For many, the gym can seem as foreign and forbidding as the jungles of South America. Trudging through the uncertain terrain of grunting giants and equipment that resembles torture devices, it can be difficult to accomplish a decent workout without a qualified guide to show you the ropes.

Even gym vets may find their workouts have waned. In any case, a certified personal trainer can be a viable option for anyone looking to get started, or break through plateaus. This is the first column in a two-part series to help you determine whether you could benefit from hiring a personal trainer, and what to look for when you decide to take the leap.

Before hiring a personal trainer, it’s important to understand what they do. A good personal trainer is much more than a workout buddy. He or she is a qualified professional with one or more certifications from reputable fitness educational organizations (ACE, NSCA, NASM, etc.), and is responsible for helping others set and achieve reasonable health and fitness goals. Based on initial assessments, goals and fitness history, a personal trainer will develop a personalized fitness program that is challenging, enjoyable and rewarding.

A personal trainer is also in a constant state of evolution and learning. He or she must complete continued education units every two years in order to maintain his or her certification(s). Many trainers also opt to obtain advanced degrees in exercise science-related coursework from accredited colleges and universities. Though an advanced degree is not a necessary aspect of trainers’ resumes, it shows their dedication to the profession, and can also be indicative of a wider breadth of knowledge.

Henry Ford once said, “Whether you think you can or you can’t, you’re right.” Lack of motivation is one of the major reasons people fail to start or continue a fitness program. It takes time to develop healthy habits that stick when people attempt to adopt a more active lifestyle. When I first started working out, I was fixated more with watching the clock’s hands than focusing on my exercises. It was a struggle for me to last an entire hour and the result was ineffective workouts, boredom and general disinterest in exercise.

I eventually started working out with a friend, and though I still didn’t have a solid plan, his presence helped motivate me to get to the gym and push through for an hour on a regular basis. One of the benefits of working out with trainers is they can provide the extra push to keep focused on the tasks at hand. In turn, sessions will be more successful. By making an appointment, a personal trainer will also hold you accountable for working out on a consistent basis, until patterns are developed and exercising becomes a part of your weekly routine.

The human body is a complex and mysterious machine. Learning to develop an exercise routine that maximizes your machine’s potential can be a daunting task. Throughout my years as a personal trainer, I’ve come across many people who work hard at the gym, but don’t seem to get the results they hoped for. Many times, this is because the program they select is a cookie-cutter routine pulled from the Internet or a fitness magazine. While these programs can work, they are designed like clothing from The Gap – they appeal to as broad a consumer base as possible. The problem is everyone is different. Each person has a different exercise history, different structural imbalances, different genetics, etc., and one workout does not necessarily fit all. When you work with a personal trainer, he or she uses specific assessment tools to determine your level of fitness, and takes into account personal interests, past and present injuries, and goals to put together an efficient routine that will challenge you and help you fast-track your success.

A plateau can be a menace to your successes. The word alone sends shivers down gym vets’ spines. With a well-crafted exercise plan, odds are you will see results right away, because the body is in shock and must work hard to adapt to your new lifestyle. Pounds drop, muscles pop and energy levels soar. But the shine wears off – especially if you continue with the same program with which you started. Plateaus are a common nuisance among all exercisers and they can make or break a program. The key to overcoming plateaus is keeping your body guessing and forcing it to repeatedly adapt to different stimuli.

A personal trainer can help you overcome plateaus by developing a new program, or by helping amend yours. He or she will push you a bit harder than you’re accustomed to. Let’s face it: many of us sometimes cheat our way through exercise just to get it over with. Even if you request only a few sessions, a trainer can teach you how to continuously evolve your program to avoid hitting a plateau again.

There is one thing that trumps a plateau and it’s the exercise-related injury. I mention this because so many people go into the gym with high hopes and end up with a damaged rotator cuff, lower back pain or knee injury. Often, these injuries are the result of poor form and lifting more weight than the body can handle. For those of you who have suffered an acute or chronic injury, you know how detrimental such things can be to the workout. The advice and expertise of a personal trainer from the start – or even if you are a veteran fitness enthusiast – can save you a lot of time and money and help you understand proper exercise mechanics. Once optimal form is understood and executed, you might notice you are able to progress more quickly than before. You’ll also find that your body is more capable of handling the stress placed on it while exercising. This means you will become less prone to chronic or acute injury.

Whatever your fitness goals, a personal trainer can make the difference between a so-so program or one that keeps you yearning for more. He or she can devise a long-term plan that is tailored to your specific interests and will make sure that you approach it with the appropriate knowledge for total success.

Check back for next week’s article on what to look for when shopping for a personal trainer. Ryan Halvorson is a certified personal trainer, lecturer and author. Ryan can be reached by e-mailing editor@uptownpub.com.