The fitness industry has experienced a period of rapid growth over the past few years, with aerobics and gym workouts now the most popular physical recreational activity in Australia. As a result, the industry now employs more people than swimming and cycling combined, creating terrific opportunities for professionals in this space. Personal Trainers have seen a continual increase in demand as more people focus on improving their physical health with the assistance of a trained professional. Personal Trainers are primarily responsible for managing their client’s physical health and providing tools for continued improvement that is personalised to their unique needs and requirements. As such, strong communication and relationships skills are essential, along with sound knowledge of fitness and health principles.

TAFE SA offers courses relevant to this occupation including the Certificate III and IV in Fitness.

The fitness industry is highly flexible, allowing Personal Trainers to choose different ways of working based on their lifestyle and career goals. This includes working as a direct employee of a gym or fitness centre with a large client base or working as a self-employed professional in an owned space. Personal Trainers can also transfer their skills into other areas such as sporting organisations or work as consultants to professional athletes.

With a primary focus on working directly with clients to provide training programs, Personal Trainers need to enjoy building relationships and working closely with others. A key responsibility for Personal Trainers is to establish programs based on information that is gathered through a health and lifestyle assessment with each client prior to commencing exercise. It is their role to provide clients with health and fitness guidance, motivation and education to establish exercise and healthy eating habits into their lifestyle.

Personal Trainers are expected to be physically active themselves and have a reasonable level of personal fitness knowledge and application. They must have a client-centred mentality throughout their work and understand how to motivate others through effective communication and role modelling. Also critical is a strong desire to help others achieve their goals and provide ongoing support to clients in a respectful and professional manner.

Personal Trainers often enjoy the flexibility to work across a range of environments that suit their needs and requirements, particularly if self-employed or working as a sub-contractor. This includes the ability conduct personal training at different gyms or fitness facilities or travel directly to their clients. Given the frequent need to use specialist equipment that can sometimes cause injury if used incorrectly, Personal Trainers must maintain a safety-first approach and guide clients in a manner that eliminates the risk of injury.

Personal Trainers can work across multiple capacities depending on their experience and technical knowledge, including as a group instructor, professional consultant or fitness analyst. They usually possess a wide range of relevant competencies to provide appropriate exercise prescription and delivery to their clients that lead to positive outcomes. There is also the potential to specialise in specific groups or fitness areas, such as children, elderly, athletes or injury recovery.