Question About Personal Training Certifications

by jedward on Apr 15, 2009 11:45 PM EDT Comment 3 comments

Hey, I have recently begun looking into becoming certified as a personal trainer. I'm kind of curious as to how I would start out doing that. One of the reasons I want to start with it is because I now work out at a Gold's Gym, and I sometimes have to bite my tongue when I hear some of the advice given by the trainers. ("You know you're doing it right if it hurts bad.") I've been working out for about 10 years now, and have very slowly gotten to a place where I take care of myself and also push myself, and have gotten a lot of good advice (both of my parents are physical therapists) and bad advice ("You know, I think you could compete in this show coming up if you were willing to make a few adjustments. They don't test."). When I started, I just wanted to get huge. Now, I'm more interested in general health and taking care of my body.

Anyway, I've looked into the certifications, and there are quite a few. A friend of mine who is a trainer in Portland recommends the NASM certification, because that's how he started. He also said that the NSCA is a pretty well respected certification. I would start off with one of the certifications, and then look into a degree in either kinesiology or exercise science.

I have just started looking into this, and I'm not really sure how to start. The reason I asked on this particular website is because I've been reading it for a few months and I agree a lot more with the philosophies espoused here than I do with a lot of the trainers I've met. Any advice on how to get started with this career path would be greatly appreciated.

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Hello. I am a personal trainer and I also certify personal trainers. Let me try to give you some help and hopefully save you some money and time as you try to become a personal trainer. Print this up so you can review it later as you move froward as a personal trainer.

1. Don’t worry about having the ‘best cert’. Sometimes people say this or that is “the best cert” and some health clubs will try to push you into getting a certain kind of cert. All certifications teach basically the same core materials. Its also a fact that your future clients will probably never ask you who you are certified by. the public does not know the difference between NASM, ACSM, NSCA, ACE etc. Ive been a personal trainer for over a dozen years and nobody ever asked me who I was certified by. All people care about is can you help them and answer their questions correctly.

2. There are many certs out there. I am biased against “online” certs because they don’t hold as much weight as those taken in a class room setting. Certs should also have a practical component where you show someone how to perform some basic exercises etc.

3. The NSCA is a good organization. it is who I am certified by. they are creditably and support research on exercise and health. They do tend to be very much into strength training and power however this seems to be changing. The ACSM is also very reliable however they tend to be overly bogged down in a lot of math and metabolic calculations that as a personal trainer you probably will not use unless you are in a cardiac rehab center. however they are also scientists and their exercise guidelines are the ones that most other organizations follow as gospel.

4. Whatever cert you decide to get, make sure its accepted by a variety of health clubs. ask them all for a list they like and they will tell you. most accept the following: ACE, AFAA, AAAI/ISMA, NASM, NSCA, ISSA and NPTI. Which ever cert you get, you should also have an CPR/AED certification. this is very important as you may need it one day. Health clubs will probably also give you special consideration if you already have a CPR/AED cert when you apply for a job. Also, after you get your cert, you need to keep educating yourself. ALL CERTs are basically “learners permits”. They only demonstrated that you know the “minimum” basic knowledge. Your clients will want and expect you to know more than the minimum. this is especially true if you are interacting with others like PTs, doctors, chiropractors etc.

5. if you are just starting out learn all you can by working in a health club. Eventually however you may want to go in business for yourself. if you do that you will need some liability insurance. its pretty cheap costing about $200 a year.

6. Personal trainers are members of the health care system, just like nurses, doctors, massage therapists etc. Because of this you need to be familiar with more than just lifting weights. people will come to you with a variety of health issues and needs and you need to know you to prescribe exercise wisely. Remember, exercise is the most powerful “medicine” out there – studies show it can simultaneity reduce the risk of a number of issues ranging from heart disease, cancers, stroke, osteoporosis, Alzheimer’s disease and many others. The trick is knowing how much and what type of exercise is best. For example, you should never have a person with osteoporosis do crunches. Crunches are known to increase the risk of fractures of the spinal cord in those with osteoporosis. Many personal trainers do not know this.

I hope this helps you. If you are just starting out, I do recommend that you read my book on personal training: Personal Fitness Training Beyond the Basics. My book is easy to read and is a road map to help you avoid mistakes and outshine most others out there. Any book on personal training can help. As a personal trainer who teaches personal training, I have a perspective that few others have.
Much regards and let me know if I can be of any further service.
Joe
Joe Cannon, MS, CSCS, NSCA-CPT
website: www.Joe-Cannon.com
Blog: www.Joe-Cannon.blogspot.com

by Joe Cannon MS CSCS on Apr 16, 2009 12:16 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Great response, Joe.

To break it down a bit: I have both NASM and CSCS certs; the latter is a far more difficult exam.

If you’re looking to put certification behind you, I’d get the CSCS. It’s a pain to study for (I took about a year boning up for it!) but once you’ve done it, there’s really no need for any other certifications. It’s known as the Gold Standard in the business.

Still: what Joe says is right. I’d be a lousy trainer if all I knew was the information in the study materials for the CSCS exam. People come to you expecting good information and you really need to know what you’re doing if you’re going to help people and not just become one of the lazy and underinformed trainers you’re talking about. That requires constant study and serious integrity: you need to be honest with your clients and yourself when their problem is out of your league, and have a network of people available to help you if you need answers to specific problems.

Perhaps I need to start a personal trainer’s forum here somehow, so people can inquire with clients’ problems. Hmmm…

Good luck. Andrew

by Andrew Heffernan on Apr 19, 2009 11:23 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Thanks for the advice, Joe and Andrew.

Both answers are very helpful, and I clearly understand that a certification is just the beginning. I agree completely. I’m going to start with the NSCA – CPT and work towards the CSCS.

I think that a personal trainer’s forum is a great idea, by the way.

by jedward on Apr 20, 2009 1:20 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs