Frequently Asked Questions
InsertThese days, everyone is calling him/herself a “Personal Trainer”. It is so easy to become a personal trainer that the industry is saturated with them. Consequently, legitimate personal trainers are adversely affected and must compete with those who are not as knowledgeable. One of our interests is to help preserve the professionalism of personal training. Originating from the exercise physiology and rehabilitation fields, it seemed only natural that we also put forth a personal trainer certification program. Our Personal Trainer Certification Program was developed under the same educational standards as our Cardiovascular Rehabilitation and Clinical Exercise Programs. Because we implement stringent, thought provoking testing procedures, we believe our students are much better qualified to enter the workforce as true professionals. text here.
Who can take this course?
Anyone who has the desire to help people lead healthier lives and reach their goals can qualify for this course. The course cost is $349 and includes 16 hours of lecture and hands on training plus, two comprehensive study manuals and the final exam. This course is presented by the National Fitness Trainers Association Inc. staff of nationally certified advanced personal trainers and post-rehabilitation and medical exercise specialists. NFTA instructors; have over 35 years of combined experience working in traditional fitness environments, YMCA’s and physical therapy clinics all over the state of Florida. These courses are taught in and throughout the state at various locations. Call or go online to find out when and where the next class is being facilitated.
Why should I get certified?
There are basically only two reasons to get a Fitness Instructor certification. One, if you plan to teach aerobics or plan to provide personal training expertise to clients, then you will need to be certified. Most insurance companies that provide liability insurance require you to be certified. Also, if your certification lapses, your insurance may lapse as well.
Why take the workshop instead of the online exam?
As with any certification, degree or diploma, the real learning process comes in teaching and working with an experienced instructor. The Fitness Director is responsible for hiring and is therefore in a position to determine if a person who has the academic credentials (certification) can also demonstrate the Knowledge, skills and ablility personality and outright teaching ability to be on the staff. These cannot be measured in a written test or in a 20 minute interview.
Is NFTA recognized by all gyms?
Most health clubs have NFTA on their accepted list.However, it's always good to call them first and check before you certify with anyone. You can contact the NFTA headquarters for assisstance with getting a particular health club to add NFTA to their preferred list of accepted certifications. Some gyms may have a preference list or accept only one organization. It is becoming rare, however, for this to be the case.
Do you accept credit cards?
Yes, we accept all major credit cards: Visa, MasterCard, Discover, and American Express, Transactions are through Pay Pal secure site.
What topics are covered during the live workshop?
The live workshop consists of lecture on topics covered in the text book and study outline as well as PowerPoint interactive lecture segments and a practical hands-on training segment. NFTA instructors will lead the class through a review of the technical aspects of exercise science theory and combine the theory with practical training activities during the second part of each class meeting. This unique approach to teaching better assist the student with comprehension and retention of key exercise principles. The course overview lists all of the topics covered within the course.
These days, everyone is calling him/herself a “Personal Trainer”. It is so easy to become a personal trainer that the industry is saturated with them. Consequently, legitimate personal trainers are adversely affected and must compete with those who are not as knowledgeable. One of our interests is to help preserve the professionalism of personal training. Originating from the exercise physiology and rehabilitation fields, it seemed only natural that we also put forth a personal trainer certification program. Our Personal Trainer Certification Program was developed under the same educational standards as our Cardiovascular Rehabilitation and Clinical Exercise Programs. Because we implement stringent, thought provoking testing procedures, we believe our students are much better qualified to enter the workforce as true professionals.
Thats why the NFTA is a proud member of the Ethics & Safety Compliance Standars Council
What you may not know about the Personal Trainer Certification "Accreditation" System.
Some wonder why, before launching our Personal Trainer Certification Program, we did not seek approval from an accrediting body such as the NCCA, NBFE, IHRSA or other organizations. The fact is, we researched this area very well. We have discovered that none of the aforementioned companies are officially recognized on either the federal or state level. With all due respect to the individuals who operate these companies, we do not believe they truly provide a public service.
