Career Paths to Follow if you are Passionate about Fitness
Are you Passionate about Fitness?
While some people choose a career because they need to make money and live a good life, many others choose a career because they have a passion for it. That is not to say that choosing a career because of passion does not guarantee wealth and fine living
A career in the fitness industry is one of those that is mostly driven by passion rather than a need to be wealthy. It is also, for a fact, one of the most exciting career choices in the world. This career track allows you to turn your enthusiasm for a healthy lifestyle into a full-time job/business.
However, if you are passionate about health and fitness, you have a variety of options when it comes to career choices. These career paths are enjoyable and combine a lot of physiological, psychological, and business knowledge to deliver the best to your clients. A career in fitness means you get to work closely with your clients but also with medical doctors, exercise physiologists, registered dietitians, occupational therapists, physical therapists, chiropractors, and many other healthcare team members to help your clients live healthier lives.
Interestingly, you don’t need a degree to get many in-demand jobs in the health and fitness industry. All you need is a passion for fitness, an interest in helping people become better versions of themselves, good people skills, a knack for learning, and a love for imparting knowledge to others.
Careers in the Fitness Industry
There are myriads of careers to choose from as a fitness enthusiast. You can choose the more common careers in fitness training, coaching, etc., or more specialized careers in sports medicine, exercise science, etc. You can also choose a career in the wellness industry, where you are more concerned with mental and spiritual well-being.
Some of the common careers in fitness include;
- Certified Personal Trainer
Becoming a certified personal trainer is one of the most common and most well-loved fitness careers. As a personal trainer, you work with clients interested in building and maintaining fitness, helping them achieve their goals with no hassle.
Becoming a personal trainer entails engaging in one-on-one mentoring with clients and designing custom fitness plans for them. You have to study your clients properly, help them realize their shortcomings, and turn them into strengths. Overall, you will assist clients in realizing customized outcomes and productivity. There are a variety of personal training courses and certifications available to anyone who desires to be a personal trainer.
Personal trainers can operate in various settings, including gyms, health clubs, and fitness centers. Some personal trainers run their businesses from home or visit clients’ homes, depending on what is agreed between the trainer and the client. Being a personal trainer requires you to be enthusiastic about physical fitness and be in outstanding physical condition since you will mentor and set an example for others.
- Virtual Coach / Online Trainer
Being a virtual coach is very similar to being a personal trainer. Except, in this case, you take advantage of technology and host entire training sessions online. Not only will you be able to work as a fitness trainer from the comfort of your home, but you will also be able to connect to so many more people at once. This might be a good path for you if you’re a tech-savvy fitness professional.
- Becoming a Gym Owner
Another viable option for you in the fitness industry is to start your own gym. By owning your gym, you can significantly impact the community and get more people interested in the fitness business.
There are various business models you can implement. For example, you could open a basic gym where clients can use the equipment and machinery or a specialty gym where members also get individualized nutrition advice and personal training plans to aid in achieving their particular health and fitness goals.
Interestingly, you do not need any particular fitness skills or knowledge before becoming a gym owner. All that is required of you is a passion for fitness and good knowledge of business development. Over time, you have to build your fitness business from the ground up, and you must know how to finance and promote the gym to get it to the stage where you can impact more lives.
Careers in fitness Nutrition
Besides the core careers in the fitness industry, you could look towards careers in nutrition or fitness-based nutrition. Some of the popular careers in that field include;
- Nutrition Coach
Nutrition coaching is one area in which you can apply your fitness enthusiast skills. As a certified nutrition coach, you will regulate your client’s diet and provide personalized dietary plans for what to eat and what to avoid.
You’ll need to take a scientific approach to create evidence-based dietary plans to help your clients meet their weight and fitness goals. To become a nutrition coach, you will need at least a bachelor’s degree in nutritional studies or other related fields.
If you’re one with a passion for good and healthy meals, then a nutrition coach/dietician career may be one for you. While exercise is a key component of a healthy lifestyle, the role of a healthy diet cannot be neglected. As a dietician, you will ensure that people appreciate and fulfill their dietary needs and live healthier lifestyles.
