An Overview of Fitness Trends and Personal Trainer Salaries across the Globe

With the fitness industry at an all-time high, many fitness enthusiasts now aspire for a career in personal training, spurred by their passion and by the potential opportunities. But above everything else, what really fires up personal trainers is being able to help others lead healthier, and as a consequence, happier lives. It is the only profession where you get paid to keep fit, while leading others on the fitness path.

As an increasing awareness about fitness has become a common phenomenon all over the world, it would be interesting to see the commonalities and differences in fitness trends across different countries. Sharing common knowledge and comparing notes is important if we want to innovate and be able to give our clients top class service. We present below a brief overview of personal trainer salaries and fitness trends in different parts of the world. The insights will also be useful for those looking for information about career opportunities in personal training across other parts of the world.

Personal Training in the USA

The demand for personal trainers in USA is projected to grow by 29% by 2018. With the rising obesity problems among the young population, fitness is taken very seriously here and personal trainers are in great demand. The average salary is between $34,000 and $48,000 a year and as with any industry, those at the top of their game are earning considerably more. Our research has found the average personal trainer salaries to be between $45–$75 per hour but these do vary depending on location or experience as with in the UK.

Personal Training in Canada

People in Canada are looking for more than just fitness, they want a more holistic experience that include mind and body. This is the reason why boutique fitness facilities are the trend here.  As the government provides medical services to its citizens, promoting health and fitness among the public is an important feature of its agenda. The emphasis is on complete wellness and not just being physically fit. Salaries are in the range of $40,000 for experienced trainers who can find employment not only in fitness clubs but also with the corporate sector. Ugi is something that originated in Canada and may make its way to the UK very soon (http://ugifit.com/)

Personal Training in South Africa

In order to practise as a personal trainer in South Africa, you would need a qualification accredited with the Register of Exercise Professionals South Africa, which has strong links with UK REPs meaning that UK qualifications will be recognized. Many people opt to specialise in specific areas to increase earning potential. The salary ranges from R46540 to R306,386 per year and can be as high as R300 per session.

Personal Training in Australia

There is a huge opportunity for fitness professionals in this country of fitness freaks and sports loving people. To be able to practice, personal trainers must get themselves registered to an accrediting body like REPs Australia which again has great links with UK reps meaning UK qualifications are recognised. Trainers must continue their CPD by doing shorter courses and up scaling their skill every 2 years. The starting salary is between AU$25-30K and could go up to $61K for those with higher experience.

Fitness trends in other parts of the world

Latin America: Fitness trends similar to those of the US. It all began with aerobics and has now evolved into megagyms. The main fitness interests include indoor cycling, group strength training, Pilates and dance classes.

Europe: Western Europe shows an inclination towards an alliance between fitness and the beauty business. As a lot of Europe does not face the same level of obesity problems like the US, the people want to look beyond pure physical exercise and focus on holistic training. To them, it has less to do with burning calories and more to do with improving appearance, well-being and delaying ageing. Clients want their trainers to have the best qualifications and therefore the trainers have to keep up grading their skills to maintain a competitive edge.

Middle East: Awareness about health and fitness is slowly rising with rising obesity levels due to sedentary lifestyles. The UAE for example has some of the highest levels of Obesity and Diabetes in the world at the present time. There aren’t many recreational activities due to their cultural constraints but things are slowly changing and people want to go the extra step to keep fit and eat healthy. There are a lack of high quality fitness training institutes and many aspiring personal trainers decide to travel abroad to get certified but the industry is progressing quickly.

Asia- Pacific: While Japan, Singapore and Hong Kong have mature fitness industries, India, China and Korea are considered emerging markets. These cultures have a blend of the east and west techniques as they integrate traditional disciplines such as Yoga, tai chi and qigong with modern fitness routines.

Populations in Asia face much of the same problems as inactive lifestyles, unhealthy food habits and a lack of an inclination to exercise. Recreation and relaxation mainly comprise of partying with friends, watching a movie, shopping outings or heading to a favourite restaurant. However like elsewhere in the world the fitness wave is catching on here as well as people have begun to feel the consequences of their unhealthy habits.

As is evident from the study, there are opportunities for the progressive fitness professionals and they would be in demand in almost every corner of the world.