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For personal trainers and coaches: building genetic results safely into your coaching

Reviewed by Dr. Daniel Wallerstorfer, molecular biologist and founder of Novogenia · Updated: 15 October 2026 · Reading time: 10 min

In short

As a personal trainer or coach, you are the translator between the genetic report and everyday life: Novogenia analyzes and interprets, and you turn tendencies toward power, endurance or recovery into a training plan – letting the measured response have the final word. Your boundary is medicine: no diagnoses, no treatment, no predictions of injuries or diseases. You can start with a partner shop with no setup fees and no inventory. In Switzerland, trainers may not order genetic analyses themselves; there you work with a health professional listed in Art. 40 GUMV.

What a personal trainer achieves – in numbers

Does a personal trainer really deliver more than members training on their own? Researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles, tested this in a fitness club. Thirty-four men aged 30 to 44, all members of the same club, trained three times a week for twelve weeks. Half worked with a personal trainer on a periodized, evidence-based program; the other half trained on their own.

The difference was clear: the coached group gained 1.3 kg of lean body mass, the self-directed group none. Chest press strength rose by 42% versus 19%, leg power by 6% versus 0.6%, and maximal oxygen uptake by 7% versus −0.3% (Storer et al., Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 2014). An earlier study had already shown that men under direct supervision trained with heavier loads and therefore gained more maximal strength (Mazzetti et al., Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 2000).

The logical conclusion: your core business is adapting training to the individual. A genetic analysis adds another layer of information to that work. Think of it as a tailor’s tape measure: it provides measurements you cannot see from the outside. The tailor still cuts the suit – and has the client try it on before it is finished. That almost everyone responds to training once the dose is right is shown in Personalizing training with genetic data.

Your role: translating between report and training

At Novogenia, the work is clearly divided. The lab analyzes the saliva sample, Novogenia interprets non-medical analyses and delivers the report. Your job starts where the report ends: you translate tendencies into training and everyday life.

Performance analysis: tendencies toward power or endurance, VO2max potential and recovery – material for priorities, expectations and recovery planning. Details in The performance analysis.
Nutrition and weight analyses: for example, how your client breaks down caffeine or how their body responds to exercise or fewer calories – more in Sports nutrition by genetic profile.

How to turn results into a training plan step by step is shown in Personalizing training with genetic data; a six-step method is described in Genetics in training. The rule of thumb behind it: the measured response beats the predisposition.

How the analysis fits into your coaching

Phase	What the genetic analysis contributes	What you measure
First consultation	Clarifying whether an analysis helps with the goal – and which one	baseline tests, training history, time budget, warning signs
Planning	focus on power or endurance, recovery needs, expectations	baseline values for comparison
Training block	a rationale for the type and dose of training	training log, well-being, sleep
Retest	a check: does the tendency match the actual response?	the same tests as at the start
Adjustment	the report as a conversation starter for new goals	the plan for the next block

This works in online coaching, too. In Germany and Austria, your client takes the saliva sample at home with the kit; the lab analyzes it in 4 days, and the report is delivered digitally in up to 18 languages – handy if you coach internationally. Different rules apply to clients in Switzerland (see below).

Where coaching ends and medicine begins

Novogenia’s lifestyle analyses are not a diagnosis, not medical advice and no substitute for a medical examination. Your role is just as clear:

Germany: Diagnosing, curing or alleviating diseases, ailments or bodily injuries is the practice of medicine. Anyone who is not a licensed physician needs a permit for it (§ 1 Heilpraktikergesetz).
Austria: Examining for diseases, treating them and preventing them are part of the medical profession (§ 2(2) Physicians Act 1998), whose independent practice is reserved for physicians (§ 3(1)).
Switzerland: Here the line comes even earlier. Trainers may not order genetic analyses on sport and nutrition at all, and analyses on the risk of sports injuries count as medical (Art. 37(2) GUMV).

In everyday practice, this means: pain, injuries, diseases, medication, pregnancy or a suspected eating disorder are warning signs. Refer your client to a physician or physical therapist, and adapt the training afterward.

What you may say – and what you had better not

A good sentence about a genetic result has three parts: what the genes suggest, what that means and what it does not, and what you will do next.

Topic	Not like this	Like this
Endurance	“With your genes, you will never run a marathon.”	“Your result shows a tendency. How far you get depends on your training – we measure your progress against yourself.”
Recovery	“Because of your genes, you need a supplement for recovery.”	“Plan more recovery: sleep, easy sessions, breaks between hard days.”
Supplements	“Magnesium speeds up your recovery.”	“Magnesium contributes to normal muscle function.” (authorized claim under Regulation (EU) No 432/2012)
Health	“Your test shows that your heart is healthy.”	“The analysis says nothing about diseases. That is what your physician is for.”
Training load	“Your genes predict an injury.”	“We increase the load step by step and watch for warning signs. Please have any pain checked.”
Results	“With the gene plan, you are guaranteed to build muscle.”	“The plan is tailored to you. Whether it works will show in your numbers after the training block.”

Novogenia reports deliberately describe genes simply as “functioning” or “impaired” – a simplification you are welcome to use in your conversations. More example sentences are in Explaining genetic reports.

Nutrition and supplements: advising within limits

Many clients ask their trainer about nutrition first. The genetic analysis gives you good starting points. For personalized supplements, an algorithm calculates the formula from about 50 genes, a questionnaire and, where available, blood values, which take precedence. Competitive sport raises the calculated requirement; every dose stays within fixed limits, at most up to the EFSA tolerable upper intake level. Protein powder, creatine and electrolyte drinks are not part of the range. For your advice, this means:

Ask about every supplement your client already takes – those amounts come on top of the formula.
With diseases, medication, pregnancy or breastfeeding, the question belongs in a physician’s hands.
Clients subject to doping controls are themselves responsible for everything they take. Every Novogenia raw material is screened for doping substances, among other tests – more in Anti-doping: using supplements safely.