- Nutrition and Fitness Coach
You could choose to be a fitness coach or a nutrition coach. Alternatively, you could choose to combine both specialties and become a nutrition and fitness coach.
In this role, you will get to work closely with your clients and shape every aspect of their fitness journey. You will train them like a personal trainer and help them manage their diet like a nutrition coach. This is an excellent career path if you’re interested in versatility.
Specialty Careers
- Wellness Coach
A career in fitness does not stop in the gym or in the kitchen. Fitness is all around, and the World Health Organization, in recognition, defined health as a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being. People need to be well all around; this is where a career as a wellness coach comes in.
As a wellness coach, you will draw from various fields, including behavioral psychology, and use several principles, including meditation, to improve the life of your clients. Your role is to work one-on-one with them to ensure they have better mental and physical health and healthier life overall.
- Athletic Coach
Working as an athletic trainer or coach is ideal when you desire to work with athletes. Athletic trainers help to develop plans, strategies, and habits that improve athletes’ overall performance. You will design their training regimen, help motivate them and push them to the edge of success.
As an athletic coach, you can work in a variety of settings and with a variety of events. There are opportunities in college football or basketball, baseball, hockey, track and field, etc. You can also go pro and transform the next batch of global athletic superstars.
You will need to take specialized courses to become an athletic trainer. The type and volume of courses will depend on which athletic event you decide t coach in and at what level.
- Referee
Working as a referee or umpire is a great job choice if you enjoy a certain sport but prefer enforcing its rules rather than entering the field and playing. These experts or fitness professionals are entrusted with upholding the game’s rules; thus, you must possess in-depth knowledge of the game you wish to referee.
Referees are present at professional sporting events, especially team sports like football and rugby, to ensure that teams play fairly and adhere to the regulations.
Corrective Exercise and Injury Prevention Careers
- Recreational Therapists
The term “recreational therapist” refers to a group of professionals focusing on using exercise to treat injured, disabled, or unwell people. People frequently seek the services of a recreational therapist after suffering an injury in an accident or recovering from a medical condition that left them less healthy and weak.
With knowledge of exercise physiology, kinesiology, and first aid, injury prevention specialists guide patients and clients in the correct usage of equipment to avoid injury and maximize benefits. You can support a patient who has had life-altering injuries in developing a fitness regimen that fits their current needs, or you might assist someone injured in an accident in using exercise to rebuild their self-confidence. Through hands-on career options like physical therapy and corrective exercise, you can help prevent injuries and teach clients to read their bodies better so they know their limits.
- Massage Therapist
It’s a prevalent misperception that a massage therapist’s only responsibility is to encourage their clients’ well-being and relaxation. Although it is undeniably a substantial aspect of their work, massage therapists do more even though relaxation is essential for general health and fitness.
As a massage therapist, you might spend some time assisting injured individuals in recovering by providing sports massages or other types of massage that address muscle problems that cause discomfort during sports or fitness activities. For this reason, massage therapists frequently collaborate closely with professional athletes or sports teams to achieve better results.
- Occupational Therapist
Occupational therapists assist patients in recovering from illnesses and disabilities that have kept them out of a job. Depending on the health issue your clients are suffering from, you may employ a range of various exercises and approaches in this position to help them restore their strength and flexibility.
The main objective of an occupational therapist is to help clients become more self-assured in their mobility and independence so that they can eventually become less reliant on others for work and start leading more rewarding and productive lives. You should consider occupational therapy as a job option for those who love assisting others in recovering and realizing their full potential.
Conclusion
There is undoubtedly no limitation to choices regarding outstanding employment prospects in the health and fitness industry. You can always make your passion your career, whether you want to coach customers one-on-one to assist them attain their fitness objectives or join a team sport. However, you need to consider your specialty, knowledge, and skill before choosing a career path in health and fitness to have a happy ending.