

didoslament: Thank you so much. Can I ask you where do you live ? how much do you pay for your PT sessions?

do you think I am over reacting? this is the second trainer for me. I changed the first one a month ago.

He gave me a plan but just to attend classes at the gym at 6:45 am which I couldn't. I am upset about the whole thing. I really spent a lot of money on this.

hi safina.  i use personal training.  i was really nervous about it because i use a large commercial club in california and i've heard the trainers are only interested in upselling their products and training packages. 

i scoped out trainers at the club i use the most for a month and then picked one i liked and signed up with him. 

i've also had trainers i didn't like--who more or less told me what to do and then sort of hung around while i did it.  i needed more interaction so i talked to the fitness manager at that club and switched to someone i really loved.  then when i moved to my current home, i took the time to scope out the trainers before transferring my training package over and signing up.

don't be afraid to switch trainers.  you paid for their services, make sure you end up with someone you like.  if you use a chain club and there is another club close to you, consider switching clubs.  it might just be that the club you're at has crummy trainers (i've seen it before).

good luck!

I'm sorry you aren't having the best experience!  Two things I would like to mention.

First, talk to your trainer!  I know that I for sure am not a mind reader, and it's very helpful to have a client give me specific feedback.  It may seem like he doesn't have a plan when he does.  True, possibly he doesn't.  But have you asked?   Communication is really important with a trainer.

Second, I don't know if you canceled with or without notice, but canceling without notice can be a big deal.  If I have a client scheduled, I will be planning to be at the gym at that specific time.  I will have to schedule other existing and potential clients around that session.  There have been many times where I turned down potential business because I had someone else scheduled.  If that person then cancels, I am left without pay for that hour.  For that reason my gym has a policy that any cancelations within 24 hours of the session are still charged as a session.  I give my clients one freebie, but that's just me, not gym policy.

Anyway, talk to your trainer, and if it doesn't work out definitely talk to the trainer director about it!

pandajenn19: Thanks for the reply. I canceled because of an urgent meeting at work at the same time of the session so I called him like 4 or 5 hours before the session to cancel. I didn't reach him but got an answer machine and left a message explaining my situation.

I am upset because I thought I would hire a trainer to help me and motivate me not to make me feel down.

I am already down these days because of the plateau and everthing . the last thing I would worry about is an argument with my PT.

Tell me what is the point of using the machines at the gym all the time? I can use it myself? why should I pay over $500 for this?

I think amarnatt has a point I might change the gym.

Hi again--To answer your questions:

• I live in Southern California and work out at 24-Hour Fitness (a chain with a lot of gyms, as my work takes me to various places and I like to work out before work).
• I buy their personal training 10 packs (I think it is about $690 for 10). 
• Do I think you are over-reacting? I can't tell. If you are already on your second trainer, I suspect that the personal trainers you have dealt with either don't understand what you want (in which case better communication could help) or don't care (in which case trying another trainer or gym might help). What is clear is that you are not satisfied and do not think you are getting good value for your time and money. A good fitness manager should pick up on that and help you find a trainer who is more compatible

Lots of good responses from others, and yes, you might consider going to another gym. One thing I didn't think to suggest before is to spend some time at the gym observing the various trainers--if you see one you like, you might approach that person directly. This might be valuable even if you decide to go to another gym.

What I would look for if I were looking for a new trainer is someone who

• Actually listens to what I want and takes steps to help me get there
• Can explain the merits of doing things one way over another way
• Can help me come up with a routine that I can stick with
• Will look at what I am doing and let me know where it needs improvement
• Doesn't have a "cookie-cutter" approach (e.g., I always have all my clients do these things)
• Finds an alternate way to acheive the same results if I can't do something (or if it hurts to do it)

Hope that helps (and sorry I've been so long-winded)

You know it sounds like you just got an inexperienced trainer or one that is not very good. If he doesn't want to help you the way you want go to his boss and asked to be switched to another trainer. Any trainer should know that he isn't going to be able to train you for ever and he should explain thing as you go along. I see it every day in the gym I workout in, and it is sad.

Switch trainers!

Body science: I really want switch trainers but the problem is this trainer promised to train me for 8 sessions instead of 6 for the same price because the gym rate for 6 was so pricy. but he asked me to keep that between him and me.

I am angry because I paid in advance for the whole package. Should I switch him and lose 2 sessions? or just get  the remaining sessions with him?

what a headache.

I would switch the ramaining sesions, it is your money you should get what you paid for.

I would recommend switching.

I am currently going to be starting up with a new personal trainer this Monday, but the one I had all throughout last year I loved!  I hope the new one can match up!

She not only taught me many free-weight and machine-based exercises, but she would answer questions for me about the exercises and body parts etc, when I asked her.  She was also just someone very nice to be around, we would chat about our day and our boyfriends and our school life during my mini breaks between sets.  It definitely made me want to exercise!

Find someone like that, and you'll be much happier :)

Thanks everyone. But I am really angry. It sounds like I lost the free sessions that that trainer was going to offer to me.

that means I have only 2 or 3 remanings instead of 5. I am really upset.

