Looking for advice on PT courses.

like you, a few years ago (well, about 10 now actually) i was tempted. I loved to train (still do), heard great things about earning "£40 an hour+" blah blah, whats not to like? earning great money, and doing something i love

I started with Future fit, diploma in personal training, it was a good all encompassing course, but i was tied in. I think these courses have a high drop out rate, so they make it very hard to quit once you start, they will get their money.

Most of the material I already knew through personal learning, so would have been easyish to pass. I had given up a career in accounting for this

It was about the time of the credit crunch, lots of talk about personal budgets being squeezed etc.. I sat back. Realistically, would people pay £40 an hour for my services? Maybe central london, not where i lived, most gyms advertised at £25-£30 an hour at their charge out rate, the trainers got less than this. The next thought, to make this a livable career, i would need clients at least 4-5 hours a day, 5 days a week

Say 5 hours a day, at £25, £125 a day - £625 a week, or £32.5k a year - a pretty average salary, and thats IF i could get 25 hours a week of clients, 52 weeks a year, bearing in mind there are lots of people in gyms up and down the country with the same idea

I canned the idea, went back to Accountancy. For me, it didn't seem a realistic career choice. I'm not wanting to put you off, but once you start the course, you're paying for it, probably to the tune of £3-5k, and do you really think you can get the client base? I think you should really do your homework before you throw yourself into it. Im not saying dont, its up to you, just make sure you have looked into the local market, what the gyms offer, and whether you can really make a go of it

Depends what you want out of a career. Yes the average accountant might earn more, but would you want to be living your working life looking at numbers in spreadsheets or in the gym?

I know which one I would go for.

What Carl31 said is all true. It's a tough industry and you are very unlikely to make big bucks but it can also be hugely rewarding.

If you want to work in a large gym then it helps to have a qualification from one of the bigger trainers, such as YMCA or Premier (I used Premier). It will cost a few grand for one of those courses and entail more than just a multiple choice questionnaire to pass but they WILL pass you, though they may have to coach and retest you a few times.

You could also consider doing at home PTing or outdoors PTing at a public park. You'll get to keep all the money but you will have some transport and equipment costs. That said a few hundred quid invested in a kettlebells, medicine balls, boxing gloves and pads, skipping rope, battling rope, bulgarian bags etc will pay for itself and is all equipment you can use yourself too. You'll also need to invest in marketing yourself (a good website, business cards left with local companies etc) but, to be honest, every PT should be doing that one way or another.

The other advantage of private work is that Joe Public has no idea who PT training providers are. They just know that Level 3 is better than Level 2 so you can go for the cheapest option. You'll still need to know your stuff though because, as a gym based bodybuilder, you'll find park/home based training with minimal equipment is a very different prospect. I personally love it though!

I don't know what area you are in but, if there is no one else doing it, then a well run boot camp in a public park can be a good option too. If you're competing with British Military Fitness then it's likely to be harder but if they don't have a presence in your area it could be an option to explore or expand into.

They key to workouts outside the gym will be having a depth of knowledge of exercises that can be done with limited equipment. Anyone can prescribe a workout with a well equipped gym but it's harder to do come up with variation and balance when all you've got is a park bench and a medicine ball (there is tons you can do with those though).

Best of luck!