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Instruct or coach groups or individuals in exercise activities for the primary purpose of personal fitness. Demonstrate techniques and form, observe participants, and explain to them corrective measures necessary to improve their skills. Develop and implement individualized approaches to exercise.
Communication skills. Fitness trainers and instructors must be able to clearly explain exercises that they demonstrate to clients.
Customer-service skills. Many fitness trainers and instructors sell their services, motivating clients to hire them as personal trainers or to sign up for the classes they lead. Fitness trainers and instructors must therefore be encouraging, friendly, and polite to maintain relationships with their clients.
Listening skills. Fitness trainers and instructors must listen carefully to what clients tell them in order to determine the clients’ fitness levels and desired fitness goals.
Motivational skills. To keep clients coming back for more classes or to continue personal training, fitness trainers and instructors must keep their clients motivated.
Physical fitness. Fitness trainers and instructors must be able to lead classes and to demonstrate exercises to participants or their clients.
Problem-solving skills. Fitness trainers and instructors must evaluate members’ or client’s fitness levels and create appropriate fitness plans to meet their needs.
| A3 | Your Strengths | Importance |
Characteristics of this Career |
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91% | Dependability - Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations. | |
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88% | Concern for Others - Job requires being sensitive to others' needs and feelings and being understanding and helpful on the job. | |
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83% | Integrity - Job requires being honest and ethical. | |
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78% | Social Orientation - Job requires preferring to work with others rather than alone, and being personally connected with others on the job. | |
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77% | Self-Control - Job requires maintaining composure, keeping emotions in check, controlling anger, and avoiding aggressive behavior, even in very difficult situations. | |
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76% | Leadership - Job requires a willingness to lead, take charge, and offer opinions and direction. | |
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76% | Independence - Job requires developing one's own ways of doing things, guiding oneself with little or no supervision, and depending on oneself to get things done. | |
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74% | Adaptability/Flexibility - Job requires being open to change (positive or negative) and to considerable variety in the workplace. | |
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73% | Cooperation - Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude. | |
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72% | Attention to Detail - Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks. | |
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70% | Initiative - Job requires a willingness to take on responsibilities and challenges. | |
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68% | Innovation - Job requires creativity and alternative thinking to develop new ideas for and answers to work-related problems. | |
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66% | Persistence - Job requires persistence in the face of obstacles. |
| A3 | Your Strengths | Importance |
Strengths |
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100% | Social - Work involves helping, teaching, advising, assisting, or providing service to others. Social occupations are often associated with social, health care, personal service, teaching/education, or religious activities. | |
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72% | Realistic - Work involves designing, building, or repairing of equipment, materials, or structures, engaging in physical activity, or working outdoors. Realistic occupations are often associated with engineering, mechanics and electronics, construction, woodworking, transportation, machine operation, agriculture, animal services, physical or manual labor, athletics, or protective services. |
| A3 | Your Strengths | Importance |
Values of the Work Environment |
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83% | Relationships - Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to provide service to others and work with co-workers in a friendly non-competitive environment. Corresponding needs are Co-workers, Moral Values and Social Service. |
| A3 | Your Strengths | Importance |
Abilities | Cognitive, Physical, Personality |
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75% | Extent Flexibility - The ability to bend, stretch, twist, or reach with your body, arms, and/or legs. | |
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72% | Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand. | |
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72% | Stamina - The ability to exert yourself physically over long periods of time without getting winded or out of breath. | |
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72% | Gross Body Coordination - The ability to coordinate the movement of your arms, legs, and torso together when the whole body is in motion. | |
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69% | Speech Clarity - The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you. | |
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66% | Trunk Strength - The ability to use your abdominal and lower back muscles to support part of the body repeatedly or continuously over time without "giving out" or fatiguing. |
| A3 | Your Strengths | Importance |
Attributes & Percentage of Time Spent |
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95% | Contact With Others - How much does this job require the worker to be in contact with others (face-to-face, by telephone, or otherwise) in order to perform it? | |
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92% | Face-to-Face Discussions - How often do you have to have face-to-face discussions with individuals or teams in this job? | |
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85% | Physical Proximity - To what extent does this job require the worker to perform job tasks in close physical proximity to other people? | |
