Fitman, owner of the Fitman Performance & Physique Center in Roslyn, has been a certified personal trainer for 15 years. He says that part of the success equation for a personal trainer is making money.
“Money is what pays your bills and money is what will give the ability to expand your fitness business,” Fitman said. “If you are not making money as a personal trainer, trust me when I say you will not be a personal trainer for long. The rate of turnover in the personal training game is high like a Philadelphia skyscraper.”
“I love the fitness game as fitness is my number 1 passion in life. But the fact of the matter is that love and passion do not pay the bills,” he said.
Fitman noted that the most common way for personal trainers to make money is by training clients in-person.
“The primary source of income for most personal trainers will come from training their clients,” the 2022 NGA Mr. Natural Philadelphia winner said. “The daily client training sessions that happen at the gym are how most personal trainers make money. And if you don’t currently have any clients, and you want to remain a personal trainer for the foreseeable future, you will definitely need to moonlight for some time in order to make money.”
“I’m also a licensed barber in Pennsylvania and cutting hair was my primary source of income while I was building up my personal training clientele,” he said.
Fitman also told us that there are other ways a personal trainer can make money.
“A personal trainer could train clients online, sell workout programs, eBooks, supplements, and fitness apparel,” he said. “I’m not judging them but I’m sure there are even fitness influencers and personal trainers selling their bodies on Only Fans.”
“And these other methods, depending on how much you put into them, can definitely provide a source of income. I’ve sold eBooks and workout programs, but they are currently supplemental and ‘sometimes’ income. The main source of my income comes from my clients who I train in person.”
The Truth About Getting Clients
Fitman also shared how a personal trainer can get clients.
“First, you need to be able to deliver real, objective results for clients,” Fitman said. “Most clients are coming from a place where fitness has never been a part of their lifestyle. But even with that said, if you as a personal trainer cannot get clients stronger, healthier, leaner, and feeling better about themselves, you need to choose a different profession. True personal training is about delivering objective results.”
“Two, you need to be able to communicate,” Fitman said. “As a personal trainer, you will more than likely train people from all different types of worlds. You cannot talk to and train everyone in the same manner.”
“Successful communication is a combination of honesty, tough love, accountability, and empathy. Clients will appreciate if you are truthful with them.” he said.
“Third, people need to know you exist,” Fitman said. “You can use marketing techniques such as paid ads, posting across social media, and even offering low barrier deals to entice prospective clients to check you out.”
“In my experience as a personal trainer I have found that the most powerful form of advertising is word of mouth. Word of mouth tends to bring in clients who will already have a positive view of you and these clients will typically end up being longer term clients,” he said. “If you change someone’s life and their health in a beneficial way, you can be guaranteed they will talk about you to their family and friends.”
“People are typically very comfortable when a recommendation comes from someone they trust,” he said.