Personal training, whether you do it at your local gym, or through an app, is a great profession that allows you to stay healthy while working. But if you're finding it difficult to find clients, here are some side hustle suggestions to earn extra money.
Find locals looking for pop-up classes
Besides gyms and fitness apps, there are also more casual clients you could be reaching locally. You could teach group sessions at your local park, which are more accessible, and should appeal to those intimidated by the gym.
You get to keep 100% of the revenue teaching pop-up classes in the park, and you can schedule the sessions for exactly when you want. It might also lead to you finding more one on one clients, who use the pop-up class as a stepping stone to more intense fitness.
The only obvious downside with running pop-up classes in the park is that you're beholden to the weather, and we don't all live in California. But at least during the summer months, this could provide a great way for you to make extra money as a personal trainer.
To begin, I recommend creating a pamphlet (you can get professionally designed pamphlets for as little as $30 on Fiverr) and then either printing a few thousand copies to post locally, or upload it to NextDoor with a post to your neighbors.
Start modelling
While becoming a full-time model would require a lot more work and preparation than you want for a side-gig, you probably have the physique to at least find freelance modelling work.
Many of these gigs only expect entry-level models, and to get started, all you will need are some professional photos to submit with your application (which can be as cheap as $200 if you're prepared to travel to the photographer).
You may even be able to find work from home opportunities, which, although rare, do exist on sites like Upwork. For instance, at the time of writing, there is an advert looking for female fitness models to take photos at home. This is for a gym brand who need to produce authentic-looking social media content, and they are paying a fixed $100 for only a handful of selfies wearing their equipment.
With a strong application, modelling could allow you to make money as a personal trainer every weekend. And you would be doing something less physically intense than your day job.
Use Freecash to earn from home
I wanted to include just one suggestion that requires no physical activity, and which can in fact be done from bed, for those personal fitness coaches who want some downtime with their side hustle. And for that, a task a site like Freecash is perfect.
On Freecash, you earn money from your phone or laptop by completing tasks online, from testing new games to answering surveys. And when you want to cash out, you can do so instantly via bank transfer or PayPal.
The money varies, with average users making about $35 daily, and top earners making over $5000 a month. But if you can make it onto the leaderboard, you will also earn additional bonuses up to $500.
Of course, this is the opposite of an active side hustle, but as mentioned, it could be a good option for personal fitness coaches that want a more relaxing side gig. You can check out the Trustpilot here to see what other users have to say.