GET your career in shape for 2020 with a job in the fitness industry.
More than 250,000 people are now employed in gyms and health clubs and as gym instructors and personal trainers.
With this week being the busiest of the year for new gym memberships, there are currently 28,000 jobs on offer across the country.
As well as roles for instructors and personal trainers, gym managers, cleaners, receptionists, therapists, catering staff and even gym equipment engineers are all needed. Female coaches are wanted for women-only gyms, and many big gyms are offering personal training apprenticeships.
Gym managers earn on average £29,000 and instructors are paid around £21,000. Most staff employed by big gym chains enjoy perks including gym membership, beauty discounts, pensions and healthcare.
Interest in fitness is key but top trainers also need empathy for their clients and ability to inspire them stick to their goals.
Rick Crawford, at healthcare charity Nuffield Health, explains: “The ideal person to be a wellbeing personal trainer will be confident and approachable, a good communicator and be able to motivate and inspire.”
Nuffield Fitness currently has 52 vacancies.
Find out more at nuffieldhealthcareers.com or email careers@nuffieldhealth.com.
You can also search for roles at leisurejobs.com/jobs/fitness-jobs/.
RESTAURANT manager Tomas Dravecky quit to study fitness and is now a wellbeing personal trainer at gym chain Nuffield Health.
He said: “I used to play football semi-professionally and it was always my dream to work in the fitness industry. After seven years at the restaurant, I decided to follow my passion and completed a five-week intensive personal trainer course.”
Tomas, 36, from Harrogate, North Yorks, added: “Being a personal trainer is a great and fulfilling job. It’s not nine-to-five, so research the qualific-ations you need before making the move.
“To be a personal trainer at Nuffield Health, you need to have a level 3 personal training qualification and be registered with The Chartered Institute for the Management of Sport and Physical Activity.
“If you have other areas of interest, you can train as you work. I’ve qualified as a sport masseur while working here.
“You have to practice what you preach. If you live a healthy lifestyle clients are more likely to believe in you. It takes time to build a reputa-tion, but it will stand you in good stead in the long term.”
LANDING a graduate job can be tough if you lack work experience. But new app toptask.co.uk can help.
Dubbed Uber for grads, it matches uni students and grads to firms needing freelancers.
Firms get to outsource tasks to a well-qualified workforce while students get work experience and a new income stream.
Grads are rated on their work performance, allowing employers to personally select the most suitable candidates.
Founder Greg Newman said: “All too often, graduate recruitment focuses heavily on which university graduates attend.
We hope that the launch of Toptask will disrupt this and shift the focus towards sourcing proven talent.”
SAY cheers to lunchbreaks once again.
Research reveals 77 per cent of office workers admit to spending their entire break at their desk, but 57 per cent would welcome a return to the lunch-time pint as a means of switching off.
To help, brewer BrewDog is encouraging Brits to disconnect from work over lunchtime and enjoy an alcohol-free beer for themselves and a colleague. BrewDog co-founder James Watt said: “Most people shovel down a sandwich at their desk. That’s not a break, and it’s not good for productivity or our mental and physical health.
“This initiative isn’t about encouraging people to be unprofessional, it’s about reclaiming lunchtime.”
IF YOU’RE starting a new job in the New Year, how you perform in the first 100 days is crucial.
To help you do your best, we’ve teamed up with careers expert John Lees, author of Get Ahead In Your New Job, for his top five tips . . .
