Years ago, 1985, in NSW a gym chain called John Valentine collapsed and the labour government set up a committee to try to regulate the industry. From those times a couple of groups have offered fitness leader courses. Later some Techs offered courses for instructors. Well, I have had several of those graduates at my gym. Most are not qualified to instruct advanced people and I would not hire them without first teaching them more about how to instruct. Just because someone gets a certificate or two doesn't make them qualified. The governments are simply people who appoint or employ someone to monitor those industries and set up standards. Can anyone who has reached a high standard in bodybuilding honestly accept that Techs and short courses are going to properly train instructors to be professionals? That isn't going to happen. In most professions one needs at least 4 years of specialized training and education to be qualified. Gym instructors and personal trainers think they are experts in a very short time. Some might be but the vast majority are not.
I have told Goodrum that I can teach the people who give these courses. He scoffed at me. What would he know, anyway? But that is the truth. I am a teacher and I know a bit about the profession of owning a gym and preparing instructors.
