Personal Trainers - at what price?

[tangledbeauty]

Hello,

I love this board! I've been reading a lot because I'm thinking about a fall trip, so when I ran into this question I thought this was such an often-read board that I might luck out with some good answers.

I'm in the midwest and am looking to get a personal trainer to finish losing the last of my weight. I'm looking for 2-3 times a week with a private personal trainer. Everyone I've seen so far is in the 1200-1500$ for 3-months range. Does this seem right? Or is this too high? I've never had a personal trainer before, so I have no idea what a good price is. I've been trying it on my own for months, but I really need personalized nutrition and exercise assistant - and time is wasting. I'm just trying to do it inexpensively, but that doesn't really seem possible.

Anyone have any ideas? I'm near a major city so that might be driving costs up - but maybe $60-75 an hour is common? What do you think?

 

[Janepod]

I pay $65/hour in Fairfield Co. In NYC I was paying $80/hr.

However, the gym often offers package deals - in December I bought 20 sessions for $900, so it was more like $45/hour. TOTALLY WORTH IT. I have gotten so lean and strong and I know my way around the gym like you would not believe. I was going to quit because I reached my fitness goals but my husband insisted on continuing to pay for it. LOVE IT.

 

[DisneyRunner2009]

I'm in a suburb of Milwaukee. I belong to a Y. The guide lists the following prices: 1 session $45, 6 sessions $250, 10 sessions $390, 20 sessions $700.

 

[Swimalie]

I'm in a suburb of DC and my gym charges $60 an hour. You don't have to commit to a time frame. You can go once or for years. They also have the option of semi-private for $45 an hour. I think the groups are limited to 3 or 4 people. I personally have never used the trainers but they look like good workouts.

 

[tangledbeauty]

So mine doesn't seem so crazy. The place I'm seriously considering is a personal training gym - they charge $75 per session but are offering a discount to $65 right now, in three month increments, with greater discounts the longer you sign up. I'm looking at 2x a week for 3 months, for about $1500. My work contributes $240 a year to any "gym" you go to, so I could get a small reimbursement.

They aren't a gym, so there aren't a lot of people there at any given time. They also do nutritional assessments and coaching, read and assess your food diary, and send you home with 'homework' on the days you're not in the gym. I'm on the fence, however, because I'm very stiff with my money.

Do you feel you've gotten your money's worth from your personal training, or do you think you may have been able to do it yourself?

 

[poohfriend]

I've just started working with a PT from my local gym. They had a package that made the seesions $45 each. It was a huge investment, but I think it was a good one. After all, my health is worth it.

 

[Forevryoung]

So mine doesn't seem so crazy. The place I'm seriously considering is a personal training gym - they charge $75 per session but are offering a discount to $65 right now, in three month increments, with greater discounts the longer you sign up. I'm looking at 2x a week for 3 months, for about $1500. My work contributes $240 a year to any "gym" you go to, so I could get a small reimbursement.

They aren't a gym, so there aren't a lot of people there at any given time. They also do nutritional assessments and coaching, read and assess your food diary, and send you home with 'homework' on the days you're not in the gym. I'm on the fence, however, because I'm very stiff with my money.

Do you feel you've gotten your money's worth from your personal training, or do you think you may have been able to do it yourself?

I would just double check that the nutrition advice is coming from a registered dietitian and that your personal "trainer" really has a personal training certificate.

I know a girl who worked at a chain here as a "trainer" who was NOT certified- none of them were

 

[walkdmc]

I'm in Southeastern PA.

If you have health insurance, check with them regarding covering a nutrition consult with a registered dietician. I bought a Groupon for an initial consultation with metabolic testing for $39 only to find out the same dietician accepts many types of health insurance for the same service.

I also have a personal trainer who comes to my house. We have a gym in our house and she charges $50/hour and she's very flexible. If I can only do one day that week, fine, but I usually workout 2x/week with her. I didn't have to sign any long-term contract. I would not want to sign any long term contract with a trainer. Good luck.

 

[SnowWhite2]

I think your price is very reasonable.

Our Y charges $100 for a hour session with a PT. I was getting a PT in a private training suite for around $60/ 45 min session when purchasing a package (a few years ago).

 

[foltzy]

I live in PA. The price is $50 an hour or if you buy more sessions it goes down. They have a 6 sessions for $210 and a 10 sessions for $300.

I'm still considering it.

 

[tangledbeauty]

I would just double check that the nutrition advice is coming from a registered dietitian and that your personal "trainer" really has a personal training certificate.

