personal trainers, are they worth the money?

[tortoisesarefab]

I need to lose 2 stone and plan to do it by ww and gym but i am rubbish at motivating myself to go and to push myself once there. Does anyone have any experience of a personal trainer? What do they do and are they worth it?

A good PT is worth their weight in gold, but you might not need one. When you join the gym, you'll be given an induction by one of the fitness instructors, they'll help you write up a program to follow. This in itself can be very motivating.

If you're already a member you can ask any of the instructors in the gym for help at any time.

A PT will motivate you by telling you what to do and for how long but some people really dont like being 'stood over'.

The PTs in your gym should offer free starter sessions. You may find you like one, but not another, prefer a male or female, just try them all.

Thanks for your reply. I have just joined a gym so will see how i get on. Its just that i have joined gyms in the past, sometimes i stick with it and sometimes i dont. I have never had so much to lose before though and with 2 little ones to look after i think i will need that bit more motivation!

I have a PT and he is worth every penny. I am horrible at motivating myself and I like that somebody makes me push myself, explains different exercises etc.

I have a PT (and have used PTs at various times in the past) and find them to be the best motivator: he works me harder than I would ever push myself, but knows not to overdo it (example: on Friday's session I could pretty much talk the whole way through our session, but I still ached to buggery the next day!). I currently see my PT weekly, and having something in the diary means I have to go, otherwise I find it too easy to make excuses. He then runs a class locally mid week, so I go to that too, and am supposed to fit in another session (a jog, some tennis, swimming, whatever), but have found excuses it hard to fit something in, especially with all this grotty weather (whereas in summer and autumn, I played quite a bit of tennis).

After my first was born, I saw a PT every 3-4 weeks, and knowing he was charting my progress and I'd have to "report" back to him kept me training in between. I also like the variety of exercises, and have been able to use them in the gym myself, so I don't have to get bored doing the same old things. It also makes me more confident to use free weights when in the gym.