Written by Garett Reid | NSCA, CSCS, CISSN, M.S.E.S.S
Fact checked by Tyler DiGiovanni, BSBM
FACT CHECKED
Online coaching has taken off in the past few years. Everywhere you look, you see coaches, companies, and programs that offer you "the best" online fitness coach! We hate to break it to you, but they can't all be "the best."
However, some are definitely better than others, meaning there are others who shouldn't even be offering their service. This article is going to give you some traits you want to look for when hiring your own personal online fitness coach – this is going to save you money and get you better results!
Prepare to maximize your gains with our exclusive 12-week hypertrophy training program. Have the program customized to your personal needs with one of our expert...
What Makes A Good Fitness Coach?
Online fitness coaches are "a-dime-a-dozen" these days making it hard to choose which one to hire. So what makes a good fitness coach?
A good fitness coach is someone who goes beyond just delivering a program. Some of the things they should do are;
- Inspire you and provide motivation during tough times
- Educate you and explain why you're doing what you're doing
- Provide awesome training programs and advice
- Help set up goals and proper expectations
As you can see, a lot goes into being an effective fitness coach, and those are just a handful of examples.
In fact, there are actually two sides to being a great online fitness coach.
First you have the professional side. These are things related to how qualified and professional the coach is as well as their education and experience.
The second side is their personality and interpersonal skills. Do they speak in a way that educates and motivates you? Or is their demeanor off-putting?
The best coach is going to have both of these things. When a trainer has just one side while lacking the other, it can completely affect their ability to help you.
For example, you could have the smartest coach in the world, yet they bore you and are unmotivating. On the other hand, you may have a coach that fires you up every day. However, they fire you up to perform an ineffective program.
Therefore, we'll look at both individually. We'll start by looking at the various professional traits you want in an online coach. After that, we'll examine what type of interpersonal skills are needed to make a good coach a great coach.
The Best Professional Qualifications Of An Online Fitness Coach
When we talk about professional qualifications, we're speaking about things such as:
- Education
- Experience
- Qualifications
- Professionalism
These are the things that support a coach's business and their ability to deliver effective teaching.
1. Expert Knowledge of Exercise Science
A good fitness coach should understand exercise physiology, anatomy, biomechanics, and nutrition. They also need to know how different exercises impact the body and how to structure workouts based on individual goals (strength, endurance, weight loss, etc.).
This ensures they can tailor training programs to meet each client's needs and avoid injury.
At the same time, you know that the program they deliver will be effective. The fitness world is full of charlatans who sell basic programs that may or may not be effective for you. This is because they don't know what to do and just give you a random program.
More importantly, this allows them to make adjustments as you improve. Perhaps you begin to stall or want some variety. A coach with legitimate knowledge can make the needed changes to optimize your training.
2. Experience
Being a fitness coach requires a lot more than just knowledge. It takes more than just reading some books and having a passion for fitness.
You'd be surprised how many "coaches" are out there who trained for a few months and decided they wanted to make a career out of it. That's no good.
Experience is a must, as it shows they actually have a passion for training others. In addition, there are many things that you can only learn from experience such as dealing with various mobility issues or even clients' personalities.
Therefore, you want a trainer with experience doing what you're paying them to do.
Now, this can include both:
- In-person training
- Online training
In-person and online training are two different professions requiring different skill sets.
This means an in-person coach will not acquire certain traits from online training, and someone who has only done online training will not have developed certain skill sets learned from in-person training.
Therefore, you want a coach with experience, preferably in both fields. The exact amount of experience can be difficult to say. Still, a two-year minimum with in-person coaching and then a one-year minimum in online coaching would be a good place to start, understanding that more is probably (but not always) better.
3. Personalization & Adaptability
This goes hand-in-hand with experience and education.
When you hire a personal coach, whether online or in-person, you are paying for personalized coaching training. Some variables are universal, but expertise comes into play when adjusting the specifics and addressing nuance in a person's program.
