Be a health guru

Fitness training as a profession

by SHRADHA BASNYAT

FROM ISSUE # 153 (September 2008) | IN THIS ISSUE
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ANUP PRAKASH

Health, today, isn't just about eating veggies and doing a couple of exercise routines. It's a lifestyle. Maintaining that very lifestyle requires hard work, energy and determination. It means eating a balanced meal with the right nutrition, precise exercise regimen that focuses on each muscle group and most importantly healthy workout sessions.

The pressure of looking good and getting down to size zero means that many make bad decisions such as crash dieting or vigorous workout sessions. However, these bad decisions will ultimately become a barrier to a healthy life. Therefore, for those who are unsure about how to get that perfect body without starving themselves can seek help from professional personal trainers and fitness instructors. This need for people to look and feel good means that these trainers are in high demand. Three gurus of fitness training; Sanjiv S. Soreng of Clark Hatch fitness centre in Radisson Hotel, Hisako Utsugi of Hardic Fitness Centre and Sandesh Palungwa Limbu of Rage Fitness centre talks to WAVE about the possibilities of this career option.

Basic requirements and qualifications:
First, one has to be interested and be passionate about fitness to make it in this a career. The instructors themselves have to be committed to a healthy lifestyle in order to be able to teach others. While a lot of people in Nepal do teach without certification, getting a wider client base, more money and mostly giving high-quality education to clients requires certification from good associations such as ISSA (International Sports Science Association), ACE (American Council on Exercise), ACSM (American College of Sports and Medicine) and NSCA (National Strength and Conditioning Association). Getting a certification can range from six months to around three or four years if one gets a bachelors degree. Courses like these give knowledge about sports nutrition, human anatomy and food nutrition. So, to be able to get a certification, one has to know about all the aspects of health otherwise one wrong move when training clients can cause permanent damage. At least basic knowledge on sports would help. Sanjiv Soreng claims, "This isn't an easy profession. It can get very technical as one explores different body parts and having a certain aptitude would help immensely".  Here are some of the websites that could be useful for the process of getting certified:
www.acsm.org/certification
www.acefitness.org
www.nsca-cc.org
www.ISSAtrainer.cog

What does a personal trainer do?
A personal trainer has to take a holistic approach when dealing with a client. Focusing on body and mind, the trainer has to create individual programs with realistic and achievable goals. This means planning clients exercise regimen according to any medical disease (if any), planning nutrition according to the body mass index and constantly increasing their motivational level to achieve their fitness and health goals. Hisako Utsugi says, "Basically, it's teaching clients to help themselves". In addition, for those who take specialised courses on aerobics, yoga, kickboxing and other courses can further teach clients various means to stay fit.

How much does a personal trainer make?
Personal trainers don't usually have a fixed salary rate as bankers and teachers do. The amount paid depends on the trainer's reputation, qualifications and client recommendation. It also depends on how many sessions one is willing to take. Top trainers in Nepal charge from 500-1000 per session.

Building a client base:
Most trainers get clients on the basis of recommendation so in addition to being qualified; you have to be an empathetic trainer. Sandesh P Limbu says, "This is people's industry". A good trainer must have a positive attitude and be able to support and understand their client's need. Unprofessional trainers will have an extremely difficult time gaining their client's trust.

Advantages of this job:

Gyms in Kathmandu
Name of Gym	Location	Yearly membership fees
Bull's Indoor Sports	Hall Maharajganj	Rs 12,000
Life fitness Center	Mitrapark	Rs 6,500 for gym Rs 6,000 for sauna only
Total Physical Fitness Center	New Baneshwor	Rs 4500
Flex Club	Bhaisepati	Rs 25,000

The utmost benefit of this job is flexibility. A trainer can always choose his/her own time to work. A lot of the sessions take place in the mornings or during the evenings so individuals can even pursue other jobs. For young students studying in Universities, this could be an amazing career choice as qualified trainers have the luxury of taking just a couple of sessions a week and still earn an impressive amount.

Scope in this industry:
Top trainers believe that Nepal offers a great scope for pursuing a career in fitness. The number of people that turn up to gyms has increased rapidly in the past couple of years. A lot more people are becoming health conscious and are willing to spend money on getting a healthy body. Beauty pageants, modelling industry, fear of obesity and health problems means that this industry is slowly becoming a goldmine. In addition, individuals have a wide range of job options such as athletic coaching, private health clubs, rehabilitation clinics, hospitals, spas, cruise ships or resorts.