Tell me oh wise personal trainer, does the green button on the treadmill mean go? I’m a woman, so I don’t know these things. 

Reporter: Lateefa Farah|Subeditor: Gabby Espinet

As a women, the gym can sometimes hold the same atmosphere as a bar; where all eyes are on you (not trying to sound vain at all). There’s a difficulty of telling the difference between a personal trainer or personal predator. Dave (name has been changed for privacy purposes), personal trainer at The Gym states:

“ we normally approach clients like you would a stranger, you get to know them first. You start off with small talk, to see what they do — which then gives you a hint of how much they earn.”

If a lot of you also haven’t noticed, majority of male personal trainers clients are women. I went under investigation to see why.

First I started with websites;

Personal Trainer Development Centre, feel the need to tell trainers to treat all women equally, even if some aren’t as attractive as others. First off, who cares if your client is attractive or not? Once employed, personal trainers are there to train, not to judge a client’s looks. And for some reason, male personal trainers also need to be reminded to “keep their eyes to themselves” if they “happen to see a female performing some straight leg deadlifts in yoga pants or a low cut top… Yes it may be inappropriate for those to wear next to nothing.”

I thought the gym was meant to be a place for workouts, and not a constant environment of my ass being checked out?

Surprisingly enough many personal trainers have strategised tips on how to seek more female clients. There’s an attitude that women come into the gym feeling confused, especially when it comes to weight lifting.

On that note, a gym shouldn’t be the place where you also sniff out checking balances. If you’re coming to me as a human being, be honest and say “I want your money.”

For those of you who don’t know, personal trainers are self employed. This means all the money they make is through their clients, and is the reason why they can come off super eager at times. But the question is, how can you tell the difference on whether or not these trainers are on to you for your money, or if they’re just being a decent human being trying to strike up some conversation?

                        [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vMzClez92UI]

That’s where Dave comes in handy. Are you a student?  Don’t worry about this, because you can’t afford a personal trainer. Although, for those of you who have well payed jobs, keep your eyes locked. Personal trainers create small chit-chat get to know your pockets, not you. How much money you make, reflects on your job at the end of the day. So if you’re someone who seems unfit and is able to afford a personal trainer, then you guessed it, you’re about to be summoned. Let’s not forget our other factor; if you’re a woman.

Does this mean their strategy of work is unethical, not necessarily. Look at the journalism industry. Journalists go undercover and write stories about celebrities doing drugs, but rarely come under fire. Personal trainers need to provide food for their own plates.

It’s obvious that the personal training industry is now competing with the digital world; new platforms of online personal training have arrived. Online PT allows you to get all the guidelines a personal trainer would provide, but now its’ at the tip of your fingers. Let’s not mention, the new craze of Instagram videos, makes it attainable for anyone to get workout routines. I can understand that money plays a role, but when you come up with techniques like,

“Scaring them into believing they will die, if they don’t change their ways. Or it could pressuring them until they say yes.”

That’s essentially where potential clients will stray away from you. Not to mention the majority of male personal trainers only pursuing female clients, due to the fact that men are a lot more egotistical when it comes to the gym. Gary (names changed for privacy purposes), Fitness First personal trainer expresses,

“the reason why male trainers often seek female clients is because they are a lot more open to criticism. It doesn’t mean we are preying on them, they are just excellent clients to have when training. They take in what you have to say, and from their build on their workout plan. As for a man, it’s hard. They feel like their masculinity to strength is being tested, because another man asks if he needs help.”

Is it okay to come to the conclusion that men have fragile masculinities? I think yes.

Moving forward, men may be egotistical and hard headed when it comes to their looks — but that doesn’t mean male personal trainers should focus on all women. Not everyone woman who steps through the door is confused on what she’s doing. With the help of the digital age, there are many outlets that help women train themselves, and create DIY routines.

Tip from a woman who goes to the gym often: state your intentions in the beginning, so the small talk doesn’t stray for too long. We all have to make money somehow and someway, but lets’ be ethical about it.