How the formula for athletes is put together is explained in Micronutrients for athletes.

Making the analysis part of your offer

As a self-employed trainer, you need neither inventory nor a lab. Two routes fit particularly well:

Partner shop: You get your own online shop. Your client orders there; Novogenia ships the kit, runs the analysis and delivers the products. You earn a commission on every order, and there are no setup fees.
White label: analyses and supplements under your own brand, with the saliva kit branded on request; supplements from a single unit.

A coaching package is the natural format: baseline tests, analysis, report session, a training block and a retest. Because one delivery of personalized supplements lasts 90 days, a quarterly check-in is a good fit. You can prepare with the free NOVO Academy: the course on athletic performance explains which genes influence athlete type, connective tissue and recovery, and how to use the data for coaching and training plans; there is a certificate for each completed topic. More on the models in Nutrigenetics as a service: partner and white-label models.

Switzerland: coaching yes, ordering no

In Switzerland, the Federal Act on Human Genetic Testing (GUMG) also covers genetic analyses outside medicine. Analyses on sporting activity may only be ordered there by health professionals who are authorized to practice under their own professional responsibility and have acquired knowledge of human genetics in their education and training (Art. 34(1) GUMG). Art. 40 of the GUMV specifies who they are: for physiological characteristics, for example, physiotherapists FH and nutritionists FH. Personal trainers and coaches are not among them. For your work, this means:

You work with such a professional, who orders the analysis and works in the relevant field (Art. 34(2) GUMG).
The saliva sample is taken in their presence (Art. 34(3) GUMG); mailing a kit to online clients in Switzerland is ruled out (Art. 13 GUMG).
You use the report only if your client agrees (Art. 7(2) GUMG).
Analysis in the lab in Austria requires your client’s written consent (Art. 36 in conjunction with Art. 29 GUMG).
Advertising for the analysis informs about the legal requirements and must not be misleading (Art. 14(3) GUMG).

The difference from Germany and Austria: there, you can offer non-medical analyses yourself, and the sample may be taken at home. An overview of all three countries is in Who may offer genetic tests?.

Checklist for your coaching

Goal, baseline tests and warning signs recorded before you recommend an analysis.
Non-medical analyses only; diagnosis and treatment stay with physicians.
Consent clarified, including whether you see the report.
Results explained as tendencies – no talent verdict, no prediction.
Supplements promoted only with authorized claims, other supplements asked about.
Retest planned: the measured response has the final word.
In Switzerland: cooperation with a professional under Art. 40 GUMV, samples taken in their presence.

How we do it at Novogenia

How we support personal trainers and coaches at Novogenia:

Interpretation included: Novogenia analyzes and interprets non-medical analyses and delivers the report; you translate it into training.
Location-independent: saliva sample with a kit, analysis in 4 days in our own lab in Eugendorf near Salzburg, Austria, digital report in up to 18 languages; in Switzerland, samples are taken only on site, in the presence of the ordering professional.
Access by choice: You decide whether you see your clients’ reports.
No inventory: your own partner shop with no setup fees and a commission on every order, or white label under your brand.
Supplements: personalized, in daily sachets; one delivery lasts 90 days. Competitive sport raises the calculated requirement, and every dose stays at or below the EFSA tolerable upper intake level.
Training: NOVO Academy, free of charge, with a dedicated course on athletic performance and a certificate for each completed topic.

Frequently asked questions

May I offer genetic analyses as a personal trainer?

In Germany and Austria, you can offer non-medical analyses on sport, nutrition and weight. Diagnosing and treating disease is the practice of medicine – in Germany under § 1 of the Heilpraktikergesetz, in Austria under § 2 of the Physicians Act 1998. In Switzerland, only health professionals listed in Art. 40 GUMV may order such analyses, and trainers are not among them. There, you work with one of these professionals.

Can I use genetic analyses in online coaching?

In Germany and Austria, yes: your client takes the saliva sample at home with the kit, and the report arrives digitally in up to 18 languages. This does not apply to clients in Switzerland: there, the sample is taken in the presence of the ordering professional, and self-test kits are not allowed for these analyses (Art. 34(3) and Art. 13 GUMG).

Do I need expertise in genetics to discuss reports?

You do not need a degree. Novogenia interprets non-medical analyses and delivers a report that deliberately describes genes simply as “functioning” or “impaired”. You can prepare in the free NOVO Academy, which has a dedicated course on athletic performance and a certificate for each completed topic. Medical questions go to physicians.

May I recommend supplements?

You can present personalized supplements as part of your offer. Use only authorized health claims, such as “Magnesium contributes to normal muscle function”, and always ask about medication, pregnancy, breastfeeding and other supplements. If there is a disease, the question belongs in a physician’s hands.

Do I automatically see my clients' reports?

No. At Novogenia, you decide whether you see reports. If you do, your client must know this in advance and give explicit consent – genetic data are specially protected under Art. 9 GDPR. In Switzerland, information from a genetic test may be shared with other persons only with the consent of the person tested (Art. 7(2) GUMG).

Genetic analyses for your gym or team?

Tell us about your gym, team or clients – we will show you which model fits.

Request a project →Performance analysis

Note: This guide is general information for businesses and professionals and does not replace medical or legal advice. The genetic traits determined in a genetic analysis are well documented (each gene included is backed by at least three independent studies); recommendations derived from them are logical conclusions, not scientifically proven. Regulations can change; errors and changes excepted.