Group personal training has revolutionised how sessions are delivered.By combining the benefits of group sessions and the bespoke exercise plans of personal training, it provides a dynamic and motivating environment for reaching your fitness goals.
In this article, we break down how group personal training works and the benefits it offers for those looking to accelerate their fitness journey.
Contents
- What Is Group Personal Training?
- What Are The Benefits of Group Personal Training?
- What’s The Difference Between Group Personal Training and Fitness Classes?
- How Can I Include Group Personal Training in My Schedule?
- What Should I Look For In A Group PT Session?
- How Do I Find A Group Personal Training Session?
- Our Conclusions
What Is Group Personal Training?
Group personal training shares many of the qualities you can find in more traditional personal training sessions. It offers guided practice, professional advice, and bespoke workout plans designed to help you achieve your goals. The difference is that you won’t be working on a 1-to-1 basis. Instead, you’ll be working alongside other clients with similar goals or targets.
It’s important to note that group personal training is different to group classes such as Zumba or Pilates – though it has many of the same benefits. In a group personal training class, you won’t necessarily be doing exactly the same exercise as the others in your group. Instead, the exercises will have been adjusted by your PT to better fit your specific aims.
Group personal training sessions will usually consist of between 3 and 7 people with similar goals. This means you can still have the tailored feedback and the specificity that we associate with a PT session, but have others around you to motivate and inspire you.
What Are The Benefits Of Group Personal Training?
#1 – Provides Additional Motivation
While it can be intimidating to exercise in front of others at first, this is arguably the biggest benefit of group personal training.
Each person involved in these group PT sessions is there for a similar reason and you’re all under the tutelage of a trained professional. For that reason, you start to become each others’ motivators.
Working alongside others has scientifically proven merits, too. Studies show that working in a group (and in particular smaller group personal training sessions) is not only beneficial for your physical well-being, but it also plays a big role in how you find motivation and desire to exercise.
By surrounding yourself with people who have similar mindsets and are there for a similar purpose, you can find inspiration in their successes and spur yourself on to achieve similar results.
#2 – Costs Less
Our research shows that group personal training sessions are, on average, slightly cheaper than traditional 1-on-1 sessions.
According to our research, the average price for a group personal training session is usually around £30-35, with significant discounts offered for block bookings of group PT workouts. The price of traditional personal training can vary based on a range of factors, but it’s not unusual to pay £60 per session. On this basis, group PT sessions represent a significant saving.
It’s also worth noting that some group personal training sessions may not require you to have a gym membership. Instead, they will charge a flat rate to use the equipment during your group personal training workouts.
#3 – Greater Workout Variety
Group personal training sessions are focused on achieving your goals and progressing in your fitness capabilities.
However, because you’re training with others, your PT will have to cater to different needs and preferences. While this may sound like a downside, it means you’re more likely to experience a wider variety of exercises.
Offering you the chance to explore different exercises not only challenges you and accelerates your progress towards your goals, it also helps your trainer establish what works well for you and how best to implement that into future sessions.
It also means that the leader of these group personal training workouts can observe form and posture across multiple different exercises. This can reduce the risk of injury or strain, ensuring you can continue to see the results you’ve become accustomed to, as well as a multitude of benefits of good posture.
#4 – More Accountability
Another one of the benefits of small group training is the level of accountability that comes with this type of training.
Simply put, there is less accountability when you’re training alone, which could result in o giving up through a lack of external motivation.
But with small group training, the situation is different. Whether you join a group with your friends or simply form friendships through the sessions themselves, there is much more accountability.
Let’s say you miss a session one week. If you’ve built up some sort of friendship and community within your training partners, chances are there will be questions the week after like:
“Where were you last week? We missed you here!”
Though this is a friendly comment, it’s still a sense of accountability. It works as a gentle push in the right direction, helping you to keep moving forward on your fitness journey.
What’s The Difference Between Group Personal Training and Fitness Classes?
This is one of the more common questions about group personal training classes, and understandably so. How do you distinguish between regular fitness classes (such as Spin or Zumba) and group personal training?
In fact, there are a number of key differences, including:
- Number of participants. A smaller group personal training session will only have a maximum of 7 people involved, alongside a trainer. On the other hand, an exercise class can have up to 30 people involved or as many as 50 in larger gyms and fitness centres.