I know a girl who worked at a chain here as a "trainer" who was NOT certified- none of them were

Ah, there's the rub. How do you know they're not blowing smoke about being trainers? They have tons of before and after pictures up on their walls - and are recognized in the area because they run a type of "biggest loser" program that ends up in the papers for a few months.

here's a sampling of their qualifications.

"Indiana University, B.S. Kinesiology"

"A.C.S.M. (American College of Sports Medicine) Health Fitness Specialist, N.A.S.M. (National Academy of Sports Medicine) Performance Enhancement Specialist"

"Lindenwood University, B.S. Physical Education"

"C.H.E.K. Exercise Coach, A.C.E. (American Council on Exercise) Certified Personal Trainer. M.A.T. (Muscle Activation Technique) Jump Start, C.M.T.A.A. Metabolic Typing Advisor"

"A.C.E. (American Council on Exercise) Certified Personal Trainer"

No info on the nutritionist (only "certified nutritionist" on the website), but they do meet with you at Whole Foods and walk you through the store showing you what to eat and what to avoid.

I don't know - they just announced a special for an additional $300 off; I don't know how I can resist.

 

[bedogged]

Hello,

I love this board! I've been reading a lot because I'm thinking about a fall trip, so when I ran into this question I thought this was such an often-read board that I might luck out with some good answers.

I'm in the midwest and am looking to get a personal trainer to finish losing the last of my weight. I'm looking for 2-3 times a week with a private personal trainer. Everyone I've seen so far is in the 1200-1500$ for 3-months range. Does this seem right? Or is this too high? I've never had a personal trainer before, so I have no idea what a good price is. I've been trying it on my own for months, but I really need personalized nutrition and exercise assistant - and time is wasting. I'm just trying to do it inexpensively, but that doesn't really seem possible.

Anyone have any ideas? I'm near a major city so that might be driving costs up - but maybe $60-75 an hour is common? What do you think?

I am a great grandmother who is overweight and has medical problems. I have a very good trainer who used to be a physical therapist. She only charges me about $25.00 an hour, but it is sometimes less depending the number you buy. That is in addition to the monthly fee of $12.00 that I pay to the gym. I live in the Denver area.

 

[jedijill]

I am a great grandmother who is overweight and has medical problems. I have a very good trainer who used to be a physical therapist. She only charges me about $25.00 an hour, but it is sometimes less depending the number you buy. That is in addition to the monthly fee of $12.00 that I pay to the gym. I live in the Denver area.

Bedogged...can you tell me who you go to and what part of Denver? You can PM me if you want.

Thanks!

Jill in CO

 

[jwfla422]

Ah, there's the rub. How do you know they're not blowing smoke about being trainers? They have tons of before and after pictures up on their walls - and are recognized in the area because they run a type of "biggest loser" program that ends up in the papers for a few months.

here's a sampling of their qualifications.

"Indiana University, B.S. Kinesiology"

"A.C.S.M. (American College of Sports Medicine) Health Fitness Specialist, N.A.S.M. (National Academy of Sports Medicine) Performance Enhancement Specialist"

"Lindenwood University, B.S. Physical Education"

"C.H.E.K. Exercise Coach, A.C.E. (American Council on Exercise) Certified Personal Trainer. M.A.T. (Muscle Activation Technique) Jump Start, C.M.T.A.A. Metabolic Typing Advisor"

"A.C.E. (American Council on Exercise) Certified Personal Trainer"

No info on the nutritionist (only "certified nutritionist" on the website), but they do meet with you at Whole Foods and walk you through the store showing you what to eat and what to avoid.

I don't know - they just announced a special for an additional $300 off; I don't know how I can resist.

...I'd lean more towards the "experience" and "recommendations" before worrying about being "certified". To become certified these days all's one has to do is take a test and pay the fee to take it along with the study guides and materials. Not that it's an easy test...but just keep that in mind. They offer the tests at many local colleges. No courses needed. You can order the study materials online.

 

[tangledbeauty]

...I'd lean more towards the "experience" and "recommendations" before worrying about being "certified". To become certified these days all's one has to do is take a test and pay the fee to take it along with the study guides and materials. Not that it's an easy test...but just keep that in mind. They offer the tests at many local colleges. No courses needed. You can order the study materials online.

Yes, very true. I'm in negotiations with them today over the price! They have many, many recommendations (a book full) and are the best reviewed place in my area on Yelp! (all 5 stars across 16 reports).

It's just very hard for me to let my money go on anything besides Disney!

 

[LuvLuvLuv]

I'm near Cincinnati. At my gym... if you sign up for a year plan... it's $28 per session. You can buy a plan with as many as you want per month, lock it for a year, it comes out of your account monthly, and you can use them whenever you want. So if you buy 8 per month--you can use 2 per week, or 4 in one week, etc etc etc.