3 Steps to Become an Online Fitness Coach
Over the last decade, health coaching has shifted from being exclusively in-person to a more online approach. The pandemic accelerated this shift into the digital world, forcing more fitness coaches to offer remote services.
With the options for both in-person and online coaching now available, there has never been a better time to work as a fitness coach. Fitness coaching is one of the most rewarding jobs. You can help a range of individuals to achieve their health and fitness goals and improve their quality of life.
As a fitness coach, you can offer guidance and advice to those who are looking to improve their fitness. You can offer one-to-one coaching sessions, group sessions, or live virtual classes. There is a huge amount of flexibility in your role and you have the opportunity to transform peoples’ lives.
If you are ready to become an online fitness coach, here are three steps that you need to take.
Get Your Qualifications
To work as an online fitness coach, you need to possess the right qualifications. Depending on the specialty that you choose, the specific qualifications that you need will differ.
Online fitness coaches don’t need university-level degrees. However, you will need to get a health and fitness coaching or personal training qualification from one of the registered bodies, such as the National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM) or the International Sports Sciences Association (ISSA).
You may also need to get first aid and CPR certifications and insurance, depending on the type of health and fitness clashing that you plan on providing.
Define Your Ideal Client Persona
One of the most important steps for any online fitness coach is defining your ideal client. Who is it that you want to coach? What types of people do you want to help the most?
For example, some coaches choose to work exclusively with individuals who want to lose weight. Others choose to only coach women during pregnancy or the postpartum period.
Create an outline of your ideal client, including their age, gender, location, and fitness goals. This will make it easier to create an effective marketing strategy for your online coaching business to target the right audience.
Create a Professional Website
When you’re first starting out as an online fitness coach, marketing is important to get your name out there. Even for the most established fitness coaches, promotion is still vital for ongoing success.
The first step is creating a professional website. Use sport marketing design tools to build a website that appeals to your target audience.
Make sure your site looks professional and welcoming. It should reflect your personal and professional values as a fitness coach.
Include a short bio about yourself along with a professional headshot so that people can put a face to a name. You should also include your qualifications and certifications to show that you are an expert at what you do.
Some coaches choose to include prices on their website, while others only disclose this information upon inquiry. It’s entirely up to you which direction you want to take when it comes to putting prices on your website.
