Personal Trainer? Thumbs up or down?

Any suggestions on hiring a personal trainer? What is a fair price per session? Any ideas?

We used to have a member on the site that was a personal trainer by profession, CoachDee. She told us that she charged $75.00 per hour.

definitely check your trainer's references and certifications, any good trainer will be happy to show you their certs.  also confirm that the certifying authority is reputable and not some internet correspondence course.  don't be afraid to interview trainers, you need someone that you will be comfortable working with.

It's all about finding the right one. Saroful's right about checking their certs, and if you have a chance you might want to talk to another one of his/her clients. Before I started using a trainer I paid attention to how all the trainers at my gym worked with their clients and made my choice based on that. Having a trainer is great but it's not for everyone. I will say this though: you'll never push yourself as hard as a trainer will push you.

I did it bt only for a week to get good workout suggestions and learn to use new machines and such.  I made friends with her and now she gives me sessions for free, but really she just showed me how to get the most out of your workout and how to do new and exciting machines and things for my parts that I was having trouble with... (How do you work out your shoulders?)  Now I know!  I think it is worth it but for just a few sessions.  You can always fo back if you need an update!!!

I checked around and found this NEW FT is called Fitness Together. It's $44.00 per session for 1yr./Which if I do it 4 days a week...hmmm...OK never mind. Way too much money for me right now. I better go sign up for the freebie 3 sessions at the gym.

What's for you lunch????????

I signed up for 16 sessions at about 1,000 which is around 60 something a session and well worth every penny. He's a sweet guy and has me working on stuff I would've never thought of before. I had a try out trainer once before at another gym and he was such a .. well not a nice guy. I didnt look into my current trainers credentials but he's gives me a super work out and I have seen the results which is all I need. He also makes sure to push me hard but never too hard. Plus we chit chat and crack jokes along the way which makes the hour fly by.

God I wish I could afford one... even a bad one..

My personal trainer totally SAVED me.  I had been chronically injured for YEARS.  He got me healthy in about 3 months and then kicked my a** for 3 more.  I learned so much from him...proper form (most importantly), and how far I can really push myself (who knew I could be a jock?).  Was worth every cent (I only quit because we moved across the country).

Try to find one who has his/her Bachelor's degree in either exercise physiology or kinesiology or something otherwise fitness related.   Certainly there are good trainers who don't have their degrees, but it's a really good place to start.

And of course look for good certs (ask to see them, I've had trainers flat out lie to me, convincingly, about the certs they had).  Some personal trainer certifications you can get via a home study course (NESTA, and others) or you can get over a weekend seminar.  My trainer was a NSCA CSCS (certified strength and conditioning specialist).  It's one of the most difficult certs to get, it's commonly what the trainers who work with college and professional athletic teams have.  You can't even take the test unless you have a bachelor's degree.  NSCA (http://www.nsca-lift.org/ they have a 'find a trainer' link) also has a CPT cert (certified personal trainer) that's good, but not as hard to get (don't need a degree to sit for the exam, for instance).

here's a good article on certifications: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3076604/

Oh, expect to pay in the neighborhood of $60-80 per hour, depending on your part of the country.  Most offer discounts for longer commitments.

Well, I just got an X-Box game called Yourself Fitness and it's really
good.  You have a "virtual personal trainer," Maya, and she leads
you through exersizes... at first you fill out a profile with your
name, age, height, weight, ect. and then you do a series of simple
tests which test your cardio, upper body strength, lower body strength,
core strength, and flexibility.  Then you choose a long term goal
(weight loss, upper body strength, lower body strength, core strength,
or cardio).  Based on your tests she will recomend a long term
goal for you, but you don't have to choose that goal.  Then you
pick which days you want to work out and for how long (15 minutes, 30
minutes, 45 minutes, or 1 hour)  So on Monday, I have a 45 minute
workout... I will most likely do 30 minutes of cardio and 15 minutes
upper body strength... she leads you through the whole workout, asks
you how you're doing, and if you are unsure of how do do a move, she
can pause the workout and help you figure it out.  There are also
meal plans for your specific calorie range... it's really great!

My personal trainer charges about $50/session.  I would strongly recommend it, they push you and make you work harder than you would by yourself.

i worked out with a trainer at fitness together also, and loved the experience.  i still keep in touch with 2 of my trainers from there.  they will be really helpful with teaching you good form, and once you know how it feels to do an exercise properly, really, you probably will remember what it feels like.  plus, a good trainer will show you how to get the biggest bang for your exercise  buck, so to speak, depending on your exercise goals.  most gyms or ymca's or even rec centers, if there is exercise equipment, there is a trainer there who can point you to a trainer you can afford.  even a couple of sessions would be helpful.