Work environment and ergonomics for the fitness trainer

As a fitness trainer you use your own body as a work tool all day — you demonstrate exercises help with grip bend down to members and stand for hours. Without attention to your own ergonomics and working environment you risk becoming worn or injured in a profession about keeping others healthy.

The Labour Authority has an occupational health and safety guide specifically aimed at sports clubs and fitness centers which points to typical problems and solutions in the industry. This highlights among other things time pressure and disruptions — from phones members and noise in the facilities — as a common work environment challenge as well as the need to think ergonomics into daily instruction.

Many training injuries do not occur during your own training but in daily work: repeated bending to adjust weights one-sided demonstrations of the same exercise many times a day and long periods standing without variation. The solution is often simple — vary your working positions use body-close lifts and demonstrate on both sides of the body to avoid one-sided strain on one side.

• 01Vary working positions throughout the day – avoid standing still for hours.
• 02Lift and carry weights close to your body and use your legs instead of your back.
• 03Demonstrate exercises on both sides of the body to avoid one-sided strain.
• 04Plan breaks into the working day, even with busy team schedules.

In occupational health legislation a distinction is made between harmful noise — typically limit values around 85 dB — and ordinary disturbing sounds like music conversations and machines. In fitness centres with high music for group training or several simultaneous activities the noise level can be a real occupational health factor which the centre should have a stance on.

A long coaching life requires that you treat your own body with the same care you recommend members. Build your own strength and mobility into your week listen to early warning signals and see the working environment as part of the trade — not an obstacle to it.

“The trainer who burns out or is injured by the job cannot help anyone for very long.”