There is a major debate going on today within the fitness industry as to which accrediting body should be the "one and only". ACE believes it's NCCA, while others like ISSA believe in NBFE (partly because the two companies were established by the same individual). Nonetheless, we have carefully considered each of these two accrediting bodies, amongst others, and have found inconsistencies in terms of the program requirements accepted by each. We have evaluated the different certification companies within each accrediting body's list of "approved programs" and have been confused with the wide range of criteria, exam structures, formats, curriculum and program development. There really didn't seem to be an educational standard. If there was one, it was not shared by all that were listed as approved programs.
The most popular accrediting body is NCCA, (created by the NOCA - no longer in business). By their own admission, "Certification organizations that submit their programs for accreditation are evaluated based on the process and products, not the content.", even they seem to lack what most agree should be their primary concern. Unfortunately, a major part of the "process" is the requirement of a "registration fee", which can total thousands of dollars. Although their accreditation seals can be seen "proudly" displayed on most personal trainer certification company websites, there is no clear definition as to what this really means. The premise from which they were obtained is questionable at best. The second most popular accrediting body is NBFE. They are the latest addition to the "accreditation industry". Sal Arria is the president of NBFE. He is also the co-founder and CEO of ISSA, one of our competitors. This is the most blatant disregard for fairness we have discovered thus far. This obvious conflict of interest is not known by most individuals because it is not posted anywhere on either the NBFE website or ISSA's. Competitors simply cannot be trusted to publish 'professional opinions' about one another. If you walk into a Honda dealership, they will not praise Ford for its quality, service or reliability because they are competitors. It doesn’t mean it isn’t true, it simply means that by doing so, they risk losing market share. The same concept could easily apply to NBFE.
In the end, it was the "registration fee" and the lack of educational evaluation that convinced us the personal trainer accreditation system is broken. The acceptance of any type of annual "registration fee" casts a shadow of uncertainty as to the true reason certification programs are granted approval. The presence of any sort of relationship (especially a financial one) creates natural bias. It is somewhat like having a fitness contest judged by only one person, who happens to be married to one of the contestants. Guess whom he is going to pick?
However honorable the intentions of these particular companies are, we find it difficult to believe they could remain unbiased to a certification company that has just forked over thousands of dollars in fees. Most certification companies would be upset to learn of their accreditation denial after their check has been cashed. They would most likely pursue legal action or at least request a refund of their money. It doesn't seem likely that an accreditation company could allow this to happen, particularly when the registration fees are their sole source of revenue.
Accrediting bodies should provide unbiased, articulated and useful information to the public they claim to serve. Minimally, there should be an effort to get whatever helpful information they possess out to the public; for what purpose does it serve if no one knows about it? The validation of their value is left to the client. NBFE advises, "simply ask your trainer if they passed the national boards!". This type of information gathering is unrealistic. Most clients are not made aware of the fact that NBFE (or NCCA for that matter) even exists. Most personal trainer clients will not ask their trainer to prove he/she is even certified. Do any of us ask our car mechanic if he is ASE Certified? It is assumed the professional is qualified if he/she is employed.
We take this issue very seriously and ask that those interested in this matter write their congressperson. We believe the NFTA should establish an agency to oversee the fitness industry; in particular the personal trainers and companies, like ours, that certify them. The NFTA is the largest health and fitness related organization in the United States. They are a government body with an oversight committee and are held accountable by us, the taxpayers. Because of this, the NFTA is well positioned to act. It employs thousands of exercise physiologist, medical doctors, chiropractors, dieticians and physical therapist, all of whom posses a relevant expertise in evaluating personal trainer certification programs.
Keep in mind, accreditation means officially recognized. It is our belief that these companies, which have assumed a role in accrediting personal trainer certification programs, are using that term very loosely. As we all know, officials are not supposed to accept bribes. That, essentially, is what certification companies are paying to have their programs 'evaluated' and approved.
The next time you see an 'accreditation' seal, question if it was paid for, and look into it yourself. You might be surprised by what you learn... we certainly were.
In the meantime, please help us improve the personal training industry.
Contact your local representative.
