I know this is going to be laugh out loud thread when you first read it, but bear with me. Let me start by saying that I am ACE certified, but it was not my choice, the director of my Student Rec Center offered me a job as a personal trainer cause he had seen me around the place and he knew that I knew a lot of stuff (mostly due to T-Mag). Anyways he said that he would pay for my certification, I was ecstatic because the thought of training nubile coeds was right up my alley. But he said that he would only pay for it if I went through ACE which crushed my little world. But I studied and learned their stuff, and I know that ACE test needs a lot more knowledge then some other ones that just make you show them some basic lifts. What I am getting at is that I know for the majority, trainers have their heads up their ass, but it just irks me a little when people say trainers are retards. Don’t judge a trainer by their certificate, judge them on what they do with it afterwards.
If you want to stay in the game, your clients must get results. No one is going to ask for your “certification.”
Although reading T-mag is a good source of information… It does not mean that you can become a “PRESONAL TRAINER”… Most client do not ask what type of certifaction do you have or let alone what type of school did you go to as long as you get them results and you don’t hurt them you are fine… Read more books outside of T-mag to get more info on training… Become more knowlegable about fitness by reading other books such as Periodization, Progam Design for Resistance training ect…
The ACE certification has very high regard in the commercial fitness world. When I worked for Balley total fitness, they would only recognize ACE and ACSM, and some other bullshit one. I told them about ISSA or NSCA, and they said that they do not recognize those ones?!. Moral of story get ACE certified, but train the correct way, the T-Man way.