I am writing this essay to discuss the role of a personal trainer in contributing to the health and wellbeing of their clients, and how CIMSPA membership and recognition can be of benefit. This will be of value and interest to anyone who is looking to get to be a fitter and healthier self by choosing to use a personal trainer.
The role of the personal trainer is of vital importance to the health and wellbeing of every client and in the next few paragraphs I shall explain why.
Firstly, before any personal training can be undertaken you need to check if your client is fit and healthy enough to participate as the client may have certain medical conditions that could cause the condition to be aggravated by the increase of physical activity. This is why making sure your client is fit and healthy is a necessary part of the process when having new clients. Upon questioning your client if you do find out that they have certain medical conditions, for example a heart condition, then you might want to suggest that they go back to their General Practitioner to see if he suggests they limit certain exercises. You should mention to your client that you would prefer to see a detailed medical report so that you can work out what they can and can’t do. Also, as a personal trainer, clients may come to you wishing to lose weight or gain muscle so it is your job to teach and help them to exercise properly using specific plans and workouts.
Secondly, once you’ve established the client is fit and healthy enough you should make sure that you give them an introduction to each machine to make sure they know how the machine is used, what each machine does to each part of the body and the correct positioning when using each machine. Also, a personal trainer needs to make sure the client is wearing the correct gear so that they don’t hurt themselves whilst in the session. The induction should start with you explaining to them about warming up times, an adequate time spent on each exercise and cooling down times to ensure that muscles are properly warmed up and not over exerted which is all part of the DOMS- delayed onset muscle soreness.
Thirdly, after giving them an introduction to the equipment and making sure they know what type of gear you should wear, a personal trainer should sit down with the client and discuss one to one what their goal is, how achievable it is, how they can achieve it and how much time they want to spend to achieve it in to make sure they have something to work towards and so that the personal trainer can help them reach that goal. The personal trainer can then advise each client, on an individual basis, as to whether their requirements are achievable and if not, he can suggest what he thinks is best moving forward even if it takes a longer time span to achieve their desired goal.
Fourthly, any good personal trainer will ensure their client is progressing in a healthy manner and not over doing it by drinking plenty of water and having multiple rest breaks. Also, any good personal trainer would motivate their client throughout the whole journey so that they don’t lose interest. A personal trainer would assess the goal their client has set to enable them to either set a new one if they are progressing too quickly or re-evaluate their goal and either set the time to a longer length or increase the intensity of their training. It is vital that the personal trainer makes it known that the client can come to him with any problems along the journey so that the client doesn’t become overwhelmed with the exercise regime.
In addition, eating a balanced diet would definitely help with their journey. As a personal trainer you can give your client guidance and recommendations on their nutrition such as setting up a meal plan for them for free. A personal trainer with nutritional education can give them suggestions about optimal rest, hydration and workout related food intake but all personal trainers can give them suggestions to support their weight loss or muscle gain. A personal trainer can give them a healthy diet so that during recovery days or after a session, the food the client eats will help to recover the muscle that has been damaged during training which in the long term will strengthen the muscle and make the client fitter. It is vitally important that the client sticks rigidly to the meal/nutrition plan or any progress that they have made could possibly be quickly undone thus leading them back to square one and undoing all their hard work.
Lastly, once you have set your client on the right road it is important that the personal trainer ensures that the client is capable of maintaining the level of training, they introduced from day one. The personal trainer should follow up with the client to see how they are progressing to reach their goal. A personal trainer needs to check in with the client to see if the training is getting too easy so that they can adjust the training accordingly.
CIMSPA is a well-known organisation which has many benefits to its membership scheme and recognition and in the next few paragraphs I will explain what benefits they have to offer.
CIMSPA has many benefits to offer when joining their membership. Some of the benefits consist of free or discounted learning which can benefit you as it can help to get access to a more affordable course. CIMSPA membership also offers access to UK coaching’s most valuable tips, guidance, videos and webinars which can benefit you as it can help you to learn more about the best way to do certain things when coaching. CIMSPA membership also offers membership to a new collaborative group for exercise and fitness professionals in their online community connected coaches as it opens up your social group. CIMSPA membership can also help you succeed in your career and make the most of your passion for sports, fitness and health. This is a huge benefit for you as it can lead you to become one of the most well-known people and can help you make connections in the industry. CIMSPA membership can gain you access to a wide range of discounts and offers from partners such as, WSHQ workout music, future fit “prozone” discount and many more. This can benefit you as you gain access to a variety of stores and online items at a discounted price.
The ultimate treat is the CIMSPA recognition. It is widely recognised across the whole of Europe and in terms of looking for a reputable personal trainer it can guide you to top quality trainers. If you see that the personal trainer has a CIMSPA qualification/ membership then you know that the service you will be getting will be second to none.
In conclusion, modern society has played a massive role in what we do with regards to the way we look, the way we eat, the way we exercise, the way we appear to others which is why things have changed and noticeably more and more gyms, health spas, health food shops and other fitness organisations have opened in order to accommodate the needs of a large percentage of the population.
Therefore, it has become apparent that the role of the personal trainer is more vital than ever so that the people wanting to get fit are catered for in the best possible way in comparison to 20/30 years ago. People are looking towards a personal trainer more and more for guidance and help for them to reach their ultimate goal of becoming physically, mentally and nutritionally fit. 
Personal trainers can not only provide a physical service but regards to mentality they can inspire a positive mental attitude into any of their clients because in most cases the personal trainer is a figure that the client looks up to due to the fact the personal trainer is, 9 times out of 10, toned themselves which is good for a role model image.
As mentioned previously the CIMSPA membership plays a massive part in the personal trainer selection process. If you can see that the personal trainer you choose has an appropriate CIMSPA qualification then you know that you will be getting a top-class service and second to none personal training which will also include a great nutritional insight.
All in all, even though you might have a recommendation from a college, close friend or relative that Joe Bloggs down the local gym is the best thing since sliced bread, it is still best to check them out online beforehand to see how highly qualified they are as a personal trainer. Therefore, I recommend when looking for a personal trainer that you choose wisely and pick one with a CIMSPA qualification so that you get the whole package in one.