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81% | Indoors, Environmentally Controlled - How often does this job require working indoors in environmentally controlled conditions? | |
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78% | Electronic Mail - How often do you use electronic mail in this job? | |
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78% | Spend Time Standing - How much does this job require standing? | |
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77% | Structured versus Unstructured Work - To what extent is this job structured for the worker, rather than allowing the worker to determine tasks, priorities, and goals? | |
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75% | Freedom to Make Decisions - How much decision making freedom, without supervision, does the job offer? | |
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73% | Deal With External Customers - How important is it to work with external customers or the public in this job? | |
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68% | Coordinate or Lead Others - How important is it to coordinate or lead others in accomplishing work activities in this job? | |
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67% | Responsible for Others' Health and Safety - How much responsibility is there for the health and safety of others in this job? |
| A3 | Your Strengths | Importance |
Tasks & Values |
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86% | Performing General Physical Activities - Performing physical activities that require considerable use of your arms and legs and moving your whole body, such as climbing, lifting, balancing, walking, stooping, and handling materials. | |
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82% | Performing for or Working Directly with the Public - Performing for people or dealing directly with the public. This includes serving customers in restaurants and stores, and receiving clients or guests. | |
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82% | Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships - Developing constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time. | |
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76% | Coaching and Developing Others - Identifying the developmental needs of others and coaching, mentoring, or otherwise helping others to improve their knowledge or skills. | |
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76% | Training and Teaching Others - Identifying the educational needs of others, developing formal educational or training programs or classes, and teaching or instructing others. | |
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73% | Assisting and Caring for Others - Providing personal assistance, medical attention, emotional support, or other personal care to others such as coworkers, customers, or patients. | |
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71% | Getting Information - Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources. | |
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70% | Thinking Creatively - Developing, designing, or creating new applications, ideas, relationships, systems, or products, including artistic contributions. | |
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70% | Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge - Keeping up-to-date technically and applying new knowledge to your job. |
Fitness trainers and instructors lead, instruct, and motivate individuals or groups in exercise activities, including cardiovascular workouts (for the heart and blood circulation), strength training, and stretching. They work with people of all ages and skill levels.
Fitness trainers and instructors typically do the following:
Fitness trainers and instructors work with individual clients or prepare or choreograph their own group classes. They may do a variety of tasks in addition to their fitness duties, such as managing the front desk, signing up new members, giving tours of the facility, or supervising the weight-training and cardiovascular equipment areas. Fitness trainers and instructors also may promote their facilities and instruction through social media, by writing newsletters or blog posts, or by creating posters and flyers.
Exercise trainers, also known as personal fitness trainers, work with individual clients or small groups. They may train in a gym or in clients’ homes. They evaluate their clients’ current fitness level, personal goals, and skills. Then, they develop personalized training programs for their clients to follow and monitor the clients’ progress. In gyms or other fitness facilities, these workers often sell training sessions to members.
Group fitness instructors organize and lead group exercise classes, which may include cardiovascular exercises, muscle strengthening, or stretching. Some instructors create a routine or select exercises for participants to follow, and they then choose music that is appropriate to the movement. Others teach prechoreographed routines that were created by fitness companies or organizations. They may lead classes that use specific exercise equipment, such as stationary bicycles; teach a specific conditioning method, such as yoga; or instruct specific age groups, such as seniors or youths.
For information about workers who develop fitness programs to help people recover from illness or injury, see the profile on exercise physiologists.
Fitness trainers and instructors held about 329,500 jobs in 2022. The largest employers of fitness trainers and instructors were as follows:
| Fitness and recreational sports centers | 54% |
| Self-employed workers | 19 |
| Educational services; state, local, and private | 7 |
| Civic and social organizations | 7 |
| Government | 3 |
Fitness trainers and instructors may work in standalone fitness centers or centers maintained by other types of establishments for their employees or for members of civic and social organizations. Some work in clients’ homes.
Many fitness trainers and instructors work variable or part-time schedules that may include nights, weekends, or holidays. Some travel to different gyms or to clients’ homes to teach classes or conduct personal training sessions. Exercise trainers and group fitness instructors sometimes hold jobs in other fields and conduct training sessions or teach fitness classes at times that accommodate their work schedules.
The education and training required for fitness trainers and instructors varies by specialty. Employers usually prefer to hire those with certification, but requirements vary by facility.
