Personal Trainer Courses
Suspension Training Starts With Choosing A Safe Anchor Point
From the FASTER syllabus: this article is taught in full in the Suspension Training course, with the anchor checks and the session plans →
In short: Our Suspension Training (Level 2) course sets four steps before a session: confirm a risk assessment has taken place, complete a visual risk assessment, set up the equipment, and identify a suitable anchor point. A safe anchor is purpose-made or rated for the load, sits about 1.8 metres from the ground, is wrapped around a smooth bar so it cannot slide, and has at least 8 feet by 6 feet of clear space. A pipe, light fitting, radiator or someone else's door is never an anchor.
The short version
The strap gets all the attention, and the anchor does all the holding. Our Suspension Training course sets four steps before any session: a risk assessment, a visual check of the area, the equipment set up, and a suitable anchor point. The anchor rule is short: something made or rated to take a person's weight, about 1.8 metres up, wrapped round a smooth bar so it cannot slide, with clear space around it.
Key Takeaways
- Four steps come first: risk assessment confirmed, visual check of the area, equipment set up, anchor chosen.
- A good anchor is purpose-made or rated for the load, such as a ceiling or wall anchor, a rig or frame, or a solid beam or pole.
- Anchor height is about 1.8 metres, with at least 8 feet by 6 feet of clear space.
- A pipe, light fitting, radiator or a door someone else controls is never an anchor.
Why the anchor is the whole session
A suspension session depends on one anchor and one strap system. Every row and chest press a client does hangs on it, so the course treats a missed check as a real risk and not paperwork. It also reminds you that a risk assessment is a legal requirement for employers and the self-employed, and the course shows you how to write and keep one.
The three things to look at
What it is. Purpose-made or rated: a ceiling or wall anchor, a rig or frame, a solid beam or pole. The course is blunt about what to avoid, which is anything not designed to take a person's weight.
Where it sits. The manufacturer's guidance, quoted in the course, is about six feet from the ground, with the anchor wrapped around a smooth bar so it cannot slide.
What is around it. At least 8 feet by 6 feet of clear space, so a client can lean, step and move without meeting a wall or a weight rack.
The course carries on from there
The anchor is the first of a longer run: planning a session, adapting and progressing each exercise, giving feedback and asking for it back. The same structure works for one client, a small group or a circuit of stations with an easier and a harder version at each one. It is built to be visual, with figures on the lessons, and you can learn by listening, reading, writing answers or dictating them.
If you already hold a personal training qualification, the Suspension Training course adds a kit-specific route on top of what you have. If you are starting out, the Level 2 and Level 3 route is the place to begin, and the specialist courses sit on top later.
Where PT Manager fits
Once a session plan exists, PT Manager is where you keep it. The programme builder holds a card per session, and a shape you reuse becomes a template that gives each client their own copy. PT Manager opens the moment you sign up with FASTER, and adding real clients unlocks once you pass a course.
What to do next
Have a look at the Suspension Training course. FASTER Daily News sends you each day's blog links, the latest on new courses and live opportunities, and updates to PT Manager, free for students. Sign up at /newsletter.
FAQ
How high should a suspension trainer anchor be? The course quotes the manufacturer's guidance: about six feet, around 1.8 metres, from the ground, wrapped around a smooth bar so it cannot slide.
How much space does a session need? At least 8 feet by 6 feet of clear space.
What can never be an anchor? A pipe, a light fitting, a radiator or a door someone else controls. Anything not designed to take a person's weight is out.
You just read one answer. The course is all of them.
the Suspension Training course, with the anchor checks and the session plans: every answer marked by a real tutor, with free return access for life. The price is on the page, payment plans at checkout, no sales calls.
Also worth a look: PT Manager, free with any FASTER course.
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Frequently asked
How high should a suspension trainer anchor be?
The course quotes the manufacturer's guidance: about six feet, around 1.8 metres, from the ground, wrapped around a smooth bar so it cannot slide.
How much space does a session need?
At least 8 feet by 6 feet of clear space.
What can never be an anchor?
A pipe, a light fitting, a radiator or a door someone else controls. Anything not designed to take a person's weight is out.
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