National Examation for Fitness Professional

I started out writing an blog about fitness and keeping people informed about fitness and how they should check out the personal trainer, fitness specialist, wellness trainer, and all of the other names they give themselves these days. People who has degrees in fitness, exercise, nutrition, and wellness do not get the jobs they dream about helping the sick, the person who just had a heart attack and need someone to explain to him he needs to exercise and eat right for this not to happen.

Some people think fitness is a hobby, but it is so much more. Some people just believe what ever someone else tell them just because they work at a local gym or fitness center. They do not have a degree and they went to a weekend class to get a certification to be a personal trainer. You learn so much about the body and how it works in college in the physiology and anatomy classes, as well as sport rehabilitation and cardiac rehabilitation classes. They need to know how exercise effects the body and how each person is different. Everyone can not have the same exercise program. You can not push everyone hard. Everyone is not healthy, well weekend classes do not teach you that. As for me personally, well I am sick of it. You can go to school for four years, get a degree and try to pass the most well know certification test just so some paper can say you are a personal trainer. Is lubricious. Their is science behind fitness and exercise.

Now, some people may say its wrong if a trainer has been training for years and some may have been training for 10, 20, 30 years. (But you can not wake up one day and say I want to be a nurse, study and take a test and you become a nurse). Why can exercise and health be no different. You need education, you need a degree in exercise that said, "yes I know how to work with the patient and the Cardiologist to find a healthy way to save an prevent this person from having another heart attack. I think you should have a degree in exercise or fitness. The government are always have regulation on other professional why not fitness professional. They should have a national examination just like they have for nurses, doctors, nutritionist, and ect.


I am upset because I am one of those people who are passionate about my career as a Health and wellness professional. I have been looking for 15 months. I have been on countless interviews and they all told me the same thing. They have said, "you have a very unique background. Well you see I have worked as a group fitness instructor in Cardiac rehab for three years. I also worked in a physical therapy and sports clinic for seven years while I was a junior at a community college. You could say I am a post rehab specialist because I have trained some of the hips and knee patients at the clinic. All this with no certification but with bachelor degree in health and wellness concentration in rehabilitation. I resign from my job for personal reasons.

I tried to take the most well know certification in fitness which is ACSM. (It the golden standard in health and fitness). I have been studying for three years. It is a hard test if you are not a test taking person. I still have not pass but still working on it.

As a fitness professional you have to get certification in everything. For example, to be a pilates/yoga instructor, spinning, aqua therapy, cardiac rehab, nutrition certification (which some states do regulate that).

I want to say I love nurses. I have two best friends that are nurses. I just fine it hard as a fitness professional to get a career in what I went to school for. The career titles such as a wellness coordinator, or fitness coordinator (they) industry want someone who is a nurse. What does she know about fitness. Nothing. The industry will hirer a nurse OVER someone who has a degree in fitness. So yes I think the government or who ever is over regulations and exams should do something about this. So that fitness professional like me can take back our careers.

They have rules of everything else why not fitness.