You're not paying for a coach to give you a pre-written workout created before you ever spoke to them! Trust us, this happens a lot.
So, how do you know if the coach personalizes your program? Well, it can be difficult for a new beginner to spot. However, here are some things to look for;
- Are there changes based on your needs?
- Are exercises of an appropriate level for you?
- Does the program reflect your needs and goals?
Also, during your consultation, here are some questions they should ask;
- What's your training level?
- What equipment and exercises are you familiar with?
- Do you have any injuries or mobility issues
- What is your goal?
- Do you have any specific concerns?
- How much time can you commit to training?
If they don't ask questions like these, it's impossible for them to write you a personalized program.
4. Clear Communication Skills
This is one of the most fundamental differences between in-person and online coaches.
Communication is always crucial. However, it's even more crucial when working with an online coach.
The reason is that the online coach isn't there! An in-person coach is there physically, so expressing certain ideas and instructions is easier. Further, if you get it wrong, the coach will correct you.
With an online coach, this isn't so.
It's like growing up in the early 90s, when you planned on meeting up with friends at the mall at 8 p.m. Mobile phones didn't exist then, so you had to have the details and understand them the last time you talked. If not, you might get to the mall but be at the wrong entrance or store—heck, you might be at the wrong mall!
You wouldn't know what happened until you saw your friends again or called them from home!
The same idea applies to the online coach. You may have a certain number of text messages, but communication needs to be very clear, or you could be confused about what you should do.
5. Goal-Oriented & Results-Driven
Would you ever start a cross-country road trip with zero plan or destination? Well, this happens a lot with suboptimal online coaches.
They provide a program to make you happy now with no thought of how it will help you progress in the future.
In contrast, a great fitness coach works with clients to set realistic, measurable, and achievable fitness goals.
They should write you a program with both short-term and long-term goals in mind. This may mean you go slow your first couple of months to let you build up a good foundation and perfect your form.
A good coach isn't in a hurry because he's setting you up for the long game.
Rather, they create personalized plans that align with your goals and then track your progress over time. This can include many measurements, such as;
- Improving strength
- Increasing endurance or workload
- Losing weight
- Perfecting a difficult movement
A good online coach will consider the long-term while also acknowledging short-term goals along the way to keep you on track.
6. Continuing Education and Professional Development
We're going to be honest. Most personal training certifications are not difficult to earn. Many can be learned over the weekend, even if someone has never gone to the gym.
At the same time, the fitness industry is constantly evolving with new trends, research, and equipment.
This is why you want an online fitness coach committed to lifelong learning – someone who has never educated themselves. This could mean a variety of things, such as;
- Earning new certifications
- Staying up-to-date on the latest fitness research
- Learning new methods
- Attending seminars and presentation
This shows that they are learning, and you benefit as they pass that information on to you.
7. Accountability, Structure & Availability
A fitness coach provides structure by creating clear workout plans and helping clients stay accountable to their goals.
This includes setting up a schedule, tracking progress, and regularly checking in with clients. Consistency is key in fitness, and a good coach ensures clients show up, stay on track, and don't lose momentum.
A major aspect of this is their availability. Now, this will likely depend on their pricing and program structure. If you buy a "Basic Program" priced low specifically because it only includes a program and no contract, you can't expect it to be available daily.
On the other hand, if your program includes ongoing communication, you shouldn't need to wait days for a reply. The response time can vary, but "less than 24 hours" is the standard, while some more elite programs will suggest a response time of "less than 12 hours."
The key point is that they provide what they say they'll provide. As online coaching already has the drawback of working in different locations, being able to contact your coach is a vital component. Your coach should be available at the times you agree upon.
