However, for personal trainers time really is money; finding space in your schedule to attend events like these regularly can be a struggle. Plus, unless you live in a big city, there might not be resources like these available to you.

So what’s the solution?

Get reading…

Books are obviously an invaluable resource for fitness information, but you don’t have to be limited to the printed word. Blogs can be even better as they’re constantly updated with the latest ideas, the best protein and inspiration in bite-sized chunks.

Here’s a rundown of the best personal training blogs, as voted for by readers and the experts at Breaking Muscle.

The Minimalist

A firm believer in minimalist training, Timothy Bell set up his blog to introduce individuals to the idea that even ordinary places such as the park, the backyard, or even empty neighborhood lots, can serve as a venue for fitness training. This means that you can use virtually anything in your environment as a tool for strength and resistance training – perfect if your clients want to avoid the sweaty locker room and hemmed-in hamster-wheel vibes of the gym.

The All-Rounder

Designed to share his passion for leading a ‘FUNctionally’ fit life, Dai Manuel focuses on achieving mastery of the 5 pillars of ‘functional fitness’: fitness, family, finances, faith, and fun.

He stresses that personal trainers should strive to ensure that their clients have good family relationships, excellent motivation, financial freedom, and the chance to enjoy the fun things in life, as well as excellent physical fitness. Bearing these 5 pillars in mind should help you understand the value of creating an all-round lifestyle program for your clients.

The Boxer

Developed by former boxing coach and long-time trainer Ross Enamait, Ross Training is a blog dedicated to strength training, high-performance conditioning, and athletic development.

Ross Training talks about the value of understanding the individual differences of each athlete – personal trainers should design programs that are specific to their client’s strengths and weaknesses. He also focuses on the importance of role modeling, interaction, and active participation.

The Hippy

While it is not necessarily a blog about high-performance fitness programs, personal trainers can benefit from chiropractic physician Sock Doc’s useful articles on the prevention and management of fitness injuries using natural methods.

His advice can help you choose a natural, holistic treatment when there’s one available, and avoid relying on unnecessary costly medications and procedures.

The Geek

Steve Kamb is a self-confessed nerd, and he’s dead set on overturning the stereotype that nerds aren’t fit. He shows that getting into fitness should be fun, whether you spend your free time playing sports or at ComicCon.

He can show you how to make training fun for your clients by incorporating ideas that are meaningful to them into their fitness programmes.

The Podcaster

Although it’s designed for those interested in strength training, Barbell Shrugged Daily has articles across a wealth of topics ranging from sensible nutrition to coaching and everyday mentoring. The blog has its own iTunes podcast and has been ruling the fitness and nutrition airwaves for quite some time.

The Weightlifter

With almost 400 articles, 300 fitness and exercise demos, 40 weightlifting programs, 1,200 videos on a variety of fitness topics, and more than 3,200 weightlifting workouts, Catalyst Athletics is a super serious strength training blog. The blog pays tribute to the art of Olympic weightlifting and will teach you how to design a stellar weightlifting program for your clients.

The Scientist

A physical therapist by profession, Dr. John Rusin provides a scientific approach to working out. The blog centers on bridging the gap between high-intensity strength and conditioning workouts, and innovations in rehabilitation methodology.

You can learn the actual science behind different fitness routines so you know how to properly design programs depending on your clients’ physical strengths. Rusin incorporates sound physical therapy principles to the science of exercise physiology so you can understand the theoretical bases behind what you’re teaching – or ditch your programme if the science doesn’t add up.

The Strength Trainer

Richey focuses on strength, plyometrics, speed and agility training, and mental toughness. Having studied fitness at varied colleges and trained professional athletes from many disciplines, this is one guy who knows exactly what he’s talking about.

The Crew

With a podcast, a community to keep you accountable, and hundreds of articles on fitness, End of Three is a one stop shop for amazing motivation and advice. The team focus on training that can be done in your garage as well as in a gym, and generally use only a barbell in their routines.

Whether a blog is for fitness newbies or seasoned pros, there’s always something you can learn – after all, many of your clients will be just starting out on their fitness journey, and blogs aimed at newcomers can help you remember what training was like before you were a professional.

