As a Personal Trainer do you know what you don't know?

by Alisha Smith | Thursday, September 22, 2011

“At 13 weeks pregnant, the baby is only about as big as the tip of your finger.” When my close friend, C, told me that her personal trainer had said this before insisting that she continue with the crunches and planks on which she had questioned him, I insisted that she find a new trainer.  ...read more

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Do we need a Code of Conduct for PTs?

by Oliver Kitchingman | Monday, July 11, 2011

The following post was written by Meredith Julliard, a personal trainer, coordinator and group exercise instructor.

I have worked in the fitness industry for the last 16 years and have had the privilege of helping hundreds of people reach significant fitness, health and, more importantly, personal growth goals.  ...read more

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Is this your dream job? PT on a Criuse Ship?

by Rebecca Myers | Wednesday, March 02, 2011

Imagine waking up in a different port every morning and working in a gym that has constantly changing views from its windows.   ...read more

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The Unprofessional Fitness Professional

by Oliver Kitchingman | Monday, January 31, 2011

The following post was written by San Diego industry professional Anthony Carey  of Function First. Recently I posted on Facebook some grainy photosof a personal training session I stumbled upon in the Pacific Beach area in San Diego. I had parked my truck above the bayside beach to take in the view and draw inspiration for some goal setting and strategic planning I was doing.

Well, I was inspired alright. Inspired to vent my shock and disbelief for what this ‘trainer’ was pulling off as a paid personal training session.   ...read more

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Is the Power Balance bracelet the snake oil of our times?

by Oliver Kitchingman | Thursday, December 23, 2010

As we all know, the world of fitness – and particularly the consumer side of it rather than the industry side – is rife with gadgets and gizmos promising instant weight loss, muscle growth and rippling abs. And enhanced energy and strength. It’s the latter of these ‘Holy Grails’ of health and wellbeing that has become particularly prominent in the past couple of years, largely due to the arrival on the market of the Power Balance bracelet. Unless you conduct your training or classes on the moon, you will have encountered this product, adorning the wrists of clients or colleagues. Or perhaps you even wear one yourself.  ...read more

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What is the dollar value of a Personal Training session these days?

by Ryan Hogan | Monday, July 19, 2010

Some years ago when I first moved to Sydney, I *gasp* took some time off exercising after having taught classes for more than 10 years. After a few months of getting rather porky and feeling pretty unfit, I decided it was time to make my way back into the health club scene. I promptly joined a local chain of gyms and began working in earnest to lose some of the beer and pie weight accumulated over the previous six months.

After working very hard on my own for a while, I decided to do some research into hiring a personal trainer to help me achieve my fitness goals. By this stage I was already working at Network and being immersed back in the fitness world I was sure that a PT would be just the thing to whip me back into shape. After speaking to the personal training manager at the club I was a member of, I was referred to a trainer who promptly interviewed me and did a very thorough needs analysis. We then moved on to the sample workout which was outstanding.  ...read more

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Response to criticism of 8-week fitness courses

by Jack Lee | Thursday, February 18, 2010

In response to Siobhan Moylan’s article that appeared online on 1 February, criticising the fitness industry’s 8-week qualification courses, Vicki Tuchtan writes this:

My hand is up high and proud Siobhan Moylan, as I am a fitness guru.
And as such, I feel compelled to respond to your recent article surrounding the training of fitness professionals in Australia (Hands up if you’re a fitness guru, 1/2/10). Before we get to that, let me indulge with a brief history of the training system in Australia.  ...read more

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Love it or otherwise, we can use The Biggest Loser to boost our Fitness Businesses

by Analee Matthews | Tuesday, February 02, 2010

It's back on our boxes. And love it or hate it The Biggest Loser TV show has a potentially massive impact on our industry!

In past blogs, we've discussed whether the show is a pro or con for the industry, and whether it's offensive or helpful, but these ongoing debates aside, the bottom line is that there really is a great opportunity for PTs, clubs and group exercise instructors alike to tap into the heightened interest that the show creates, and really boost our business activities.   ...read more

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Are you an empty preacher or a great teacher?

by Ryan Hogan | Tuesday, December 29, 2009

The following post is written by Network's Online Trainer Skye Jones.

Before I get my ‘intellectual’ cap on, let me just preface this blog post by saying that I have followed two career paths in my life – one being an artist and visual arts educator with my specific focus being community arts projects, and the other being a fitness professional. I am a personal trainer and a group exercise instructor.  ...read more

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Biggest Loser – A hit show or offensive?

by Ryan Hogan | Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Based on the popularity of our previous Blog Post called "The Biggest Loser, friend or foe of fitness", when we came across Justin Tamsett's recent post we thought it pertinent to re-post here. You can visit Justin's very informative blog at www.justintamsett.com

As filming has begun on the next series of Biggest Loser in Australia, I was thinking does this reality show help or hinder the over weight problem in Australia.

The journal Obesity Management explored the attitudes of people toward the Biggest Loser here in Australia. The group they surveyed were overweight: 42% classified as obese and 58% as morbidly obese. Here are the results:  ...read more

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