Personal trainer or training on your own: when each option pays off

In a 2000 study, 18 men with some training experience followed the same programme for 12 weeks, some with a trainer present and some on their own. The supervised group increased their loads faster and ended up stronger in the squat and the bench press (Mazzetti et al., 2000).

In 2023, another study of 36 men and women who already trained found more muscle and a stronger squat in the supervised group, although there was no difference in the bench press. The authors also saw that supervision helped people not to skip sessions (Coleman et al., 2023). These are small studies, but they point in the same direction.

If you are starting from scratch, if you have been stuck for a while, if you are coming back from an injury (in that case, always together with your physiotherapist) or if you have a goal with a date, such as a competition. Pedro reached the Spanish Natural Bodybuilding Junior Championship after about 7 months of prep and finished third.

If you already master the technique of the basic exercises, know how to progress and are consistent, you can make a lot of progress on your own. A good middle ground is to follow a plan made by a professional and review it every so often.

With Rubén we chose something similar: he trained remotely, on a plan of mine focused on a controlled increase in loads, and 11 months later the results were obvious.

They should ask about your health, injuries and history before programming anything; explain why you do each exercise; measure your progress; and adapt the plan when life gets complicated. Be wary of anyone who promises fast results without knowing you.

You can start with a few sessions to learn the technique and then train on your own with a plan, or combine one-off sessions with training by yourself. I explain how to combine the gym and a trainer in just the gym or a personal trainer, and what each option costs in how much a personal trainer costs in Mallorca. If you like, let’s talk.