When I first thought about writing this, I considered it from the perspective of a trainer dealing with difficult clients. But the more I thought about it I quickly noticed so many other factors and stressors that trainers must consider. The club or gym where a trainer works. Commuting, for trainers that work at multiple locations. Our own training regimens. The constant prospecting for new clients. The long hours, fluctuating pay checks, continuous education, and the list can go on depending on who you talk to. Women, men, and Trans trainers have different experiences. Trainers who are BIPOC and LGBTQ+ also have different lived experiences.
So I figured that the best thing to do is to write a series on what I think are the main energy vampires for trainers and coaches. And part one is going to be places of employment. Whether it’s working at a big box gym, a smaller club, or private boutique gym, all of these places have one thing in common: They need good trainers.
Your Place Of Employment
Gyms, clubs, boutiques, cater to many different populations and usually have something for everyone. The only exception would be Crossfit boxes, but I’m not here to talk about that right now. Still, you’ll be hard pressed to go into a place that doesn’t have coaches and or personal trainers on staff, as employees or independent contractors.
The other thing that all these places have in common is that they require either a split or a fee, sometimes both, from the trainers who work there. And let me say, before going further, I fully support a place of employment getting a cut/fee from the trainers who use the facilities. the gyms have rent to cover, equipment to maintain, other staff to pay, among other things that require money. And after all said and done, I have no issue whatsoever with the owners paying themselves as well and making a profit.
My problem is with how these places treat and value the trainers. I’ve worked at a couple of different places throughout my decade as a health and fitness specialist. Both places wanted a cut from my earnings, which, as I said, is perfectly fine. However, the longer I worked there the more that cut began to bleed.
Starting As A New Trainer
At the first place, my training rate was 70$/hours, and I made 24$/hour. So from that 70$ I got 24$ and the rest went to the gym. I applied for a raise a couple of times, and I was never given more than 2$/hour extra. Sometime when by before I was making 28-30$/session. The rest was going to the gym.
Let me say it again, I have no problem with the gym taking a cut, even if it’s a larger cut. The company has many overhead costs including rent, insurance, equipment maintenance, just to name a few. That being said, a company’s existence should not be at the expense of it’s workers. To put it another way, if you can afford to pay your workers a livable and competitive wage then you shouldn’t be in business.
Far too often companies work very hard to convince workers that they deserve much less than what they get. That’s called exploitation. In order to maximize profits, the company must cut costs across the board. Restricting pay for employees is a great way to cut cost. As a result, trainers are forced to work more hours, take on more clients, find a second job. While all the company has to do is just hire more trainers.
Business During The Pandemic
At the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic everyone panicked. Businesses were scrambling to find solutions to keep generating some kind of profit. And as I mentioned above, one of the best ways to ensure profits don’t dip is to exploit the workers as much as possible. Ask the workers to do more for less and you’re sure to keep the profits growing.
A club or a gym will collect the money from the split it gets from each trainer. The company does not have to “work” for that money, in the same way the trainer does. Because the company is not a person. I know that owners want us to believe otherwise, in order to tug at our heartstrings so that we feel for the company. The company doesn’t not get tired, it doesn’t sustain physical injuries that can debilitate it. It doesn’t bleed or cry or feel stress in the same way a person does.
So while the owners, managers, other employees, may try to convince you that you should be doing more, just make sure it isn’t at the expense of your own health and wellbeing. I’ve seen this time and time again, the company is nowhere to be found when workers are in trouble. On the other had, trainers are supposed to give up everything and be present if the company is every in any sort of financial trouble.
The Owners Are Safe
As such, in order to protect itself, when the going gets tough the company just trims the branches. Many workers are let go due to the company’s “financial hardships”. I’ve heard it first hand “We have had to let many people go in order to ensure the survival of the company”. Not to mention that businesses like gyms and clubs have many advantages over individual trainers. They can apply for government assistance, funding relief, rental deferment, bank loans etc.
At the end of it, if things still don’t work out for the company, a business can apply for bankruptcy protection, or file for bankruptcy. The great thing about doing that is the owners, the actual individuals, will be fine. The records and files will show that the company “failed”, the person(s) will get to keep their assets, house, credit score etc. And so while the company may close it’s doors, the individual doesn’t have to worry about being kicked out of their doors.
And I know, boot lickers will talk about “but the owner(s) may eventually lose this and that”. Right, all the profits they made over the years, the assets they’ve amassed, the investments they made, and the savings they have stashed away are not a thing. I don’t buy it and neither should you. And besides, I’ll just go ahead and use the same logic they use of the workers: They’ll land on their feet. They’ll find other jobs. And if they can’t? Well cry me a river, maybe they forgot how it feels to be in a constant struggle and need a refresher.
Final Thoughts
What I’m basically getting at, and what I’ve learned from my many years in the industry is: companies only care about you insofar as you can generate profit for them. It is no different in most gyms/clubs. If your performance dips for any reason, or profits aren’t improving, then your livelihood is on the chopping block. It’s why they draw up those stupid contracts with “non-compete” and “no-solicitation” clauses. They fear the person’s ability to take business away from them.
They will try every dirty trick in the book to convince trainers that they are not worth what they are asking for. They will gaslight and bully trainers in to doing more, accepting less, and accuse us of being ungrateful if we ask for change.
Coaching and personal training are very difficult jobs, and hard to maintain as we age, due to the fact that they are very physically demanding. It’s why you rarely, if ever, see a trainer with a disability. The industry is incredibly ableist and is constantly pushing people to the brink of what we can tolerate physically, emotionally and mentally.
And this is the same industry that professes to care about people’s health and fitness.
So I’ll say it again, trainers, protect your energy. Look for the red flags. If a company isn’t willing to pay you a fair wage, has very rough ceilings that keep you from going up, that’s usually a bad sign. Furthermore if they prioritize profit and customer service over the wellbeing of the trainer, walk away, that’s a huge red flag.
You will be fine and better off on your own, trust me. Social media has made it incredibly helpful and easier for trainers to advocate for ourselves. I know so many successful trainers who are in the process of building their own business and livelihood by advertising on social media and through word of mouth. Don’t let anyone convince you it can’t be done.