What do you stand for? Dick Smith vs Halal Certification. Just In Time PT vs Fitness Australia

Recently Dick Smith’s Aussie Grown Foods made a rather bold statement in that it was not prepared to pay the required amount to be certified halal as he/they felt that the money could be spent elsewhere and essentially to help business, keep prices down, quality high and support charitable causes and I agree, the statement included “It is important to note that this does not reflect the quality of the food being processed or sold – it only means that the products are approved as being prepared in accordance with the traditions of the Muslim faith”. (see the full statement at –  http://www.dicksmithfoods.com.au/media/news/halal-certification-our-food).

Currently I am fighting a battle of my own and one that is not for personal profit or gain but it is for the reasons of seeing things done poorly in the fitness and Personal Training industry that I have been a big part of for now closing in on 20 years. Fitness Australia is working to lift its standards and it’s game (as the attached picture shows with the levels of registration for exercise professionals but is currently not up and running nor known about by the consumer) but at the same time public perception and the consumer when looking around for a Personal Trainer think that all Personal Trainers are the same and that they must at the very minimum possess a certificate 3 or 4 in fitness or Personal Training. What many consumers do not realise is that there is a marked difference between a recent graduate of a certificate 3 or 4 course and an experienced University/Tertiary degree trained Personal Trainer and essentially you get what you pay for (an hourly rate for a 1-on-1 PT can range from $50-$150 an hour).

As a governing body it is not in my interests to register both individually through Fitness Australia (currently $250 for 2 years) or as a managing director of  Just In Time Personal Training Pty Ltd as a business (I have not bothered to even look into the cost of this). Why because if I elected to do so, I become one of many that come under a banner of ALL other registered Personal Trainers and it does very little if anything to benefit my business whilst at the same time it supports much of what I am against with the way the fitness industry continues to follow. So why would I join?

Just to cite some examples:

* Personal Training Certificate 3 and 4 courses are run by many organisations state and nation-wide. They can be done online or in class/group settings over a few hours a week for 6 weeks-6 months; many are government funded (which many course providers exploit to gain much financial profit from getting as many people in and out the door); offer very basic skills in just PT (which whilst specific to PT are not encompassing of all other elements taught at University such as anatomy, physiology, psychology, health promotion, nutrition, biomechanics, etc.), cost applicants between $2000-$6000 to complete and the average time spent in the industry for those that complete is between 6-18 months. This information is not made clear nearly enough to participants whom many come out with very bleak job prospects and hence why they are in and out of the system very quickly and have lost anywhere between $5000-$10,000 in the process.

* Crossfit is a current hit amongst many not just in Australia but world-wide originated by Greg Glassman and whilst there are a few suitably qualified ‘boxes’ as they call them with certain owners that have degree trained people in charge of them, many simply complete a 2 day ‘in-house Crossfit workshop’ for (if memory serves me correctly $500) and then have subscription costs – for more information go to-  http://www.startabox.net/top-7-costs.html

Here is my major issue – a builder or a baker decides he/she wants to open a Crossfit box and goes and does his 2 day workshop. He is now officially without any further certification able to open a cross-fit box and doesn’t require a registration with Fitness Australia but yet the Australian Health and Fitness Expo held yearly to showcase all things health, fitness, fitness equipment, gym, boot camps, group fitness classes and personal training uses Crossfit as a major showpiece centre-stage throughout the event and allows them to come under the banner and body knowing they will pay big $$$ to rent floor space from them where they could stand up and say we will not accept you unless all instructors and owners possess a minimum certification as per the attached table in my picture above. So in essence they are just focussing on making money at the expense of actually raising standards of competency in the industry.

* The Australian Health and Fitness Expo itself (see more at- http://www.fitnessexpo.com.au/) in my opinion is embarrassing. It is filled with ‘so-called’ fitness industry people and yet you possibly would find more narcissistic, self-obsessed, image focussed people (‘fitness professionals’) than at Stereosonic! Nearly all stalls are made up of teeth whitening, self-tanning, fitness models with high heels, short-skirts, breast implants, mid-riff tops, make-up and bum bags and then fitness products and protein/fat loss supplements all there to sell to clients and for whose benefit? The PT or fitness professional (and I say that loosely) to sell and profit of their clients for their own financial gain.

* Indemnity insurance – whilst this has in recent years been rectified, a few years back it was less than $200 for 2 years for a recent certificate 3 or 4 Personal Trainer to gain indemnity insurance if registered with Fitness Australia, yet I having at that point a 4 year full-time University Bachelor of Applied Science degree in Human Movement and a Bachelor of Teaching (Secondary) with over 12 years full-time PT experience (at the time) had a yearly fee of around $350!!! As I said, that has righted itself but how is that fair? Once again it gets back to the fact that the majority of all registered with Fitness Australia fall under the same banner and bring in more money to the coffers.

So what do I stand for and what does Just In Time Personal Training stand for? Not only do we offer the best Personal Training service in Melbourne with respect to helping clients achieve lifestyle balance. long-term behaviour change and achieving results, but I employ only 3 or 4 year University/Tertiary degree trainer Personal Trainers that are experienced, passionate and serve to focus on the client and their needs – not ours. Bigger than that we strive to better the fitness industry and want to show the standard difference whilst also giving back to the community by holding more events where to attend will come in the form of donation to FareShare (www.fareshare.com.au). We also want the consumer to challenge the ‘minimum’ standards on offer from many of our lesser competitors in the market and if we can do that and the course providers are not providing better standards then they will be forced to improve or they will fall by the wayside. Just In Time Personal Training will continue to set a standard of excellence that exceeds any client’s expectations and the best part is that we come to you to save you time.

My attached 12 point “How to Choose a Personal Trainer” checklist is one such way that if you are looking at seeking the services of a PT, that you refer to it and seek the best that you can afford but more importantly deliver quality service, results and value – https://www.justintimept.com/wp-content/uploads/Choosing-a-Personal-Trainer-Checklist-Just-In-Time-Personal-Training.pdf

Here is also a link to my recent client video testimonials on my YouTube channel – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8sQNIi45mvI