Most fitness instructor jobs, whether personal trainer or group exercise positions, require some form of certification. Training, however, does not end with certification. Instructors wishing to stay on the cutting edge of the industry must attend training workshops and conferences each year. Choosing which courses to take is a complex decision, which requires careful evaluation of your teaching goals.
Finding Your Niche
Fitness organizations offer hundreds of training courses each year. All are worthwhile, but some are more suitable to your expertise and interests. While instructors should be knowledgeable about all aspects of fitness, those who find their personal niche may experience greater job satisfaction. A niche may involve conditioning programs for your favorite sports or exercise programs for special populations. Eric Cressey, owner of Cressey Performance in Boston, advises that your niche should inspire passion and also a desire to contribute to the body of knowledge in that realm of fitness. Once you have decided upon your fitness niche, choose instructor training programs that enhance your existing knowledge of the subject.
Trends
In October 2010, the American College of Sports Medicine distributed their annual fitness trends survey to 2,200 ACSM certified instructors. The surveys revealed the 20 top fitness industry trends. Fitness programs for older adults and childhood obesity prevention programs were amongst the common trends, as were core training and boot camp programs. The concept of exercise as medicine, along with the idea of physician referrals to fitness instructors, is also a growing trend. While boot camps and core training workshops are featured at all fitness conferences, senior fitness programming, obesity prevention and medically related fitness instruction may require advanced certification.
Conference Training Workshops
Fitness instructor conferences are the best way to squeeze the maximum amount of training into a short period of time. While some workshops just provide an overview of a certain type of class or fitness conference, multiday preconference workshops offer in-depth training. While most conferences offer workshops in all aspects of fitness, some have a specific focus. The IDEA World Fitness Conference, for example, features classes on all the latest fitness trends, but the smaller, Inner IDEA conference emphasizes mind-body techniques such as Pilates and yoga. ACSM holds an Annual Meeting and World Congress on Exercise is Medicine. This is a highly technical conference that suits instructors wanting to delve into medical aspects of fitness, such as post-rehabilitation exercise and senior fitness. Most of the sessions are lectures and reports about the latest clinical studies. In contrast, the ACSM Health and Fitness Summit and Exposition has some medical focus, but emphasizes exercise programming.
Specialty Certification
Specialty certifications are another way to gain training in your chosen fitness niche. The American Council on Exercise offers an Advanced Health and Fitness Specialist certification, which teaches instructors how to work with people with musculoskeletal problems and cardiovascular and metabolic diseases. The Lifestyle and Weight Management Coach certification program gives an overview of the psychological and biomechanical aspects of weight control, while teaching instructors about the relationship between nutrition and exercise for weight control. Those who want to work with athletes will benefit from the Performance Enhancement Specialist certification offered by the National Academy of Sports Medicine. This program teaching athletic enhancement techniques such as postural assessment, balance training, agility exercise and plyometric exercise.
References
- EricCressey.com; How to Find Your Fitness Niche; Eric Cressey; November 2010
- ACSM.org; Survey Predicts Top Fitness Trends for 2011; October 2010
- IDEA: Fitness Conferences & Conventions
- American College of Sports Medicine: Meetings and Continuing Education
- ACE: Accredited Fitness Certifications
- NASM: Train Athletes
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