Learning Outcomes:
By the end of this unit the learner will be able to…
- demonstrate the importance of having long, medium and short term career goals and their relation to building a career plan
- identify useful websites and resources for finding job descriptions
- recognise the requirements and specifications needed for different careers in the fitness industry
- demonstrate the importance of using other professionals and work colleagues to reinforce their action plan
- demonstrate the importance of flexible planning
- list a number of continuing education products, trade magazine and websites
- Identify ways of using continuing education resources to assess personal skill levels and gaps in education and evaluate their own learning skills
- demonstrate the importance of feedback from their clients, colleagues and peers
- explain the importance of self-evaluation
- state the importance of signing up to and staying registered with REPs
Career Management
Attaining a REPs Level 3 recognised qualification is only the first step for a PT. It is the decisions that they make in their choice of job and further education that will affect their success in the future.
Different career routes will require different levels of experience and qualifications:
| Eventual Job | Qualifications | Experience | Possible First Job |
| Fitness Manager | REPs Level 3 Lifeguard (NPLQ) Pool plant operator | Supervisor up to 2 years | Fitness instructor in large chain |
| G.P. Referral Trainer | REPs level 3 G.P. referral qualification | Fitness instructor or personal trainer | Council based fitness instructor |
| Fitness Lecturer | REPs Level 3 Range of qualifications from different training providers | Minimum 2 years industry successPresenting experience | Freelance PT Fitness instructor Sports club-based trainer College lecturer |
| Sports club based trainer | English Institute of Sport recognised qualification Sports Coaching Qualification | Work experience in a sports teamPersonal training experience with sports players | Voluntary coach of youth players in a local team |
Breaking Down Long Term Goals
In order to achieve long term goals these need to be broken down into steps. As an example, a future Fitness Manager may have a short term goal of learning about pool plant operation, a medium term goal of being given a role in charge of the pool and its operating system and a long term goal of using this to attain the Fitness Manager role.
Goals will become more measurable to the PT if they review them regularly and share them with their clients, colleagues and managers. The following is an example of how a PT may review their own goals and use colleagues to help them to achieve these goals.
- daily goals review – with clients
- weekly goals review – with colleagues
- monthly goals review – with line manager
- yearly goals review – with club manager
Using a club manager and a line manager to evaluate performance will allow the PT to judge their prospects of moving through the company. It will also allow them to get feedback from individuals that have already achieved similar goals.
Clients and colleagues will give the PT a real view of their product and help them make small regular changes to keep their business, service and day-to-day performance at a suitably high standard.
Session Reviews
Using a questionnaire will allow the PT to identify issues in their performance and then formulate a plan of action accordingly.
Example questionnaire:
The above is an example of a questionnaire that a trainer may use in order to gain feedback at the end of each session. From this the PT can formulate a plan. If they regularly get poor feedback about the cardiovascular (CV) sections of a workout then they may want to do some research into other CV training techniques, or take a further course in CV training in order to develop their skills and service.