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nutirtionist/personal trainer as a career?

Hi,

I am thinking of becoming one of these but for the life of me I am unsure what direction to undertake, should I become a nutritionist or do fitness, I am interested in both and would like to invest in a career that will make me a decent living, has anyone gone through schooling or are in these fields now that might have experience or a suggestion?


Wed. Jun 28, 9:10pm

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i am a physician and work closely with dieticians / nutritionists. they work with a wide variety of people - weight loss, diabetes, eating disorders, etc. the ones who work with children may also see babies who have trouble gaining weight, etc. i work in a hospital setting and the dieticians there work very normal hours. i have also met some who work in the WIC office (government office that provides nutrition counseling and food supplements to pregnant women, babies, and children under 5). they don't have as much personal patient contact or counseling time. you will always have steady employment as a dietician.

i don't know as much about personal trainers. i think they are very satisfied with their careers, but it seems like they don't stay in one place for long. i think you might want to ask yourself if you want to work with people who are interested in positive changes and come to you (trainer) or who may or may not be interested in change but were told that they had to come to you (dietician). the eating disorder patients and some of the diabetic patients don't want to hear what the dietician has to say.

Thursday, June 29, 2006, 2:26 PM

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One of my friends is a personal trainer, and loves it! She worked at a gym for a year or so, got aton of clients, and then left the gym to start her own "business" where she trains her clients in their homes, for cash. So she effectively doubled her income.

That being said, there's somewhat of a timeline in the career of a personal trainer. There probably aren't too many who are still training after age 40 or so. So, it may depend on how long you plan to pursue that career. Of course, if you work for a gym, it may lead to eventually managing a gym, starting your own, etc., but that all takes a lot of drive and some risk.

Thursday, June 29, 2006, 2:30 PM

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If you are looking for a long-term career, I would definitely go the nutritionist route. Nutritionists are much more likely to work in setting wth job perks that matter for the long term - health insurance, retirement, vacation and sick days, etc. Unless you have the drive to become an entrepeneur and one day run your own business (be it a gym or a personal training business) and pay for all those things on your own. If you want an active job but, like me, you value job stability, you might also consider physical therapy.

Thursday, June 29, 2006, 10:26 PM

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