What Does It Take to Become a Personal Trainer?

Over the past decade, personal training has gained momentum as a popular profession. Multitudes of weekend warriors and gym-goers have decided to get paid for giving all those training tips and information to friends and family members.

Significance

The importance of personal training cannot be overstated. With today's epidemic of people who are overweight, obese or injured, there is a need for qualified individuals to help get these people back in shape.

Function

The job of a personal trainer is to facilitate physical and mental change in an individual in a safe and assuring manner with the intent of creating a better body and mind. Some of the main duties involved with this include designing exercise prescriptions, doing fitness assessments, having good customer service skills, having high energy levels and having knowledge of the anatomy of the body and how it works. Another attribute is to have at least a little bit of knowledge on nutrition. This whole process can take years to develop, but oftentimes people who become certified already have these characteristics to start with.

Types

There are many certifying agencies out there. Some of the most reputable include the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM), National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM), American Council on Exercise (ACE ) and the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA).
You also need CPR certification. This is usually good for 2 years, and certification classes are put on by the American Heart Association.

Warning

There are a lot of fly-by-night organizations out there that offer trainer programs. These should be looked at with a watchful eye. The National Commission for Certifying Agencies (NCCA) proves the quality of a certification. See Resources below for the link. All of the above-mentioned companies carry this credential.

Features

Most organizations offer an online program with the inclusion of study materials such as textbooks, worksheets and workbooks. They all have separate guidelines to follow but are all roughly the same. They teach about the anatomy of the body, ways to design workouts, risk stratification, special populations, goal setting and corrective exercise, to name a few things.

Time Frame

The time it takes to become a certified personal trainer usually depends on the person. Certification can take anywhere from 2 months to a full year. It depends on the program, your ambition and the amount of time you want to devote to it.

Considerations

Being a personal trainer is a rewarding and fun profession, but you must take some things into consideration. First of all, whenever advice on fitness and nutrition is given, liability insurance is necessary. This is to protect a sole proprietor in the event an injury should occur while training someone.
Also consider continuing education. All certifications have expiration dates. They are usually good for 2 to 3 years, depending on the company. To get recertified, you need a certain number of continuing education credits (CECs). They can be obtained by attending seminars and conferences, getting college credits or ordering more study materials through the certifying companies.
Getting certified can cost close to $300, so it is a good idea to put some money aside every month to get certified and for all the future expenses.

Resources

• NCCA