Personal Trainer: Worth it, or not?

[SketchMaster]

Bit of a noob, so bear with me. I've been looking around trying to get some advice on this, so I figured I'd ask here as well.

When I was on a contract overseas I got into a crossfit group and mostly enjoyed it, but fell out of it when I got home. I tried getting back into it six months later but made a realization that CF may not be best for me after all. I went to a Crossfit Box a Coworker recommended and a trainer there tried to break my back by giving me too much wight for Good Mornings, even after I told her I had a bad back. CF is kinda sketchy in the fact that finding someone that actually knows what they are doing is hard enough, but then I have the issue of people not realizing I have some strict limits and try to convince me to push harder.

My L5 got messed up years back and I was in PT for a few months to fix the pinched nerves, both my shoulders grind/Pop, one of my knees are questionable and recently ran into an issue with my ankle. So, yeah... I'm a bit of a mess. CF is great for other people but I think I'm going to look at other options.

I've been trying to decide if I want to shell out the money for a good Personal Trainer. For one thing to be taught how to do things correctly and limit the risk of injury, and to also have someone that will know how to work around/with my trouble areas. I'm not looking to compete in anything, just want good overall fitness and work on my range of motion and stability.

So two questions:

1.) Would a personal trainer be worth it for me?

2.) What should I look for in a trainer to keep from wasting time and money?

 

[Corporate Thug]

Normally I would say no but in the case of an injury, it may be worth it. Honestly, you should be able to most everything down pat in ~ a month so it's not going to cost you a ton of money.

 

[purbeast0]

i say go for it. but only do it to learn, then once you know how to do stuff you should stop paying, unless you like how they push you.

also though, make sure you get a good personal trainer. not really sure how to figure out who is good and who isn't, but my 10+ years in the gym i've definitely seen my fair share of bad personal trainers, teaching people bad forms and stupid exercises.

 

[SociallyChallenged]

Actually, a personal trainer is not really going to make much into mind with your low back injury. A sports and conditioning specialist (CSCS acronym after one's name) or physical therapist would take a lot more into mind and screen you for injury/specific weakness. They may or may not be more expensive, especially depending on what personal trainers you're comparing price to.

 

[JohnShadows]

No. Yell at yourself, no matter how weird it looks.