As a personal trainer in Scottsdale, Arizona, I've spent a lot of time around personal trainers. I've watched many training sessions, many good and some not so well.

Keep these points in mind when you're deciding on a personal trainer:

# Don't strictly judge a fitness trainers ability to help you get you fit by his or her body alone. That should perhaps be qualified by mentioning that just because a trainer's body is statue-like, it doesn't necessarily mean they know how to get you there also. However, if a so-called trainer is very out-of-shape, don't think twice about walking away.

# It's difficult to know in advance, although the initial meeting should tune you in: will the trainer really listen to you? To what actually motivates your fitness goals? Are they concerned about what your preexisting injuries are? You need to know that they will respect your intensity threshold as you adjust to getting back into good shape. A trainer who really listens will probably be less likely to get you injured as well.

# Remember that all certifications are not equal. Almost all personal trainers have opinions about what certification is the top qualifier. And more often than not, it's the one they have; I chose the American College of Sports Medicine certification because it's the test that frightens would-be personal trainers the most. Since my college background is in English, I needed to make sure that I had one of the most respected certs out there. The test feels like a mid-level college physiology final. The ACSM typically requires several months of preparation. On the other hand, there are other certifications that a trainer can get in weekend. My personal top-2 most respected certifications are the ACSM and the NASM.

# Make sure that the trainer's gym is close to you. This might seem obvious but it can really make life -and results- difficult. You don't need the additional stress. Your sessions will suffer if you're consistently late.

# Personal trainers are just personal trainers. Unless they have other education, they are not expert nutritionists, qualified chiropractors, MDs or naturopaths.

# Do your personalities mesh? Make sure they do. As with people in general, some trainers are very self-absorbed. You could end up listening to your trainer rambling on and on about their personal life while you're pushing yourself to finish that last exercise. And this really can happen. Will they create personalized workouts for you? It's a good idea to take the individual up on a free session or consultation first.

# Professionalism is important. This is especially true because of the closeness that may develop between clients and their trainers. You will want to feel like your trainer is respecting the confidentiality of your relationship.

At the end of it all, keep in mind: there is no magic personal fitness workout formula, and a decent exercise routine isn't usually rocket science. It's my feeling that personal training is a little more of an art than a science. You can be mostly confident that if you've selected a personal trainer that mostly knows what they're doing, you should make much more progress than you imagine possible... that is if you show up regularly.

Article by Scottsdale Personal Trainer, Klee Young

This article was written by Scottsdale personal trainer Klee Young. Klee is an independent certified personal trainer serving the Phoenix Arizona area.