Certifications

[LeafUF]

Was curious about what certifications are the most well thought of. I know from an old thread obob says he did NASM and dream said that or ACSM were gonna be his choice.

Would you mind sharing some thoughts on these or others? Just out of curiosity. I have no desire to make a career out of training but might want to look into this to gain more knowledge.

Also, I have seen some nutrition certifications out there and was wondering if there were any that were legit. It has always been my understanding that you really had to go to school for that and any of these courses were just junk.


Thanks.

[Dreamliner]

After having surveyed the field a bit I can't honestly say that one is markedly better than another. After some deliberation, I decided to go with IFTA and to follow with ACSM. I'll have the IFTA certification in three or four weeks and hopefully the ACSM around June. Yes, ACSM has the 'gold standard' reputation, but I felt like IFTA was actually better-focused for my needs.

Bottom line: Choose a reputable organization that teaches you the things you believe you need to know at a cost you can afford. In my research, I found prices from $99 to over $9,000 dollars and weekend certifications to two-year certificates.

As to nutrition, there is a difference between a nutritionist and a dietician with the latter requiring a degree, or so I'm told. And you learn basic nutrition with your fitness certification in any case.

[96Gatorcise]

Simple really as far as respect in a chosen field.
Medical: ACSM
Sports: NSCA followed by NASM
Personal training: NASM, NSCA, ACSM, ISSA get the most respect among peers but most clients don't care

[LeafUF]

Thanks for the input. I appreciate it.

[Dreamliner]

BTW, no one has to convince me as to the advantages of certification, but I can magnify 96's last point: not only do clients not care, they don't ask. In the year or so I've been training people, the number of people who've inquired about certification: 0

[StrangeGator]

Here's a question, not so much for me, but for my brother. He just started teaching high school this year after almost 30 years in the army. He'd like to coach a sport, but he's pretty limited because of his experience. He is however, a very experienced and knowledgable weight lifter from his years in the SF. He looked into starting an Olympic lifting team, but he's having a hard time getting interest. The kids that lift are so tied up in other sports, mostly wrestling and football. My thought was that he could be a S&C coach. Do high schools use those? If they did, is there any way to actually get paid? What certification would he need to do that at the high school level?

[LeafUF]

Originally Posted by StrangeGator

Here's a question, not so much for me, but for my brother. He just started teaching high school this year after almost 30 years in the army. He'd like to coach a sport, but he's pretty limited because of his experience. He is however, a very experienced and knowledgable weight lifter from his years in the SF. He looked into starting an Olympic lifting team, but he's having a hard time getting interest. The kids that lift are so tied up in other sports, mostly wrestling and football. My thought was that he could be a S&C coach. Do high schools use those? If they did, is there any way to actually get paid? What certification would he need to do that at the high school level?

No professional insight. Our high school baseball coach taught weight lifting during the day and our football coaches provided the lifting the plan for football which we did after school in the offseason. There was not a lot of thought put into it and no one coach seemed to be in charge. If the athletic teams at the school wanted him to act as a strength coach I would imagine they would have to pay him as a coach, but assuming they have pretty limited resources and wouldn't want to move another coach to make a spot for a strength only coach I think its unlikely.

[Dreamliner]

96 should probably weigh in on Strange's question. He's a CSCS - Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist. You will very often see S&C coaches who have this certification.

[96Gatorcise]

Powerhouse schools have full time staff such ATC's and SC coaches. Above avg schools have someone on staff who is certified and also has other duties as a coach or teacher. Smaller schools if lucky enough have parents in the field who donate their time to what ever sport their kid is playing. Poor schools have a coach or teacher with lifting experience spend time with the kids and help the best they can.

Back in my HS days (80s) we had a weightlifting team that competed. The PE coach was in charge.

[Dreamliner]

Completed my exam yesterday and should be certified in 3-4 weeks. That's a load off my back. The training is fun. Studying for the exam was drudgery, however beneficial.

[LeafUF]

Congrats

[Dreamliner]

Thanks, Leaf.

[Dreamliner]

I got my certification. Now it'll be interesting to see if anyone ever asks me if I'm certified.

[deviation]

I'm taking the ACE program currently (personal trainer) but wish if i would of spent a few more dollars for NASM. Everyone says that is the great for for be certified as a personal trainer.

Oh well. Many gyms like ACE certification as well. But still, i see a lot of the trainers at my gym that are high certified still are terrible trainers and are bad with technique.

[Dreamliner]

I know that 96 is sold on NASM. ACSM has long been considered the gold standard for certifcations. I have the ACSM materials ... and they don't exactly blow me away. I plan to use them as reference materials on the odd occasion when I need to know some obscure detail I suppose.

[Dreamliner]

BTW, I looked into an organization, it has a location in Orlando, which confers a diploma. Can't remember the name. It involves something like nine months of hands-on instruction.

It runs about $8,000.