Working with a good personal trainer can be on of the greatest investments you ever make. If you find a highly educated and experienced personal trainer, your trainer can help you find the best path for your health that will maximize your time spent exercising and minimize your change of injury. So how much does a personal trainer cost? Read on to find out what to pay and how to work with a trainer.
Average Personal Trainer Cost
The short answer to this is, it depends where you live and what your market is like, how involved you want your trainer to be, and what kind of facility you are working together at.
The Personal Trainer Development Center estimates the average cost at $60-70 per hour long training session.
This will very wildly depending on where you are paying for training services.
When you are considering whether this is worth it, think about the price you’d pay for a massage. It’s probably similar. Unlike your massage therapist, your trainer will usually make you a whole workout program, follow up with you, and continue to be invested in your progress. It’s not a one-time situation.
How Much Does a Personal Trainer in Austin Cost?
The average cost of a personal trainer in Austin seems to be about $100. You can find less and you can find a much more expensive but expect to pay somewhere around $100. You might also have to pay a gym membership but hopefully you will be going to the gym enough to justify that.
This number will also vary based on where you go. Again, big box gyms will have newer trainers who are taught how to sell, and you can usually find trainers on the lower end of the price range there. Self-employed trainers tend to run a bit higher.
Why Does it Cost So Much to Work With a Personal Trainer?
You might not know that there is no legal requirement in the US to be a personal trainer. Anybody can just say that here she is a trainer and start charging for it. It’s up to you to do your due diligence and make sure your trainer is educated. Of course everybody starts somewhere, but I do recommend getting a trainer with a few years experience. I would also find a trainer who has worked with people like you, who have goals like yours.
Hopefully your trainer has a degree in kinesiology or exercise science. You at least want them to have taken anatomy and physiology. If they have put years into their career, the coursework and continuing education units are very expensive. They’ve also experimented on their own bodies, and done their own workouts, and put in their own effort and sweat.
I also highly suggest finding a self-employed trainer. Find a trainer who contracts out of a gym and is not employed at a large box gym. The exception is if a local gym hires great trainers. Most often, big gyms, like Lifetime Fitness, and Gold’s, just hire anybody and teach them how to sell.
Bonus points if your trainer is a total equipment nut and loves everything about the inner workings of barbells, dumbbells, and the best machines available to you.
You don’t want that. Find someone who is proven that he or she can make it as a trainer on their own merits. In this case, the trainer is probably paying at least $500+ per month to the gym they work at.
Many trainers will buy their own equipment as well, especially those who travel to clients.
Finally, many trainers like myself who take this profession seriously also pay monthly for training software to deliver you the best workouts. We put hours in behind the scenes doing follow up planning for you. I pay for scheduling and billing software as well, to make it easier for you to make your appointments fit your schedule.
All of this plus self-employment fees goes into your trainers fee.
Other Ways to Work With a Personal Trainer
If this all seems cost prohibitive, contact the trainer you’d like to work with. Often, trainers have pairs prices, small group classes, or training programs that are at a lesser cost. In my case, I match make clients who would like to work together to reduce cost. I don’t put new people with someone immediately, because I’d like to make sure to get to know a person and his or her goals first.
I also have training programs which are about $15 – 35 a month. These are my plans that I make and maintain, and you can contact me at any point.
Trainers also make sure there aren’t gaps in your programs, and they help you add in exercises you might never even think to do, such as rear delts. They ensure you are doing a well rounded program that will get you to your results in the best way possible.
About half my clients who work with me have worked with me for years. The other half of my clients work with me for 1-3 months and then continue on their own. Most keep up with me and we are still making sure they are comfortable with their plan and progress!
This is an option as well, to budget for a trainer to teach you how to do it on their own. Most trainers are absolutely ok with this, and would love to help you learn how to do your own program.
Don’t be scared to reach out! The worst a trainer can say is that your plan doesn’t fit their business model. If so, that’s ok. They might have referrals. If not, go back to google.
Good Luck With Your Training!
I wish you the best of luck in finding your personal trainer! Here is a more in depth look at how to find a personal trainer and all of your personal training options. Let me know if I can help you at all!
About the author
Kathryn Alexander is a strength coach and personal trainer in Austin, Texas. She loves hiking, college football, and the feel of a perfectly knurled barbell. Read more about Kathryn here.
