There was a time when gyms were the ‘go-to’ name in terms of business opportunities and earning a quick buck. When the fitness boom came, gyms started sprouting across the country. Every small town, village, and every corner of the street in the bigger cities, now had a gym.
Who owned those gyms?
What were the regulations?
What are the educational qualification of owner or the coaches?
What malpractices are being followed inside the gym premises, in terms of selling illegal steroids and useless supplements?
No one knew, and nobody cared. And still, no one does.
But slowly the false curtain of huge earnings faded away. People came face to face with the harsh reality of not just owning but operating a gym. Rising electricity costs, massive rentals, huge salaries and miscellaneous expenses at the end of every month, was no more fun.
On top of that, the risk of gyms being sealed anytime being on an unregulated land, government authorities extorting money every now and then, and not forgetting the headache of dealing with unreasonable demands of few stupid clients, took a toll on most of the existing gym owners, especially the ones whose primary aim for opening a gym was to simply earn money, by hook or crook.
That was a reason most people with similar thought patterns started shifting their focus from gyms to fitness education.
Why? Because it involved much less infrastructure, not much of salaries or overhead expenses (much lesser as compared to operating a gym), and just like gyms, absolutely no regulation. But the earning opportunities were similar and even more sometimes.
As a result, almost very Tom, Dick & Harry started opening fitness education institutes in India. Suddenly, the internet was full of overnight institutes offering small or big courses and certifications in every possible subject. Earlier what were subjects to read, and learn, now turned into courses and certifications.
Education? What’s that?
Just find innocent youngsters from small towns and villages (which India has ample), promise them heaven in terms of high earnings and amazing jobs (which don’t exist), and just give them a certificate in the name of fitness education. Thereafter, thank you very much!!
Such false institutes are everywhere today, and they are blatantly lying and scamming people. Charging hefty fee in the name of some international accreditation, promising them international jobs, offering job guarantees etc. are some of the common carrots used to lure these innocent youngsters in the name of fitness education.
But the reality of jobs vs certifications in India is straight, open and quite bitter.
Sometime back I made a video on one such topic on my channel WE R STUPID, wherein I exposed the fact that how an internationally certified fitness professional in India, with a background of engineering, was offered a salary of just 6-8k/month, not from one gym but multiple gyms. He still has the offer letters.
The amount offered included everything i.e. food and travel, and everything in between. These are less than the minimal wage charges of a casual laborer in India. And, this is the bitter truth you need to see and realize.
Most of the gyms, as I have discussed before in my videos and blogs, are owned by the very same people, who now are into the education business.
Mind you, its education business, as education is nothing more than a business for them. Which is fine, there is no harm in earning money. But, when you remove the word ‘education’ as a prefix and instead use the term ‘business of education’, then the problem arises. That’s what is now happening in over 90% of the fitness educational institutes.
These run-of-the-mill, overnight certification printing shops, are not interested in educating you, as they themselves are not. They want people in volume, and this is what this country is rich in, more number of people.
There are many youngsters, who want to make a career in fitness, who come from small towns and villages, with a dream to do good for themselves and their families. But they get entangled in the net of these wolves, who then bite away every bit of flesh from their bones, leaving them dry and dead.
Please understand this thing before you plan to enter this field as a career, and for that matter various other fields. The reality of jobs vs certifications in India is very different than what is advertised. There are not many jobs out there.
Openings do come, but salary packages offered are so less that it’s better to choose a job of a laborer, than a coach or a trainer.
The number of gyms or fitness centers are quite limited, and the openings don’t come often, because the old trainers do not want to leave their jobs, due to the extreme uncertainty in the market.
For e.g. in my gyms, we offer some of the highest salary packages in the country. With a fixed base salary, there are excellent incentives on the personal training clients.
It has happened a few times that, one odd trainer after couple of years, wanted to switch. But every single person who took this decision, came back to the gym, within a month or so.
Why? Because when they go out in the market, they are hit on the face with the reality of the scenario of jobs vs certifications in India . How rampant is the exploitation in this sector. They are not even able to take out their food expenses, forget about their family expenses, EMIs and other expenditures.
These fitness institutes offering you job assistance, don’t have any jobs to offer. Most of them are lying about the scenario of jobs vs certifications in India , and care two hoots about your future. Barring a handful of job opportunities in this sector, most of the people are somehow managing with meagre jobs and salaries.
International jobs? Forget it, there are hardly jobs in India, a reason I made complete videos on fitness careers which included multiple income sources through which people can generate revenue.
Any institute promising you international jobs is simply lying to you. These are fake promises.
Think for yourself, when there are no jobs for top professionals like doctors, scientists, engineers, lawyers etc. with proper degrees and a biodata full of qualifications; you think, you will get a job in another country on the basis of a local certificate?
You think Indian fitness trainers are so much in demand that they will get a visa and a work permit for job as a fitness professional in other countries? It’s a joke which is being played by you.
No certificate, as good as it be, even the best of international certifications valid worldwide, will not give any job guarantee outside India. Trainer is not a skilled labor or a technical profession. No country needs a fitness trainer or coach or a dietician. There are much more qualified fitness and nutrition professionals in these countries with masters and doctorates from top universities under their belt.
There can be nothing funnier and more absurd than believing in such nonsense and fake promises. That’s why I have been harping upon since the very beginning, that you need excellent education, knowledge, skills and experience to make it big in this field. And all this takes years of dedication and persistent hard work.
