Like it or loathe it, online personal training is here and will continue a healthy surge in popularity in the future.

So much of our lives are digitised now and with technology racing ahead it was a logical step to the fitness industry? You can train with a personal trainer who you may not find at your local Brighton gym, possibly one who occupies a specialist niche or speaks the same language as you! Huge possibilities have been opened up for consumers with the explosion in the market but online personal training is not for everyone. Here we run through some of the advantages and disadvantages of online personal training:

ADVANTAGES

• Access to expert advice and somebody who fits your style

Spending time shopping around various personal trainers and companies to find the one that you like the look of is one of the major advantages of online personal training.

• More affordable

Trainers no longer need to charge to cover their online clients time in quite the same way as their face to face clients due to a host of factors including gym rent, the number of clients they can fit into a day etc…. You may find in some cases you can get a month’s worth of training from an online trainer for the same price as a few face-to-face sessions

• Location/Time

Being able to train at any time and anywhere is much more efficient for both you and the online trainer. You are no longer bound by business hours, gym opening times, daylight hours or the number of clients your trainer can realistically see in a day.

DISADVANTAGES

There are not many disadvantages to online personal training but it may not suit everyone, for example:

• If you need motivation and accountability from someone you can look eye to eye with and make a deep personal connection with then you may struggle with most online personal trainers. There will be some high-end plans you can subscribe to with regular live video link ups (such as Skype, face time etc..) in order to re-create this part of real life training. However be prepared to pay a premium price as the trainer is now exchanging their time for money in the same way as face to face training.
• Nobody spotting for technique or heavy lifts

Relevant to complete beginners, or those who lift very heavy weights. Both types of clients would benefit from face to face training to minimise the chance injuries.