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The differences between personal trainers and exercise physiologists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 6-12 months to become a personal trainer, becoming an exercise physiologist takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, an exercise physiologist has an average salary of $49,399, which is higher than the $37,214 average annual salary of a personal trainer.
The top three skills for a personal trainer include CPR, customer service and resuscitation. The most important skills for an exercise physiologist are patients, rehabilitation, and cardiac rehabilitation.
| Personal Trainer | Exercise Physiologist | |
| Yearly salary | $37,214 | $49,399 |
| Hourly rate | $17.89 | $23.75 |
| Growth rate | 19% | 9% |
| Number of jobs | 34,023 | 38,633 |
| Job satisfaction | 5 | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 67% | Bachelor's Degree, 74% |
| Average age | 37 | 38 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 2 |
A personal trainer is responsible for monitoring the client's fitness goals by assisting the client with specific and customized routines and exercises to promote healthy well-being. Duties of a personal trainer also include evaluating the client's fitness progress, creating safe programs to improve the client's stamina, educating the client with workout benefits, suggesting on a client's best nutrition plans, and motivating clients with their capabilities. A personal trainer should have excellent knowledge of the fitness industry to support the client's needs.
An exercise physiologist is a health professional who analyzes the fitness of patients to help them improve their health or maintain good health. Exercise physiologists are required to help patients with heart diseases and other chronic conditions such as diabetes or pulmonary disease to regain their health. Certified exercise physiologists must administer exercise stress tests in health and unhealthy populations. They also assist both amateur and professional athletes in helping them boost their performance in sports.
Personal trainers and exercise physiologists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Personal Trainer | Exercise Physiologist | |
| Average salary | $37,214 | $49,399 |
| Salary range | Between $26,000 And $53,000 | Between $29,000 And $82,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Fairfield, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | Alaska |
| Best paying company | AEA Investors | Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center |
| Best paying industry | Retail | Health Care |
There are a few differences between a personal trainer and an exercise physiologist in terms of educational background:
| Personal Trainer | Exercise Physiologist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 67% | Bachelor's Degree, 74% |
| Most common major | Kinesiology | Kinesiology |
| Most common college | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill |
Here are the differences between personal trainers' and exercise physiologists' demographics:
| Personal Trainer | Exercise Physiologist | |
| Average age | 37 | 38 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 63.3% Female, 36.7% | Male, 45.5% Female, 54.5% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 7.1% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 10.6% Asian, 5.1% White, 71.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% | Black or African American, 11.9% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 16.4% Asian, 5.3% White, 61.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 13% | 13% |