Today, I am going to outline an amazing 1 hour personal training session example. This example is perfect for new personal trainers, or seasoned professionals looking for some fresh ideas.
A properly planned, and regularly executed 1 hour personal training session will help your client reach their health and fitness goals. In this example your client is someone who wants to build more muscle, lose weight or improve their body’s functionalities.
Here is a detailed breakdown down, and step-by-step instructions to running a 1-hour personal training session.
Pre-Session Preparation
When you begin working with a client, usually, they will want to work on too many goals at once. Make sure to schedule an initial fitness consultation. This will allow you to better understand what your client needs to work on, as well as what they want to work on.
Merging both your clients needs and wants is the key to allowing them to feel good, as well as, stay motivated while working towards their fitness goals.
Once the initial fitness consultation is complete, review your client’s results, and use the assessment to decide a first milestone goal together!
A fitness consultation is when a personal trainer takes their clients through a series of movement assessments, and reviews body composition, health history and other indicators that would help them better understand their client’s current health and physical state.
Based on the initial client goal, the personal trainer will typically create a 90 day (3 month) program, with consistent, and regular sessions. Doing this will ensure each workout adds momentum towards hitting the client’s first milestone goal faster.
1 Hour Personal Training Session Example
Warm up (5 – 10 minutes)
Always start your training sessions with a warm up! Light movements and stretching get your client’s heart rate elevated, body temperature up, muscles activated, and joints limber! This is the best way to prepare for the main strenuous movements during the rest of the training session.
Basic warm-ups:
- Knee hugs for 20 reps total
- Toy soldiers for 20 reps total
- Hurdle steps for 6 reps per side
- Lateral lunges for 20 reps total
- Fire hydrants for 10 reps per side
- Cat cows for 10
- Glute bridges for 10
- Toe taps for 20 reps total
- Bird dogs for 10 reps total
Once your client has completed the warm up, move onto the main workout.
Workout (45 – 50 minutes)
The main workout will be a mix of compound and isolated exercise movements to target the whole body.
Compound exercise movements work multiple joints and large muscle groups simultaneously e.g. squats. Isolated exercises are movements that target a specific muscle group and make use of only one joint, e.g. bicep curl.
Typically you will want to start with more compound exercises for bigger muscle groups, and then move into isolated exercises for smaller muscle groups.
As you go through the planned exercises with the client, explain why they are doing each one. Also explain how each is going to contribute to achieving their fitness goals.
Always remember to demonstrate how each workout will be done before your client attempts any movements. Posture, technique and correct movement are extremely important for your client to learn for any exercise.
Emphasize key cues the client must remember while performing the exercise. With Goblet Squats for example, these would be:
- Feet shoulder-width apart
- Chest up
- Engage the core
- Engage the glutes
- Knees track the toes
After the client has performed the movements successfully without weight, add appropriate weight based on your fitness consultation assessment.
As your client is performing the exercise, assist, and readjust them to fix their posture and technique. This will ensure your client is correctly doing the exercise and firing off the right muscles.
Each of the exercises below will repeat for 3 sets each:
- Goblet squats for 12 reps
- Lat pulldowns for 12 reps
- Chest press for 12 reps
- Lateral raises for 12 reps
- Bicep curls for 12 reps
- Tricep kickbacks for 12 reps
- Back extensions for 12 reps
- The pall of press for 12 reps per side
- Plank hold for 30 seconds
- Hip extensions for 12 reps
Once you complete the main work out, move on to a cool down routine.
Cool-down stretch (5-7 minutes)
Lastly, the final piece to the 1-hour personal training session is the post workout cool down. The cool down routine helps lower the heart rate gradually, prevents injury and aids in the recovery process of the muscles. After your client’s tough training session, make sure to take them through stretches to recover, and prepare them for their next training session.
6 Easy Cool Down stretches:
- Lying hamstring stretch hold for 20 secs per side
- Figure 4 stretch hold for 20 secs per side
- Side-lying quad stretch hold for 20 secs per side
- Hip flexor and tricep stretch hold for 20 secs per side
- Wide child’s pose hold for 20 secs
- Chest opener stretch against the wall hold for 20 secs
Now that you understand how a simple 1 hour personal training session is structured, you are free to be as creative and innovative as your mind and client will allow!
Download THIS TRAINING SESSION AS A PDF
Where Can I Have My Personal Training Sessions?
Exercise can happen anywhere! From traditional locations like gyms and people’s homes, to public places like parks and beaches. But the ideal place for any personal trainer session is at a personal training studio.
These special places are considered non-traditional gyms that have dedicated facilities for professional personal trainers who work privately with clients. Learn more about our personal training studio.