To pay over £1k for a PT?

[itswednesdayy]

I’m trying to sign up to a local gym, but it is a private service with 1-1 personal trainers, complete with personalised diet plans.

They give you 3 60 minute sessions per week for 12 weeks (you can’t visit the gym outside of these sessions). There wouldn’t be anyone else visiting the gym during these sessions to ensure the equipment is free and that you get a complete/consistent coaching service. They are very popular online & seem to deliver results.

The downside is the price, would you pay £360 per month for this? YABU = No. The total cost is £1080 which works out to £30 per session. I’ve never been to a gym before so unsure if I need this level of support.

I work 9-5 and they run these sessions during that time. So I’d have to try and squeeze the sessions in during my lunch breaks @ work and not sure how I’d get changed in time as I work in-office in smart clothes (though the gym is next door to my office).

To clarify my last message, I think I was chosen last hence why the slot offered is so inconvenient.

I would love to do it during lunch but don’t think it will work in practice?? Unless my manager gives me 1 hour 20 mins for lunch and I make up the extra 20 mins later? I think either way, it’s too rushed for me to enjoy that £360 per month.

No way!

£30/hour is incredibly cheap. I know several private PT gyms in London who do the same thing and you'd be paying £80/hour upwards (and that upwards can get close to £200). If you have a good PT, the 1:1 attention is really worthwhile. You'll learn correct form and how to train to get the best results for your body and personal circumstances. You won't learn that watching YouTube videos!

But if the timing doesn't work for you, either look elsewhere or tell them you'll sign up for the next 12 week course only if they allocate you the timing slot you ask for.

Yes if your sessions are effective you will be a bit sweaty!

I think it might be worth doing if the slots on offer worked for you, but it just doesn't look like lunchtime is workable for you.

At the end of the day they are a business wanting to make money. I'd go back and tell them you can either do pre or post work and what can they do.

I used to do lunch sessions but a quick shower is a must, so I’d do 50min classes

you know what, I’d sign up now if I had a job where I could WFH. My current job is micromanaging and I’m desperate to leave so I doubt they will be accommodating here! But ultimately for £1080, I should be given more choice with what time slot to
commit to. It isn’t cheap and I should have to Tetris it inside my 9-5.

Shouldn’t *

Save the money and time to find your way out of your current job? That's what I'd do. It is actually what I am doing as I'm leaving my current job and retraining

I pay my online coach around £100 a month and for that I get a full training plan, food ideas and calorie targets, protein targets etc.

I also use an app where I can submit videos and they give me advice on my form and are generally available to answer my questions. I also do a weekly check-in where I can tell them anything I’m struggling with, and they make adjustments to my program based on that.

It’s not for everyone (I already had some experience of gyms/weight training before I signed up) but it could be an option. I feel I get very good value for money, along with the accountability of having regular check-ins, and the flexibility of training when/where I want.

I agree re the time flexibility- it’s good value but you have to commit a lot up front, and I don’t think you’ll enjoy it if you’re rushing and worried about the time slots.

I pay my PT £40 an hour once a week, at home, but the slot is very convenient for me and she is a specialist which is what I need. I always look forward to the hour and am making good progress.

£30 per hour is cheap but clearly the timings don’t work for you and do you even want 3 times a week?

The main reason to pay for PT is that you get to choose times that work for you.

If you want to get into weight training and don't have much gym experience then I would recommend some in person training. There will be other gyms that offer this. And maybe even some January offers. It sounds like this one isn't going to be compatible with your job either.

I agree with the poster upthread who said the best value gym is one you'll go to.

I've had PT/small group PT sessions in the past and they were invaluable in helping me get stronger and get better form.
Now, I just have a standard gym membership and pay for online group PT. It's not as bespoke obviously but it really suits me just now and I'm progressing.

Considering the price per session this is actually pretty reasonable

That's a bloody bargain for a trained PT. I use to charge 75 per hour and that was 15 years ago

If it’s an hour PT session then you’ll need time to get changed, get there (even if it’s next door it’s a few minutes each way), and no doubt shower and change again afterwards, and eat your lunch (depends if you’re allowed to do while you work). I tried going to a 30minutes class in my lunch break and the reality was that even a quick shower (not washing my hair which I’d need to do after PT) meant I was away from my desk for over an hour.

Also OP you need to think about what you want to get from joining a gym. The program you have described seems very much a body transformation type thing where you fully commit during the 12 week period.

If what you actually want is to get a bit fitter, then you can achieve that by joining a cheap gym and either getting a short term package of pt sessions, or many offer to set you a free routine when you join.

What made you apply? How is it making you feel, being low on their list? Sounds a bit like they are trying to boost their exclusivity or get commitment through a sense of places being limited. But that might work psychologically, what do I know. I think lunchtime would be a push.

I pay £35 an hour for a personalised PT session, but that's only once a week.

I also do a group session weekly at £8 an hour plus (when I'm motivated which isn't just now) running sessions 1-3 times a week with a running club that cost £20 per year.

I do something very similar to this except it’s in groups, women only, 3 times a weeks, group strength training each session is different with amazing pts who show you how to do everything. When you start you get lots of one to one time and once you know the basics you still get all the support you need. £150 a month. You pre book, but can pick your times including very early in the morning up to mid evening and weekends.

if you can find something similar you’d get a really good level of service for far less, I don’t think the difference in money is proportional to the difference one to one would make.

There’s no way I’d want to go straight to work after either, far too sweaty.

£30 ph for a personal training session sounds at the cheaper end of pt sessions to me. So I wouldn’t think of it as the cost of joining a gym but the cost of paying for three personal training sessions a week.

I’d want to know more about what personal training you actually get in that hour though. How hands on and coaching and motivating are they etc.

And then I’d ask myself if I really wanted/needed that three times a week vs paying for a pt session once a week and following the programme they set on my own the rest of the time. Which would then need to be in a different gym so maybe the convenience would outweigh the not really needing personal service so frequently.

Agreed. This type of service is not comparable to a gym membership. I spent around £600 a month for three months for a PT (4x a week) and it was a life changer. I used to be uncomfortable using the weights section and didn’t really understand much about nutrition (although I thought I did). That money was some of the best money I’ve ever spent.

A grand for 12 weeks is pritty steep, I pay £350 for a whole year at my local leisure centre for gym, swim, squash, tennis, badminton, sauna, steam room etc

The only way I'd do that is if I had lots of spare money, and no job. If you can do that, I bet it's massively effective, and it would be lovely to have the gym to yourself. But it's massively expensive and for me, it's the time commitment that I would really struggle with.

I loved the PT I had with Nuffield, but we could book sessions when I wanted and spread them out over several months or whatever I could afford and manage with my schedule.

The OP isn't paying for a gym, she's paying for personal training in a personal training gym. There's a HUGE difference.

It wasn't actually the cost that put me off, if you can afford it then whatever. But its not convenient for you and you won't be able to properly commit when you're rushing from work