How Much Schooling Is Needed For A Certified Personal Trainer

I agree with Jay Gurewitsch in that it depends on the credentials on the person apart from any professional certification. Some important factors to asses about a non-certified personal trainer include: level of knowledge with regards to training styles and methodologies, diet, stretching, injuries, etc, their own physical fitness (not only size of muscles or body fat % but cardiovascular, etc), any relevant educational background, personal connection, etc.Of course, a potential caveat is that a person new to the world of fitness might not be able to properly asses the various factors that make a good trainer and could make a poor decision to train with someone out of ignorance. I myself am a personal trainer yet have no professional certification. However, I believe that I have suitable qualifications based on my degree (biomedical engineering) where I learned in-depth about the mechanics of muscles, bones, tendons, physiology, pathology; additionally, I have been working out steadily for over 7 years and have easily read thousands of articles, including scientific studies dealing with muscle mechanics, muscle growth, hormones, injury recovery. I have trained a variety of people with good results and have also had to recover from sports-related injuries doing my own physical therapy (no insurance). I don't say any of this to tute my own horn, so to speak, because I am constantly learning new things from other gym goers and new studies/article, but to illustrate that their are other metrics by which to judge a "trainer".With that being said, I have personally witnessed many certified trainers who I would never train with or recommend to others due to improper training methodologies, bad advice, lack of interest in their clients, and lack of results (although I do admit this can be largely affected by client adherence to nutrition).Finally, I do not want to give the impression that certified trainers are not all they are cut out to be because I also know many certified trainers who excel at what they do, are extremely knowledgable about and have passion for their profession, and are heavily vested in the success of their clients. So the succinct answer to the question is that it depends - if you don't think you can make the proper decision on who to train with due to your inexperience, ask around and get some help.

I was wondering which certification to get. I asked three gyms and they gave me three different answers. I was searching online for a solid answer and I decided on NASM based on this site: It’s www.TheSixFigureTrainer.comI narrowed it down to ACE, NASM, and ACSM … and I decided on NASM once I did a little research.There are some great articles here about building your personal training business, and along with helping me choose my certification, I’m also deciding on the right gym for my business.

I'm a Certified Group Exercise instructor. I'm not a personal trainer yet. The best courses are ACE, NASM and AFAA courses and run about 500.00 you can complete the courses in a year, perhaps less. I'm saving my pennies.That is certification. To gain practical knowledge it's a good idea to apprentice or intern somewhere. Or go to a cross fit gym and try out all of the group strength classes you can find.to be an excellent trainer for the most people you have to be able to evaluate what motivates someone. The bully method doesn't work for everyone. Some people requmire more instruction, some people just want accountability. It's a wonderful job, and if you’re good with people you can make some decent money. If you have famous friends you could make a lot more.

It really all depends on your current knowledge level and what certification you are going for. The most highly regarded certifications in the industry are ACSM, NASM and NSCA. I personally chose the NASM because I liked their online course portal and that they had the statistically toughest test where 1 in 2 people fail. The cost for any of these will be between $600-800 but is well worth the investment. As for studying it really all depends on how much time you want to put into it each day. A good estimate would be about 100 hours of study time. Less if you know your anatomy well as this is a major portion.

The quality of people in the profession varies wildly.  Many are truly awful at their jobs, but some are quite good. With trainers, it's very much a "buyer beware" sort of scenario. Sadly, there's no easy way to tell the dross from the diamonds. A trainer's physical condition isn't necessarily indicative of their knowledge, and popularity doesn't necessarily mean that something's being done right... it just means they've gained a following. (So did loaded squats on wobble boards and Bosu balls, and that was about as stupid a trend as there ever has been -- Hell, some trainers still do that to clients!)A good trainer can make a world of difference in how safe and effective your program is. They'll teach you good form, see to your well-being, and put you on the right path. Here's a quick check list of warning signs for sub-par trainers:If they say squats are bad for you, they don't know enough about the subject to be talking about it.If they say the toes travelling over the knees in a squat is bad, they don't know enough to be coaching that movement.If you have trouble squatting down to parallel with your heels on the ground, and they say the problem is a weak core or glutes, there's a very good chance they're clueless. If you can sit in a chair upright, your core is strong enough to support you in a bodyweight squat.If they bring you around to a bunch of isolation exercises and machines, rather than trying to teach you proper form in big, basic movements (like the press, deadlift, squat, etc), then there's a very good chance they don't know what the Hell they're doing (unless you have physical restrictions that make such implements necessary).If they're not looking at the mobility and stability of your scapula when you're pressing overhead, and not watching for excessive curve in the lumbar spine or elevation of the ribs, they're either not paying attention to the biomechanics of your lift, or they're clueless. Either way, ditch them.If they're spouting broscience nonsense like "you need to eat 6 meals a day to stoke your metabolism and burn fat", they don't know what the Hell they're talking about and you should be wary of any advice they offer.