1. So what is an online fitness coach?
Before we explain more in-depth what exactly an online fitness coach is and does, we thought we would quickly summarise it for you. An online fitness coach is a coach who carries out his training sessions online. This is usually done via live/recorded video or usually a fitness app.
An online fitness coach helps you achieve any fitness related goals such as building muscle, losing fat and/or changing your lifestyle habits.
Now that you have an idea of what an online fitness coach is, let’s dive a bit deeper.
2. What does an online fitness coach do?
There is a chance you’ve seen lots of online fitness coaches on social media and you still don’t have a clue what they do. That’s okay! A lot of people don’t know what they are doing. A lot of people think they can just tell their clients to do a pushup and eat vegetables. But online fitness coaching it is a lot more than that.
It is important not to confuse an online fitness coach with an online coach or personal trainer. These are completely different terms.
An online fitness coach is basically a lifestyle coach and fitness trainer all-in-one. As mentioned earlier an online fitness coach is here to help you achieve any fitness or lifestyle-related goals.
Although they are similar to online personal trainers, they are still not the same. An online personal trainer focuses more on the fitness part while an online fitness coach focuses on the fitness, nutrition and lifestyle part.
We’ll explain the fitness, nutrition and lifestyle part more below.
Training
Online fitness coaches do their training sessions online so you might be wondering how is that even possible. But the goal of an online fitness coach is to make the training session tailored to your level, living situation and schedule. It sounds much easier than what it actually is.
But imagine as an online fitness coach having a client who has 4 kids running around the house every day. That is very difficult to manage. As mentioned earlier, the training sessions usually take place via a fitness app, WhatsApp, Skype or Zoom.
If you are someone who wants to become an online fitness coach then it is important for you to consider this.
Lifestyle
The next part is lifestyle. This is very important in online fitness coaching. You want your client to obtain a healthy and consistent lifestyle. This is probably the most important job of an online fitness coach. If he/she can’t help their client change their lifestyle then they will not reach their fitness goals.
The client of an online fitness has to change their habits, have sufficient willpower and great focus. All of this can be transformed into the skills they need to reach their goals.
So what are some examples of lifestyle factors? Sleep, stress, mood, and there are much more. The online fitness coach can help their clients with this. Developing a better lifestyle will allow your client to perform better in life.
Nutrition
Here is probably the part that you were waiting for. Nutrition! But if you think about it, nutrition and lifestyle do go hand in hand. Without developing the right lifestyle, there is no nutrition.
But this is where an online fitness coach comes in. He/she will help a client create the right diet that they can sustain. He/she will make sure their clients aren’t just following some ‘crash diet’. The online fitness coach will also give their clients advice on nutritional supplements.
All online fitness coaches know that starting a new diet is just the beginning of the journey, but sustaining the diet is the toughest part. But the super online fitness coach will take care of that.
3. The benefits of being an online fitness coach
A lot of people have this idea that being an online fitness coach has zero benefits because they don’t work in person with their clients. But that is false. There are plenty of benefits but we narrowed it down to the 4 most important ones. Let’s take a look.
a) You can choose your own schedule
Being an online fitness coach offers a lot of flexibility for both you can your clients. But we will get into the flexibility for your clients later. Starting an online fitness coaching business means you get to be your own boss!
We know that is one of the best things you can hear. But it comes with a lot of responsibility. But this also means you can make own work schedule. So no more long hours at the gym.
b) A lot cheaper for your clients
Being an online fitness also has a lot benefits for clients. Because online fitness coaches lower their costs by moving online, they can also charge less, which allows their clients to save more money.
This is all possible because online fitness coaches don’t need to pay for the gyms. But this also allows online fitness coaches to expand their target audience even further. Now even people with a lower budget will be able to afford them.
c) You can travel and work around the world
When you take your business online, you remove so many barriers. This means you can even work with clients across the world. All you both need is a phone. Crazy world we live in right now right? We know. This is one of biggest advantages of being an online fitness coach.
d) You can do this part-time
Even being an online fitness coach is great, some people just love where they work. But you can still have the joys of being an online fitness coach. Because of all the flexibility, you can do this part-time. Best of both worlds right?
4. The disadvantages of being an online fitness coach
Every business has its benefits and disadvantages. Yes, even an online fitness coaching business. Let’s take a look at some disadvantages of being an online fitness coach.
Distance & communication
This might be the most obvious one. But it is distance. Yes all though distance can be a benefit, but it can also be a disadvantage. You are communicating by phone, email and video. All though this is easy, it can become difficult. Emails can be interpreted differently than how you might mean it. Phone calls don’t feel the same as in person, and the same with video.
This is why most online fitness coaches get a custom branded fitness app that is more user-friendly and handy. Let’s take a look at the next disadvantage.
Zero experience
This one appears more than often. Someone who has little to no experience. Online fitness coaches sometimes end up getting clients who have never worked out in their entire life, and this can be more difficult than expected.
It is of course more efficient to train someone with zero experience in person, instead of trying to explain through video, emails and texts. But it is not impossible. Technology has become so user-friendly and engaging that it should not even become a problem.
5. How do I become an online fitness coach?
In this part, we are going to discuss how you can become an online fitness. Let’s dive in.
Start thinking about thinking about a long term commitment
The first thing you must remember is that you have to be in this for the long run. You might know a lot about weight loss, health, muscle building and fitness, but that won’t mean you can successfully become an online fitness coach.
This will take a lot of time, effort, consistency and mental toughness! But take it day-to-day and you will surely become a successful online fitness coach.