- Level of attention. With larger class sizes, the teacher can’t pay the same level of attention to individual fitness needs. A personal trainer who specialises in group personal training sessions will be able to offer more support to each individual participant.
- Cost. Group personal training will always come with an additional cost, whereas classes (such as Zumba) will often be included as part of even the most basic gym memberships.
How Can I Include Group Personal Training in My Schedule?
Group personal training will often coincide with your regularly scheduled PT sessions if you’re already a client. That means you can easily interchange these sessions and continue to work under a personal trainer.
Our recommendation would be to aim to do one or two group personal training sessions per week. This is usually what you would be doing in a 1-to-1 session and strikes the right balance between cost and engaging in meaningful, results-driven exercise.
However, if you’re determined to reach a specific milestone and all of your small personal training groups are of a similar mindset, you can increase this to 3 sessions per week. This would incur extra cost and is only advisable if you’re able to budget for this extra expenditure.
It’s also a great idea to take advantage of any block booking services that your group personal trainer offers. Not only will this save you money, but you’ll also be able to better organise other events or commitments around your sessions.
What Should I Look For In A Group PT Session?
Appropriate Fitness Level
This is arguably the most important area to consider when looking for your first group personal training session.
If you want to be pushed and challenged, it might be worth seeking out a personal trainer who’s well-equipped to take you to your limits and challenge you with every exercise.
Personal trainers like this will generally attract clientele with a similar mindset. As a result, their group personal training classes are likely to be more intensive and drive you on to your next milestone. Many will also refer to themselves as master personal trainers, which means they’ve achieved a multitude of qualifications and certifications.
However, if you’re not confident in your fitness abilities, we’d recommend looking for a personal training group that caters more towards those just beginning their fitness journey.
Convenient Location
Location can significantly affect the price of your group personal training sessions. For instance, group PT in smaller towns and cities will generally be much cheaper compared to those in London.
This price difference naturally affects which personal trainer group you attend, especially if you’re looking to attend but are on a tight budget, or can only afford to attend once per week. In this scenario, we’d recommend searching your local area and the surrounding gyms and fitness centres so that you can find the right option for you.
Further, many personal trainers who operate in a gym won’t charge a premium. This is usually because they don’t need to purchase their own suite of essential personal training equipment.
Location also applies to where you’ll complete your training sessions, too. It may seem simplistic, but if you’re specifically seeking outdoor group personal training sessions, it’s important to ensure that there’s an area nearby (such as a park or a playing field) where you’ll be able to complete your sessions.
Your Personal Trainer’s Qualifications
As with any decision relating to exercise classes, it’s always important to know how well-qualified your instructor is and whether they have any additional training they can use to tailor their training to your specific needs.
All personal trainers a Level 2 Fitness Instructor qualification and a Level 3 Personal Trainer Certificate, which can be achieved through a combined Diploma in Personal Training. However, additional qualifications can make a decisive difference when it comes to choosing the right personal training group sessions for you.
For instance, your new group personal trainer may have completed an Obesity and Weight Management course, enabling them to offer tailored advice on weight loss. Or they might be experts in using kettlebells or medicine balls, allowing them to tailor these workouts to activate and challenge specific muscle groups.
How Do I Find A Group Personal Training Session?
So, you’ve decided to take the plunge and dive into the world of group personal training. You’ve made a checklist of what you’ll be looking for in your ideal PT, and all that remains is to find that dream trainer.
There are a few ways in which you can do this, including:
- Searching on Google. This will generally give you the largest number of results, so you can narrow down your options to encompass everything you want. It also allows you to view reviews and client feedback before you opt for any particular group PT sessions.
- Asking at your local gym. Most mainstream gyms will have onsite trainers that will train you, and some may offer group personal training sessions or already be running a group that you’ll be able to join.
Again, as with any of our recommendations, ensuring that your group personal training is ideal for meeting your requirements and facilitating your fitness journey is vital. This ultimately determines how much you can get out of it, and whether you’ll be able to continue progressing.
Before You Go!
Group personal training is the ideal option if you want to share your fitness experiences and successes with others. If this sounds like something you’d like to explore, why not make a career out of it?
By completing OriGym’s CIMSPA-accredited Personal Training Diploma, you can kickstart a fitness career in as little as 4 weeks! If that sounds ideal, you can download our comprehensive free course prospectus.
