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Feb 2013
1:47pm, 25 Feb 2013
19,304 posts
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HappyG(rrr)
Hi folks
Seems to be a lot of folk on here have a PT (personal trainer).
How much does it cost?
How many sessions a week/month/year do you pay for?
Do you have to book a block of them or just one off?
What do you get them to do for you - give you a plan in advance or just shout at you when you're doing training?
Is it for running training or other, cross-training? (Or both?)
What can they give you that a book, a website, a Garmin, a club (free-ish), a buddy etc. couldn't give you?
Just wondering. Would be highly unlikely ever to have spare money to splash on one, but just interested in what you give and what you get. :-)G
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Feb 2013
1:51pm, 25 Feb 2013
12,618 posts
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MissChappo
I think the cost varies by the part of the country, the calibre of the PT etc. I paid £35 a session for one once but got a deal for buying 5 or something.
They give you a proper assessment of your fitness, new exercises or things to try and the most important thing, I think, is that they push you much harder than you would push yourself. Also someone to report back in to after a week or 2 of being left to do your own thing.
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Feb 2013
2:01pm, 25 Feb 2013
1,910 posts
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Tim of MK
At my gym, it is possible to buy a single hour-long session for £40 per hour. However, it becomes cheaper the larger the block of sessions that you pre-purchase. I personally book in blocks of 7 sessions, which costs me approx. £26 per hourly lesson.
My PT is building upper body strength (I used to have biceps like a sparrow) and working on my flexibility. Whilst she's a very keen runner, any time on the treadmill is limited to warm-up or warm-down.
She brings variety to every session, teaching me a huge library of exercises. Most importantly, she brings discipline.
Yes, I'd go to the gym without PT sessions. But all that I'd do was run. Everything else would be ignored.
And God does she push me !!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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Feb 2013
2:11pm, 25 Feb 2013
1,787 posts
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Autumnleaves
I thought this might turn into a very long post! I have used a Personal Trainer for over 2 years. I met him through the gym I was a member of at the time. I signed up for weekly training sessions initially - 45 minutes each, with a focus on core strength. I paid for a block in advance and effectively got 5 for the price of 4 - £120.00. Oli then kept that price for me when I carried on. I think his usual rate was £35.00 per hour. He left the gym about 10 months later - he was always freelance and he doesn't actually like gyms being a great believer in the benefits of outdoor training. Anyway, I was a complete convert - really got to enjoy the core training and felt I got great benefits from it. I decided not to renew my gym membership and haven't really looked back. I now have one, longer PT session each month - and Oli comes out to where I live. We train for about an hour to an hour and a half, sometimes including a short run. I pay £50 a time for these - partly to include his train fare out to me! We try and exercise outside whenever the weather allows (to the amusement of the neighbours at times!). It would be fair to say Oli has become a friend as much as he is a trainer - we discuss all matters fitness related and talk through my goals and plans. I would not have entered a half marathon without his encouragement. Oli also played a major part in helping me recover from the trapped nerve & sciatica that stopped me running for a month last year. In between sessions I let him know how I'm doing - and he was the first to congratulate me on my 10k PB last month. I am not made of money, and would always have thought such things beyond my reach, but genuinely I think it's been one of the best decisions I made. Through Oli I've also been on two of his Fitness Retreats - which were brilliant. As others have said above, I know far more about my own fitness and strength, have lots of exercises I can do at home, and he's a great motivator. (He is also on Fetch, but I would have said all the above anyway...)
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Feb 2013
2:21pm, 25 Feb 2013
2,304 posts
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The Scribbler
I've trained with the same PT since September 2008.
He charges £35 per session and does deals for block bookings ( I get a massive discount cos I've trained with him for years and keep referring people)
I pay for 1 session a week where we train together and I do that on a weekly basis.
For me, the value isn't just in that 1 hour training session, it's in all the other stuff that goes on around it. So Ian will draw me up a training plan for races/tris etc, recommend events, things to read and give me exercises etc that I can do at home outside those sessions.
For me, the value of a PT is the personal part - training that's tailored to me. When we first started training I was a bit vague about what I wanted other than to feel better about myself and get fitter, so we did cardio and weights and started off running together and he put together a plan I could follow to get into regular exercise mode. Having someone to report back to on what I'd done, someone to show me how to do exercises safely and to encourage me was the absolute catalyst for the kind of person I am now.