Develop online training strategies
Now that you are ready to share your knowledge with the world, it is time to develop online training strategies. There is a difference between training someone in the weight room and a boot camp for example. You will have to develop a good approach. Below I have included some questions to consider while coming up with your strategy:
- How will you communicate with your clients? With a fitness app? With social media? With WhatsApp?
- How will you be training your clients? Will you be doing it via live video or pre-recorded workout videos? Will you provide them with a written program? These are also some things you may need to think about.
- How will you monitor your client’s progress?
Time to become a techie
Now, this might be the toughest part, especially if you don’t have the funds to have someone else do it for you. It is time to become a techie! You may know how to be a fitness coach or a businessman/woman, but you still need to learn about technology. You need to learn about social media platforms, apps and other online tools that will help your business grow.
And trust us, this is a lot of work. But it doesn’t mean it is impossible! You can learn a lot of stuff on YouTube. The best part is, it is free! So try to learn the following:
- Edit and record videos.
- Collect online payments
- Website design. But you can always reach out to us if you want us to help you put your website together.
- Social media.
- Designing graphics.
Master the art of digital
Do not neglect digital marketing. This is an important skill that you need to develop in order to make your online fitness coaching business a success. You can take a look at our ‘The complete online fitness coach marketing guide’ for more details.
6. How do you know if online fitness coaching is right for you?
A lot of people want to become online fitness coaches, but it is not for everyone. You have to really sit down and think if this is really for you because this industry is not easy one to become a success.
So, how can you tell if this is for you? Well, if you work in the health and fitness industry already as a trainer or coach, and you are ready to help people while creating the lifestyle you deserve, then it is for you.
But it is also for you if you are working part-time in the fitness and health industry and you are ready to make this into your full-time job.
You might think that this will cost you a lot of time and money. But with the amount of technology we have in the world today, you can create and grow an online business easier and faster than ever. Also with the least amount of investment. It is a digital revolution and it is time for you to take advantage or get left behind.
You just have to be committed and ready to put the work in. You can have all the knowledge, money and time in the world. But if you are not ready to put in the work then this is not for you.
If you need help setting up your online fitness business then feel free to check out our ‘Full-Body Plan’. We’ve helped set up other fitness coaches with their online platforms.
7. Top 2 mistakes to avoid if you plan on becoming an online fitness coach
Now that you think being an online fitness coach is for you, we want you to take a look at the following mistakes you should avoid.
1. Thinking you already know how to coach
One of the first mistakes people make is thinking that they already know how to coach when they have never coached in their life. We often see this with personal trainers. Personal trainers are not the same as online fitness coaches.
We’ve seen some outstanding personal trainers who have done amazing jobs with their 1-on-1 in-person clients, struggle to connect with their online clients. Their clients did not get the results that they wanted and stopped working with the coach.
This was not to scare you, but just to show you that you have to put the work in and learn how to become an online fitness coach.
2. Thinking about selling before you build it
A lot of you might not like this one, but it must be said. You must build your business before you begin to sell. Stop thinking about ads, lead magnets or any other kind of sales tactics that big businesses use. Do you know why they use them? Because they have run their business successfully for years.
Some people might tell you to sell no matter what! But that is a big mistake. Building any business is difficult. But building an online fitness business is a huge responsibility. You have to be laser-focused. In the short run, you might not see the success you want to see but in the long run, you will!
Don’t think you can put together a business in 2 days and it will be a success. No way, No way……No way.
People online have become a lot savvier and they are not willing to give their money to just about anyone. As the saying goes ‘Build it, and they will come’. Meaning slowly build your business, make sure everything is up and running and then sell like no other.
Soon they will be begging you for your services!
8. What makes a fantastic online fitness coach?
So what makes a good online fitness coach? We want to discuss this because nowadays everyone calls themselves an online fitness coach. But not all are good online fitness coaches. It is not a protect profession like personal trainers or nutritionists.
The bad part about this is that people begin to not take online fitness coaches seriously. But below we will discuss what makes a good online fitness coach.
The best online coaches are wel educated
Today a lot of people want to become an online fitness coach. But the best online fitness coaches are educated. By this, we don’t mean having a certificate. Although certificates and diplomas are important, they do not define how good an online fitness coach is.
Not because someone goes through a complete body transformation means they know how it is to be a coach. Absolutely not. We see a lot of people who have lost 20kg and immediately think they were ready to become an online fitness coach. They quickly realised that being an online fitness coach is a completely different ballgame.
In order to become a well-educated online fitness coach, you need to have a great theoretical foundation. This way you know how to make a plan and strategy for your future clients to help them achieve their goals
A great online fitness coach has experience
Now having the knowledge is one, but putting it into practice is another. You can spot a great online fitness coach when he or she can do both.
A great online fitness coach has at least a couple of years under his/her belt. The reason is the more experience under an online fitness coach’s belt, the more confident he/she has. Of course, they will learn on the job, but atleast they have that foundation.
A great online fitness coach has tried many methods himself and has improved his coaching ways based on that. What makes an online fitness coach great is that they have a system. They don’t just approach things randomly.
The best online coaches have a special and unique approach
They do things in a way that other online fitness coaches can’t do. They don’t just make standard workouts or standard meal plans. They make their resources so unique and personalised.
The best online fitness coaches will always keep track of your progress. They will watch your results and make sure you stay on track. And when you slip up, they will be there to pick you right back up.
Conclusion
To conclude, an online fitness coach is a coach who carries out his/her training sessions online. They are not only available to help you gain or lose weight, but they are also here to help you change your habits.
Being an online fitness coach is not easy, but it is not a walk in the park. You will have to work your butt off to reach the top. But we believe you can do it.
That’s all we have for this blog. Hopefully this article has helped you and if you have any more questions then feel free to reach out to us via [email protected] or you can also leave a comment below.
