How to build a successful and rewarding career in fitness. A step by step guide
More and more people are becoming even more aware of fitness and health. As a result, the demand for personal trainers and health experts has also grown.
A lot of people are considering building a career in fitness but aren’t sure where to begin.
The Fitness Industry
For the last ten years, the fitness and health industry has been growing at least 3 to 4% annually and shows no signs of slowing down. In fact, the fitness industry was worth nearly $100 billion globally in 2019 and that number would only double in the next decade. A career in fitness means that you will be a part of this growing industry.
Working in the fitness industry entails a lot of benefits. You can have a flexible schedule and you get tangible results of your work when clients reach their goals. Most importantly, you get to make a living by helping others improve their lives.
Job Description for a Career in Fitness Industry
There are a lot of jobs in the fitness industry. The following are just some of the most popular ones.
Personal Trainer
Personal trainers are experts in the field of fitness training. They work with customers to do their exercise properly and reach their body and wellness goals.
Their duty is to assess their customers, assess their body’s strengths and weaknesses, and create customized workout plans for them. They ensure the safety of their customers and provide them with physical and mental guidance. They monitor them on a regular basis. They explain the safe and proper use of gym equipment, lead individual sessions, and advise their clients on how to change nutritional and lifestyle habits as needed.
Group Exercise Instructor
They lead and motivate both individuals and groups in exercise activities. They work with people of all ages and demonstrate the proper exercises including cardiovascular exercise, stretching, and strength training. Most specialized fitness instructors often plan or choreograph their own classes, choose the right music that is appropriate for their exercise class, and create a routine, a set of moves for them to follow. While some follow pre-choreographed routines created by fitness companies and organizations. They are experts and ensure the safety of their students.
Fitness Director
Fitness directors are responsible for leading a team of fitness and personal trainers. They oversee the facility’s daily operations. They audit, making scheduling shifts for the tasks, and for employees.
Yoga Instructor
Unlike fitness instructors, yoga focuses mostly on the meditation and relaxation of mind. They teach students stretching and non-strenuous activities. They promote mindfulness in addition to overall well being. These professionals are referred to as Yoga Instructors and Yogis.
Weight and Lifestyle Management Consultant
Weight and lifestyle management consultants are experts in the field of diet and nutrition and experts in making long-term lifestyle programs to maintain healthy body weight on the basis of a person’s age, sex and height.
Select the Right Field
The jobs mentioned above are only a couple of career paths one can take in the fitness industry. Pick one that suits your interests and abilities.
Read the job descriptions above and select the one that resonated with you the most. It has to be the one that makes you feel eager to learn more.
Also, consider your strengths and weaknesses. For example, you are curious about being a weight and lifestyle management consultant but you know that your eating habits are not the healthiest, or you want to be a yoga instructor but you haven’t attended a yoga class in years. In order for you to become effective in your new career, you have to assess yourself first and know what you can and can’t do.
Remember that you are the final product of your new job. You don’t have to eat perfectly and work out every single day but don’t forget that you will be seen as an example and your clients will model their behavior according to your recommendations.
Decide on Other Skills
Being in the fitness industry is not just about exercise and nutrition. You will be running a business and you have to know the proper skills in order for your new business to prosper.
Marketing is an important skill to learn if you want more clients. Accounting is another one since you are going to need to manage your books. You have to know how to build your own website and build your social media presence. Sure you can hire other professionals to do all this work for you but you still need to have the basic knowledge on business-related topics so you can build and strengthen your career.
Make a list of all the skills and resources you need in order for you to be fully ready for your career change.
Get Educated
You don’t have to have a bachelor’s degree in order to build a career in fitness but you will need to have studied fitness subjects such as physiology, nutrition, anatomy, and exercise training. This means that the most basic educational qualification in the industry is a high school graduate.
The next step is you have to be certified in your chosen field. Luckily, there are personal trainer courses that you can get online. These courses can make you certified from being a gym instructor to a full-fledged personal trainer. The best thing about these online personal trainer courses is that you can easily tailor your study program to fit around your existing schedule. Once you have completed the program, you will be able to receive trx certifications to prove that you are now qualified.
Once you get certified, you can either open up your own business or work for another party. Most experts recommend applying for a job first and getting experience of at least two years. Of course, you can start giving classes right away but some work experience will help you get more knowledge about your chosen field.
Conclusion
Having a career in fitness is a rewarding experience. It is a growing industry that will continue to prosper in the upcoming years with a lot of different careers to choose from. But with anything else in life, you have to work hard and gain knowledge about the field in order for you to achieve success.
About Author:
Vicky is a Food & Lifestyle Blogger at https://AvocadoPesto.com/ where she specializes in healthy living and health cooking. She is also a world traveler and has visited over 60 countries.