I would say yes and no. Depending on which stage of fitness you are at, but I would say yes 90% of the time as you may need a professional to guide you at least once in your lifetime. Let me explain more.

People Who May NOT Need Personal Training

Pre-contemplation stage

As mentioned in my previous blog entry (Read: 5 Reasons Why People Don’t Work Out), if an individual is not ready both mentally and physically, there’s no point in forcing someone to start an exercise program. The trainer would be giving it their all while the individual does not put in any effort. Your trainer will have a hard time hoping to change your life but to no avail. Remember, it takes two hands to clap.

Pay and expect to see results (Magic~)

I ain’t joking around here. It happens. Some people expect to see results without giving it their all. “Why I look like I never slim until ar? I PAID for you to help me slim down leh.”

If that’s your mindset, might as well go for a liposuction. I’m quite sure you will see immediate results (that can’t last) Or maybe buy that magic heat pad, wrap it around your body, and be amazed by the placebo effect hohoho :D

As a personal trainer, our job is to guide you to your fitness goals. In layman, we actually have the answer sheets to your weight loss goals, but you need to follow them properly mah, can’t be only write the answers halfway without completing the full sentence or even expect us to write the answers for you right?

People who know their stuff

Either you are in the fitness industry yourself or have previously engaged a professional to learn the fundamental exercise movements, nutrition habits, and pain prevention. Good for you! How do you know if you are under this category?

1. You don’t get injuries in the long run

2. You know exactly what you are doing

3. You know the reasoning behind why you are doing each exercise and the order of doing them

4. You know why your program will work for you

People Who May NEED Personal Training

No idea how to exercise/gym/nutrition

Quick question: Is it worth it to attempt working out on your own without knowing the basics and ultimately screwing up your body, leading to pain in your joints, deprivation from eating too little, or worsen previous injuries and end up spending more money fixing all these?

Prevention is better than cure. I would advise you to just invest in a few sessions with a qualified trainer just to learn your basics.

Have past injuries or chronic pain

If you had a past injury or surgery that may have recovered but still stay with you throughout your years, like having an uncomfortable feeling that it may get aggravated when trying to execute certain movements or even hindering your exercise routine, please seek professionals to fix it asap before you continue your workout regime! Physiotherapists, movement therapists, kinesiologists, or even rehab personal trainers can help you.

Don’t see results or improvements from own workout regime

If you have been seeing results from your workout but it becomes not effective any more, you may have hit a plateau. Time to spice things up! Try something different, shock your body, learn new things!

At the end of the day, it really depends on the priorities of individuals and how much they value the importance of injury prevention and proper training. I understand it may not be the cheapest option for some of us with a tight budget, but I will still tell my friends who are in their early to mid 20s to invest in at least 3 sessions to learn the basics as it will definitely go A LONG WAY. Of course, I myself have hired 4 different personal trainers, engaged a physiotherapist and a movement therapist to fix my past injuries (from cheerleading), as well as a running coach to learn proper running techniques, so that I can sustain a healthier lifestyle in the long run.

Till next time <3
-Gina Chan