How to Become a Nationally Certified Personal Trainer

A certified personal trainer gains the confidences of his students.

A personal trainer must be versatile enough to cater to different people with different needs. Some clients are after weight loss at all costs while others are athletes looking for the right routine to keep them fit to do what they do. A personal trainer therefore has the responsibility to ensure not only fitness for his clients, but a healthy lifestyle as well. Attaining the necessary certification increases your value to your market.

Instructions

1. Acquire a bachelor’s degree. Pursue a bachelor’s degree in health and exercise science or any other health-and-fitness-related courses.

2. Get experience. Look for employment in a gym or any other fitness-related industry such as on cruises or in company operations that offer their employees with gym facilities. Hands-on experience in dealing with different clients and their needs acts as a practice session for the certification examination. Such experience also increases your efficiency as a personal trainer.

3. Obtain a cardiopulmonary resuscitation certification. A current CPR certification is a necessary requirement for a candidate who wishes to sit for a Certified Personal Trainer exam. For those who do not have a recent CPR certification, re-take the CPR exam and get updated certifications. Most fitness-related facility owners require personal trainers under their payroll to have a CPR certification.

4. Choose a certification program. A couple of certification bodies offer certification programs recognized by the National Commission of Certifying Agencies. The National Strength and Condition Association is one such body. To qualify for a NSCA-CPT examination, you must be over 18 years with a high school diploma and a recent CPR certification. Other certifications include the American College of Sports Medicine, the American Council on Exercise and the National Academy of Sports Medicine.

5. Enroll for a study program to help you prepare for your certification exam of choice. Certification courses such as that offered by KCFitnessLink take up to 650 hours to complete. Upon completion of this course and successfully sitting for the examination, you will receive your CPT certification.

Tips & Warnings

• Communication and effective people skills are a must have when it comes to the career of a personal trainer. Because personal trainers work with clients with different characters after different results, personal trainers have to possess the ability to work with their clients to make a custom routine that bests suits the needs of the client

References

• Spa & Beauty Education: Become a Certified Personal Trainer
• Kcfitnesslink: Personal Training certification