Picking a personal trainer

In addition, you'll want to find someone with good references and with whom you feel comfortable.

Just keep your expectations in check. Don't look to a personal trainer to perform miracles for you. Hourly sessions with a trainer can help, but "what about the other 23 hours?" asks Shannon Morgan, a personal trainer in Newport Beach, Calif.

The hardest part of staying fit can be sticking with your exercise and diet plan when there isn't someone watching over you.

Buddy up, cut costs
Q: I would love to hire a personal trainer but I can't afford one. Any advice?

A: Keep in mind that not everyone hires a personal trainer to work with them every week. Some people just need a few initial consultations to get them on the right track. Others might check in with a trainer a couple times a month, or even less often, for encouragement, support or to monitor their progress.

Others pair up with a buddy to share the costs of personal training, a practice that appears to be on the rise, according to a survey of 281 fitness clubs in the United States and Canada that was released last year by the IDEA Health and Fitness Association in San Diego.

In 2004, 65 percent of clubs surveyed offered personal training with two clients, compared with 42 percent in 1998. And 42 percent of clubs offered personal training involving three to five people in 2004, compared with 33 percent in 1998.

IDEA executive director Kathie Davis says pairing up for personal training not only saves money but can also help you stay on track because you have someone else keeping you company — and pushing you to show up.

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