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Are you passionate about health and fitness? What if you could turn this passion into a living? There are many jobs that are ideal for those that love health and fitness. Here are just a few careers to consider.

Personal trainer

Personal trainers specialise in helping other people to meet their fitness goals. It’s an ideal job for people that love exercise – you’ll need a knowledge and passion for exercise and you’ll need to be able to be able to motivate others to work out.

To become a personal trainer, you usually need some form of personal training qualification. There are various courses that you can take from various official bodies to get these qualifications.

Most personal trainers start out by working in a gym. This provides the perfect environment for meeting and training clients, plus you can earn a small salary from the gym to help support you whilst you build up clients. You may also be able to market yourself online and attract clients this way.

It’s worth finding a niche as a personal trainer as this can help you stand out. Common niches include weight loss, bodybuilding, marathon training and senior personal training. Being an expert within your niche could allow you to charge more money and earn more.

Sports coach/instructor

Sports coaching/instructing is great for those that are passionate about a particular sport. It could allow you to pass on your knowledge and possibly help others nurture their passion for the sport. Such sports could include anything from tennis to boxing to yoga. 

Becoming a sports coach usually involves reaching a high level within a sport and then taking a coaching course from an official body within that sport. You may then be able to open up your own class or club.

Sports coaches often have to teach exercises and may even help athletes with nutrition in some cases. Depending on the sport, you may decide to teach a group or teach people individually.

Gym teacher

You could also consider working as a gym teacher. Gym teachers work within schools teaching kids various sports and exercises. You get to work regular weekday hours, plus you’re on a regular wage – which can make it more stable than being a sports coach or personal trainer.

To become a gym teacher, you usually need some form of degree. Health and physical education are two popular degrees that gym teachers tend to take. After this, you’ll need to take a teaching course and obtain certification.

Both high schools and elementary schools take on gym teachers. You’ll need to search around to find vacancies.

Physiotherapist

Physiotherapists helps to restore movement and function to people who have experienced injuries or disability. Such work requires people to be physically fit and to have a good knowledge of muscles and joints, as well as various stretches and exercises that may benefit them.

You usually need a degree in order to pursue a course in physiotherapy. There are a number of different courses that you can also look into that may also provide official qualifications necessary to become a physiotherapist.

A number of different places may hire physiotherapists including physiotherapy clinics, gyms, hospitals, nursing homes and rehabilitation centres. It’s also possible to work freelance – however you may want to build up some experience first working for an employer.

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Spa therapist

Spa therapy could also be a career to consider if you’re interested in health and fitness. As a spa therapist you’ll offer treatments to help people destress such as massages, acupressure and perhaps even acupuncture. Spa therapists are also often trained to carry out various beauty therapy treatments such as pedicures, manicures and facials.

There are various courses that you can take in spa therapy in order to get qualified. These include specialist courses like massage therapy and more general spa therapy courses.

You may be able to find work at a local spa clinic or at a spa centre. If you plan to work in a large and notable spa, you may need experience elsewhere first.

Occupational therapist

Occupational therapists help people to manage their disabilities, often helping people with day to day tasks as well as helping these people in the workplace. Occupational therapists may also help people to obtain the freedom to continue leisure activities including sports and exercise.

To become an occupational therapist, you usually need to take a course and get official qualifications. There may be different types of occupational therapy course that you can take in order to specialise in certain disabilities.

Occupational therapists can find work in all kinds of settings ranging from hospitals to nursing homes to schools to workplaces. It’s possible to work privately as an occupational therapist, however many people start off in this profession by working for an employer.

Nutritionist

If you’re passionate about diet and food, a career as a nutritionist could be another option. Nutritionists help clients to eat the right foods in order to reach fitness goals or in order to work around allergies and conditions.

If you want to become a recognized nutritionist, it’s worth taking a course in nutrition or a bioscience degree. Alternatively, you may be able to build up professional experience for seven years in a related field such as food science or weight loss.

Nutritionists can find work in a variety of settings ranging from schools to hospitals. You may even be able to work for a food company or even work within animal nutrition. There are opportunities to go freelance as a nutritionist as some people will hire private nutritionists.

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Lifeguard

For those that love swimming, there could also be the opportunity of a career as a lifeguard.

Being a lifeguard requires being physically healthy and a strong swimmer. You’ll usually have to take a course that tests your swimming ability to ensure that you have what it takes to help someone in an emergency.

Lifeguards are commonly employed by public swimming pools but may also be employed around lakes and at beaches. Look out for advertisements within your local area to apply to. 

Nurse

Nursing could be another job to consider if you’re passionate about health and helping others. To become a nurse, you need to be physically fit and you need to have a good understanding of the human body.

A degree in nursing or a nursing masters degree could help you to get into this field. Once you’ve graduated, you’ll then need to take on-the-job training until you are fully qualified.

Nurses are most commonly hired by hospitals and local clinics, however there are also at-home nurses and school nurses and cruise ship nurses. Most people start by working in a hospital, building up experience here before finding work elsewhere. Nursing vacancies are often not difficult to find – by searching online, you can usually find recruitment ads. 

Firefighter

Becoming a firefighter could be another option for those that are passionate about health and fitness. This is a very physical role and working out is important in order to be fit enough for the job. It’s also a very rewarding job that could allow you to save lives.

You don’t need any higher education to become a firefighter, but a high school diploma is often looked highly upon. You’ll then need to take firefighter tests and possibly obtain an EMT license depending on the state you live in.

There are fire stations across the country where you can look for vacancies. Recruitment fairs can sometimes be a great place to talk to fire service recruiters and find opportunities.  

 

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