When I started to enjoy running, he put a plan together to get me through my first 10k and half marathon and we concentrated more on cross training and weights in our sessions, but he would still check in on my running.
When I picked up an injury last year, he quizzed me about what I could do, what was causing it and we worked on more balance and strengthening and he gave me a whole load of foam roller exercises to do on top of advice from my physio.
Now, I'm in tri training and I have another plan with all the tri elements in there along with races. So what I want from my PT and what I get from him has changed and evolved. I do think it helps if your PT has interests/experience in areas you want to get into (mine has just qualified as a tri coach)
But having taken my own first steps into a fitness qualification, I also know that PTs should have a lot of theoretical knowledge about training, how to introduce it, develop and advance it and that should apply across any kind of sport or activity. But, it may be a good idea to look out for one who has similar areas of interest you want to tap into.
You can get a lot of good advice and training plans free online and Fetch is certainly a fab place for picking people's brains for all sorts of stuff. But I think the right PT can really focus on you and your goals rather than a one size fits all approach.
Well, I hope so, cos I'd like to be one one day!
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Feb 2013
2:49pm, 25 Feb 2013
1,649 posts
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Wobbling
PTs around here can range from £25 - £60 per hour, depending on what kind of service you're after.
There's one who has his own little gym - his specialism is helping very overweight people, especially if they have issues about going into a gym etc. He's one of the more expensive PT's. He also offers small group classes, no more than six.
I used to have a really good PT, about 10 years ago. He got me thin and toned, it was great. I only gave him up because I bought a flat and couldn't afford him anymore. I've used a few others over the years, mainly because I have an injury in my left arm, which makes a lot of conventional exercises, such as push-ups, impossible for me, so I've used PTs to help me get round this. Before I started running, I used PTs to motivate me to exercise, with varying degrees of success. As with everything, there are some good ones and some not so good ones. The best ones spend a good while getting to know you and what you want to achieve before they start training, ascertaining where why you've failed to achieve fitness goals in the past, and working past that.
MrW is a former PT, so I don't need to engage one now (his fees are very reasonable). He's very good (I would say that) at keeping me at it when I would usually fade and give up. He's also very skilled at stretches and sports massage, which have been invaluable over the years. I understand when he did it for a living, he wasn't big on shouting at his clients, and went more in for distracting them from being aware of how hard they were working. Some of his former clients are now good friends. I've learnt more about exercise from him than I ever did from any of my other PTs, but I don't think they were as qualified as he is. He has a degree in sports psychology and various post graduate qualifications in fitness, PT and sports injury and relaxation massage.
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Feb 2013
2:58pm, 25 Feb 2013
19,305 posts
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HappyG(rrr)
Wow, between £600 a year and £1500, if I calculate correctly. With some folk having paid for 3, 4 or more years. That's a chunk of cash!
Interesting what different things people get from them. I guess I'm just lucky that I don't need PT for motivation. But some expert advice on training approach etc. would always be welcome. I try and use Fetch clever peeps for that, so that it's free too!
"FetchEveryone.com Could Save You £6,000 Over 4 Years" shock headline! :-)G
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Feb 2013
3:05pm, 25 Feb 2013
3,579 posts
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WildeRover
So - someone to shout at you and make you do things that you don't really want to do and put you through pain that you wouldn't normally put yourself through. If I want that I just have to sit in front of the telly on a Sunday afternoon.
(Mind you, she probably costs more than £1500 per year)
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Feb 2013
3:28pm, 25 Feb 2013
1,797 posts
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Autumnleaves
In fairness to Oli he has never shouted at me - his approach is not boot camp, half the time he does the same exercises as I do as I am doing them. As has been said before, the key thing is the 'personal' - sessions are geared around my goals and fitness, including some very rehabilitative sessions last year that really helped my back recover - and made me feel a bit more positive when I still couldn't run. I have learned a lot about good technique in core work, and about natural bodyweight exercise. One of the key things though was seeing myself differently - I didn't think I was a particularly good runner, or particularly dedicated to health and fitness. It's hard to explain, but a lot was to do with confidence - and I do know that Oli is quite proud of me as a client. He would be the first to say that PT doesn't work for everyone though.
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Feb 2013
3:32pm, 25 Feb 2013
10,258 posts
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runner duck
I was waiting to see you reactino, :)G, as i've picked up before that you're not that enthused on the whole personal trainer thing!
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