The Personal Training industry is notoriously hard to predict, and looking back on previous predictions turns up a mixed bag. There are many correct predictions, but some trends pop up out of nowhere, while others fizzle out quickly after a promising start.
With that in mind, let’s hope people reading this article in 2019 can look back on this article with kindness and understanding for all the many failed predictions! Of course, we could be completely right about everyone, which will leave you all one step ahead.
While online coaching will never replace personal training, there is definitely a lot of buzz around it. Many trainers really like the idea of sitting at home and training clients across the planet. The reality is that the gym is still the ultimate place to find and train clients.
But 2018 should see a lot of trainers blurring the lines between the two. Training clients in the gym, while paying attention to their nutritional needs from home. Enterprising trainers could consider nutritional sessions once per week, with a practical session in the gym, they might also consider a group online class each Friday night.
Or you could go in the other direction, training clients online, but bringing them into the gym once per month for an assessment. Either way, it seems that hybrid training could be the big fitness trend of 2018.
It feels like plyometrics has been on the cusp of becoming a huge fitness trend for a few years now, with many gyms bringing in plyo boxes and many Instagram trainers incorporating box jumps into their videos etc…. there however is beginning to be a bit of a backlash, with many critics pointing out that people aren’t using plyometrics properly.
The idea is that you follow a full plyometrics training session, with programmed exercises that you use progressively. Just like you would with a strength and conditioning program. But usually plyometric exercises are thrown into circuit training, or used as HIIT, which is not what they are designed to do.
2018 could be the year that trainers start treating this excellent form of training with the respect it deserves, so look out for courses and books on plyometrics training now to stay ahead of the curve.
Every year there is a fitness class that gets a lot of media attention for being novel, which drives personal trainers up the wall. This year reached its nadir with the beer and yoga class, and next year there should be some equally crazy class that gets surprisingly popular. Many people crave excitement, novelty, and fun in their workouts, and this is something that personal trainers can learn from.
You might think that your 5×5 strength training program is exciting, but does your client? We’re not telling you to start some insane “bring your pet to the gym” workout, but to concentrate on putting a smile on your client’s face. A fun and exciting warm-up, or a finisher exercise that leaves them raving about their new trainer.
Personal training has been a serious and professional industry for almost 20 years now, before that there was nothing stopping anyone from calling themselves one. Even 10 years ago, trainers had little competition, and standards could be all over the place. Today, personal training is one of the fastest-growing jobs, and Personal Training courses are better than ever.
This all leads to increased competition for trainers, and in that environment, only the true professional, and the business savvy trainer will survive. This means that personal trainers who don’t continue to increase their knowledge, don’t turn up to sessions on time, make the personal training session all about them, will lose their client base.
If you take anything away from this article let it be this, 2018 is going to be the year that good trainers build their business to new heights, while bad trainers quit and find another vocation. Invest in yourself, experiment with different fitness trends, and provide stellar service, and you can go far. Or get attacked by killer robots … the future is hard to predict!