Fitness trainers and instructors typically need a high school diploma to enter the occupation. Employers may prefer to hire fitness workers, particularly personal trainers, who have an associate’s or bachelor’s degree in a field such as recreation and fitness or healthcare and related studies. Programs in exercise science, kinesiology, physical education, or related majors often include courses in nutrition, exercise techniques, biology, and anatomy. Personal trainers also may learn how to develop fitness programs for clients of all ages.
Most fitness trainers or instructors have certification related to the area of fitness in which they specialize. Personal trainers usually must be certified before they begin working with clients or with members of a gym or health club. Group fitness instructors may begin work without certification, but employers often encourage or require them to get their credentials. Most fitness instructors receive certification for their preferred type of training, such as yoga, kickboxing, or strength training.
Many organizations offer certification. For example the National Commission for Certifying Agencies (NCCA) accredits certifying organizations in the fitness and wellness industry, including several that offer personal trainer or general certification. In addition, some private companies offer certification in the types of classes they offer.
Certification exams that have a written portion measure candidates’ knowledge of human physiology, understanding of proper exercise techniques, and ability to assess clients’ fitness levels and develop appropriate exercise programs. Certification also may require the candidate to teach a class for a live or video skills demonstration, which is then assessed by the certifying organization.
Most trainers or instructors also need certification in cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and first aid, as well as in use of automated external defibrillators (AED).
After becoming a certified personal trainer, new trainers may be required to work alongside an experienced trainer before they are allowed to train clients alone.
Training for fitness instructors varies greatly. For example, the Yoga Alliance requires 200 and 500 hours of training, depending on the credential.
Fitness trainers and instructors who are interested in management may need a bachelor’s degree in exercise science, physical education, kinesiology, or a related subject. Employers often require that trainers or instructors have experience in order to advance to a management position, such as the fitness director who oversees scheduling, workout incentive programs, and selecting exercise equipment in a health club or fitness center.
Personal trainers may advance to a head trainer position and become responsible for hiring and overseeing the personal training staff or for bringing in new personal training clients. Fitness trainers and instructors also may go into business for themselves or open their own fitness centers.
Employment of fitness trainers and instructors is projected to grow 14 percent from 2022 to 2032, much faster than the average for all occupations.
About 69,000 openings for fitness trainers and instructors are projected each year, on average, over the decade. Many of those openings are expected to result from the need to replace workers who transfer to different occupations or exit the labor force, such as to retire.
As employers continue to recognize the benefits of health and fitness programs for their employees, incentives to join gyms or other types of health clubs are expected to increase the need for fitness trainers and instructors. For example, some organizations may open their own exercise facilities onsite to promote employee wellness.
Other employment growth will come from the continuing emphasis on exercise to combat obesity and encourage healthier lifestyles for people of all ages. In particular, the baby-boom generation should continue to remain active to help prevent injuries and illnesses associated with aging.
Participation in yoga and Pilates is expected to continue to increase, driven partly by older adults who want low-impact forms of exercise and relief from arthritis and other ailments.
For information about certifications for fitness trainers and instructors, visit
American College of Sports Medicine
National Academy of Sports Medicine
National Commission for Certifying Agencies (NCCA), part of the Institute for Credentialing Excellence
National Council on Strength and Fitness
National Federation of Professional Trainers
National Pilates Certification Program
National Strength and Conditioning Association
US Registry of Exercise Professionals
For information about health clubs and sports clubs, visit
International Health, Racquet & Sports Club Association
This table shows a list of occupations with job duties that are similar to those of fitness trainers and instructors.
| Occupation | Job Duties | Entry-Level Education | Median Annual Pay, May 2022 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
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Physical Therapist Assistants and Aides |
Physical therapist assistants and aides are supervised by physical therapists to help patients regain movement and manage pain after injuries and illnesses. |
See How to Become One | $57,240 |
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Physical Therapists |
Physical therapists help injured or ill people improve movement and manage pain. |
Doctoral or professional degree | $97,720 |
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Recreation Workers |
Recreation workers design and lead activities to help people stay active, improve fitness, and have fun. |
High school diploma or equivalent | $31,680 |
|
Recreational Therapists |
Recreational therapists plan, direct, and coordinate recreation-based medical treatment programs for people with disabilities, injuries, or illnesses. |
Bachelor's degree | $51,330 |