By keeping up with the latest news and tips from trainers around the world, you’re not just making sure that your clients are learning to the best they can be. You’re making sure that you are the best you can be – and that’s what your clients really need.

“When we have an exercise session booked in with a training partner, it makes us more accountable,” says Matt Rowe, Personal Training Manager at MotivatePT “We’re far less likely to skip the gym in favour of a morning lie-in or drinks after work with colleagues when we know we would be letting our training partner down. Setting an appointment in the diary and meeting with someone who motivates you is a proven way to help you stick with exercise.”

Whether you’re meeting a personal trainer in the gym or heading out for a morning jog with a friend, the ability to double our exercise performance when we buddy up with someone else, is a considerable achievement. It’s clear that adding a social element to exercise has a marked effect on our mental approach to physical activity. When we exercise with someone we get along with, then it’s natural to interact, to talk and to socialise, which is a great way of distracting us from the pain we may be feeling from exercise or from constantly clock-watching. It’s natural that when we enjoy something, we’re much more likely to want to stick to it. Over time this helps us to develop an exercise habit, which then becomes less likely to be cancelled or postponed. Developing lifestyle habits is one of the most effective ways of achieving long term health goals.

A study by the Department of Kinesiology at Michigan State University, found that by training with a partner we could not only be helping to increase our enjoyment of exercise, we can also increase our exercise motivation by up to 100%, thereby improving both our results and our ability to stick with an exercise plan over the long term. Another study by Stanford University, found that just receiving a motivational phone call every fortnight could increase the amount of exercise we do by almost 75%. If this is what could be achieved from a phone call imagine the advantage of actually training with someone else.

Additional benefits of having a workout partner include having a fresh perspective on both your exercise and your fitness routines. An exercise partner can act as a sounding board when developing workout plans helping us to look at ideas and methods of training we may simply not have considered on our own. When you achieve results you also have someone with which you can share your success. Whether it’s a few inches off the waist or achieving that 5k run, it so much more rewarding to enjoy this with someone who has shared the journey with you.

So how do you go about finding a workout partner? There are plenty of ways to get in shape with someone else and the Internet is a good place to start. Look for activity clubs, local running clubs or sports clubs in your area. Most sports clubs have sign-up forms where you can put your name down to join a team or find a squash or tennis partner. You can also try a few sessions with a personal trainer who can set you goals and develop a plan for you to follow.

The important thing when you choose an exercise partner is to ensure that they are either a similar fitness level to yourself or just slightly fitter than you are. Trying to work with a partner who is in a completely different league can result in injuries, because you’re trying to push yourself far beyond your natural capabilities. However, when you train with someone who has a similar fitness level to yourself, you can work at a similar pace. It’s natural to be slightly competitive as no one likes to finish last, so being on a similar level means that you can push one another to keep going when you feel like giving up. The friendly rivalry will enable you both to raise your game and achieve more than you would on your own.

By finding the right workout partner your exercise sessions will become fun and more sociable meaning they will be something that you look forward to. With a shared workout comes accountability and shared goals. Within just a few months you will begin to develop an exercise habit that can help you to stick to those exercise plans.

Just before I go in the gym for a workout or a run, I always look at some workout motivation. I have 4 videos that motivate and inspire me before training. So I thought I’d share them with you!

1. Gladiator

It’s a classic and I think if anyone wanted to play a part in a movie, it would be Maximus. I can remember the first time I saw this clip and I wasn’t really sure what to expect when Russell Crowe takes on six other gladiators but he nails them all! Great clip and great motivation.

2. Best of the Best

Some people aren’t that familiar with this movie but I love it! Starring Phillip Rhee and Eric Roberts, this martial arts movie is a must see from the 80′s.

3. Karate Kid

As a kid growing up in the 80′s, this was definitely a classic film. A brilliant story with a belter of a soundtrack towards the end. Check it out.

4. Rocky

There are loads of Rocky montages I could chose from but this is one of my favourites. I don’t think I’ve ever met anyone who doesn’t like Rocky or at least who hasn’t seen Rocky. Great overall story, great motivation and a great ending. How many of you have drank raw eggs or chased chickens since watching Rocky? Haha.

Stay motivated,