Jazzislove: can you tell me how can I  find a trainer who can make me happy and understands my needs? I don't know the whole team there. I am new client.

That bad trainer advised me to go to a gym class, I swear I almost had a depression there because the girls there were just so skinny. I looked different, very different. My size is big. I shouldn't feel that way. but I didn't join the class. I felt bad.

Sorry everyone for bothering you  but I just need to vent.

Hey

The only thing I can say is that I simply had good luck.  She was my first personal trainer and a lovely one at that.

Try talking to the manager there, explain your situation, and that you're tired of paying for trainers you don't like.  Perhaps they'll either 1) give you a free trail with a new personal trainer or 2) refund some of your past personal training sessions.

Otherwise, just keep trying to you find a good one :) I wish you luck

Thanks guys. I spoke with the manager and with the trainer as well. They were very supportive and understood my concerns.

Anyway, I am glad that I lost 20 pounds. I did it:) I can't wait to lose 20 more :)

Thanks for everything.

LOVE

I've been going to Bally's for almost 20 years, moved to Washington State three years ago and go to the Bally's on Mildred Street....

I am really amazed that some of the trainers they hire are obese and clearly out of shape. 

To top it off, last week they had a membership drive...what was set up outside?  Two tables....they were giving away greasy pizza!

I would NEVER pay money to a trainer at Bally's...they management is clearly not serious about fitness.  I go it alone, getting information from the internet fitness sites.

Forgive me for being defensive mschrief, but to say that someone is not serious about fitness because they have extra body fat, is, well, pretty judgemental.

I'm a work in progress.  I'm heavier than the other trainers at my gym, sure.  But don't for a second think that means I'm not serious about fitness, or that I don't have a wealth of information to share.  I've done a lot of studying and research, and I know quite well how to motivate a client and push them just hard enough.  I sometimes have portion control issues, and I work two jobs and occasionally miss a workout.  Thus I haven't dropped the last pounds that I need to drop, but that in no way means that I am not knowledgeable and capable of being a personal trainer.

If someone cleans houses for a living but their own house is a little dusty because they are busy or are focusing on other things, does that make them bad at their job?

Again, I apologize for being defensive, but you really hit a nerve when you are judging trainers based on their appearance.  I know that as a trainer I should have the perfect body, but I don't.  And I'm happy to not have clients who only see what's on the outside. 

mschrief, Yeah I too go it alone. I've even got some free training from the package my wife and I got when we paid for a full year of the gym in advance. We got a few months free for the gym as well. She's used her pt sessions up... but I just don't see the point. I've learned a lot from the net. I realize though there are people who do need the pt's... heck for that kind of pay I probably would be happy training some people as well.

mschrief is clearly misinformed.

In my gym, washington sports club, we have a number of different personal trainers and fitness staff of all ages and bodies.

I watched, from the window, as an average (not particularly buff-looking, kinda chubby) middle age woman went into the cycling studio to perform a spinning class.

Like mschrief, I was uninformed, figured it was a light class for beginners, but from outside I could see this chubby middle aged woman was putting up quite a pace.

Some people equate looks with fitness. They see a chubby woman and believe she can't possibly be fit. These people are badly misinformed.

mschrief, I dare you to open your mind and try a class or session with one of these "obese and clearly out of shape" trainers and make sure you tell him or her to work you hard. Hopefully the experience will open your mind.

Why does a personal trainer need to look a certain way to be a good trainer? I actually would prefer working with a trainer that is a "work in progress". I think they'd be better able to understand where I'm coming from - physical, emotional and motivational limits.

There's nothing I hate more than having some perky trainer who's buff and fit telling me that I can lift more reps or use heavier weights.....one who can't understand why I find certain exercises difficult because my big fat boobs get in the way, or because some days, I just don't feel like it.

I like trainers who have a 'human' side - and I tend to relate better to folks who don't look like they spend hours at the gym - because I have no intention of spending hours at the gym.

As the saying goes, you shouldn't judge a book by it's cover......I'm a good 20 to 30 lbs over weight, and you'd never guess that I can run 10 miles at a sub-10 min/mile pace without stopping...but I can.

I think you should definitely change trainers. When I signed up for a trainer, I made sure I had a woman (i'm a girl) and I was reccommended to, in my personal opinion, the best trainer at the gym. She showed me how to work each machine to the point that I could use it without her assistance, taught me basic routines, talked to me about my goals and was so encouraging at the end of each work out to let me know that I was getting closer and she told me I looked great alot. Also, she talked to me about real life issues and since i'm a teenager, it was nice to have someone who isn't a parent to talk to (and she was in her high 20s so she had that cool factor going on).

Personally, I think a trainer should make your sessions as enjoyable as possible while helping you achieve your goals. When I had to cancel a session, my trainer happily changed it to another date for me. She was awesome.

The lady who teaches country line dancing at a major local club near us has one of the largest rear ends I have seen.  I am always impressed with the fact that she can get out there and dance so much night after night.  Clearly exercise is not the reason she is overweight. 
She is a great teacher : )
I think she helps everone else feel at home going out dancing even if their body isnt perfect.