What is the best conference for personal trainers?
There can only one answer for me: the IDEA World Fitness Convention. The session selection for personal trainers is just as comprehensive as in the convention geared towards personal trainers, but I love the additional focus on group fitness in its myriad of forms.
Another reason why I love IDEA over other events is that the presenters come from a greater variety of backgrounds and philosophies. You get presenters like Greg Roskopf, Tom Purvis, Gary Gray, Chuck Wolf, Peter Twist, Douglas Brooks, Paul Chek and many more who all have their own views. While it was daunting for me at first, I have come to appreciate this variety of approaches and schools of thought.
As all of them put it: you can never have too many tools in your toolbox. As our clients have all very different wants and needs, as trainers we cannot be to flexible in our approach as long as we adhere to certain ‘inalienable truths’.
Perhaps what determines your choice, in conferences, is the workshops, the learning focus and the location. Review the conference presentations: get a feel for the emphasis and direction, are the presenters the top in their field, are the topics of value to you, are energetic classes important or is scientific research, or both? Sometimes you may want to explore a conference you have never attended for the experience, the colleagues, the material, and the focus.