8. Holistic Approach to Wellness
While this can depend on your agreement and what you're buying, the best online fitness coaches will address your fitness holistically. Maybe you'll spend most of your time discussing the lifting aspect, but they should also address other things, such as;
- Sleep
- Recovery
- Nutrition and hydration
- Supplementation
In addition, they should also be able to help with other "non-fitness" elements of training, such as
- Stress
- Manageability
- Mental well-being
- Managing expectations
All of these things are crucial to maintaining fitness and play a massive role in long-term success.
This might mean you need to purchase another program (e.g., a training or nutrition program), or your coach may refer you to another professional. The point is that a good coach will address these issues.
Personality Traits Of A Good Fitness Coach
Okay. Now that you know what a good coach looks like from the professional and educational side, let's examine some interpersonal skills and personality traits.
Trust us. We know some amazing coaches from both an educational and experience point of view. However, they lack the social skills to develop a relationship with, and it makes a difference.
1. Passion for Fitness
This can apply to any industry, but someone who truly loves what they do comes through their work. When they talk about their work, they make it interesting, which causes you to want to learn more.
This is even truer when it comes to fitness, as you're hiring them to get you fit and motivate you. However, it could be very off-putting if you can tell they don't even care about fitness or they don't live a healthy lifestyle. It would be like speaking to a financial consultant who is in debt!
This seems obvious, but many fitness coaches get into the industry for the money or simply lose their passion. A fitness coach should be genuinely passionate about health, fitness, and helping others.
This enthusiasm can inspire clients and make workouts feel exciting and purposeful. A passionate coach leads by example and instills a similar excitement in their clients.
You should be able to tell this from your first consultation.
2. Strong Interpersonal Skills
The best online coach will be a people-person who can connect with various people.
As we mentioned above, this is very important. Some of the most educated people in the game aren't socially great. They can write amazing books and teach us a lot, but they just don't connect with people. Again, this can be true in any field.
A good fitness coach will build rapport with all their clients and create an environment of trust. This helps clients feel comfortable communicating their needs, struggles, and concerns.
More importantly, they should be able to connect with beginners and experienced athletes alike.
Speaking to a brand-new beginner will not sound the same as speaking to an experienced athlete, nor will speaking to a confident person sound the same as speaking to a timid athlete.
3. Motivation & Encouragement
Fitness journeys often come with obstacles and plateaus. A good fitness coach motivates clients to push through challenges while maintaining a positive attitude.
They should know how to encourage clients to keep going, even when progress seems slow or tough. This involves celebrating big and small wins, boosting confidence, and creating a strong sense of accountability.
This can also mean having a certain level of emotional intelligence.
A good fitness coach understands the mental and emotional challenges their clients face. They listen, provide encouragement, and are attuned to the client's moods or struggles.
Whether someone is feeling discouraged or nervous about a new challenge, a great coach knows how to address and guide those emotions to a better place.
4. Patience and Empathy
Coaching people can be challenging sometimes, as an online coach must deal with very
different people.
- Experienced lifters who don't need much oversight
- Brand new to lifting who listens well and learns easily
- Brand-new lifters who listen well but are not athletically inclined
- Brand-new lifters who don't listen and are not athletically inclined
Then there's everyone else in between! As you see, there is a wide range of lifters, and everyone has different needs and struggles.
The best coaches will display empathy and patience towards those lifters who need extra help and struggle more. This goes back to having high emotional intelligence.
Regardless, the best coaches meet their clients where they are and demonstrate understanding as they provide the appropriate support.
Prepare to lose some pounds with our exclusive 12-week fat loss training program. You can select a 4-day, 5-day, or customized program with one of our expert trainers...
Final Say: What Makes An Awesome Online Fitness Coach
The best fitness coaches aren't just great at designing effective workout programs—they are experts at navigating human behavior, communication, and motivation. By integrating the key traits of assertiveness, level-headedness, empathy, urgency, and commitment to ongoing education, fitness coaches can elevate their practice and impact their clients' lives. In a competitive and rapidly changing industry, these traits offer a blueprint for success, helping coaches meet and exceed their clients' rising expectations.
Garett Reid
Author