A HEALTH and fitness expert from the region will share his expertise thousands of miles away when his book is published in China.

Morc Coulson, a senior lecturer in sport and exercise science at the University of Sunderland, has been involved in the health and fitness industry for two decades and has written key texts for students and institutions around the UK and overseas.

He recently updated his handbook for personal trainers – the tenth book in his Complete Guide Series – and publisher Bloomsbury has sold the rights for it to be translated into Chinese.

A China-based publisher will then sell it across the country, where the fitness market is enjoying a boom with huge potential for further growth as residents seek a healthier lifestyle and relief from mounting work pressure.

According to the General Administration of Sports of China, by 2020, 700 million people in China are expected to work out once a week and those who hit the gym regularly will exceed 435 million.

Mr Coulson, who was chair of the CPD endorsement panel at Skills Active, the Sector Skills Council for Active Leisure, for many years, said: “I’m delighted that my knowledge of the industry is now being shared on a truly global platform. I know we’ve sold copies across Europe and in particular the US, but this is great to be reaching a market which is really seeing huge growth.

“There’s a real surge in China right now to improve health and physical fitness coupled with athletic achievements.”

Morc added: “I wrote my first guide to personal training five years ago, but because knowledge in health and fitness areas and trends have shifted rapidly I constantly need to reflect the changes in national occupational standards. We are talking about trends such as HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training), boot camps, suspension training and kettlebells.

“Health and fitness is now provided as a service and most personal trainers are self-employed so I have tried to build a portrait of everything that’s needed as a personal trainer, and that includes creating an identity, as without that you are just one of the thousands of trainers struggling to get clients. They need to focus on specialist areas that will make them stand out, that could be anything from older clients to those with specific health conditions.

“A lot of personal trainers are already adding additional qualifications such as sports therapy and sport massage to their CV, hopefully the Complete Guide will help them find that edge. This is something we also teach our students, it’s a core text that can provide a stepping stone that gives them that extra continued professional development in a highly competitive industry.”