American Council on Exercise (ACE)

Excellent course that covers alot of ground. ACE is widely known and delivers a great set of study materials filled with in formation needed to help educate client's on proper form, importance of balance, ect. Highly recommend.

I carry a few certifications and I attend college for fitness and I have to say the knowledge I gained from studying and passing my ACE cert carried through so much so that I actually passed the ACSM HFS with one week study time. ACE already prepped me with all the knowledge I needed. I am so happy I chose ACE!

ACE is a widely recognized and accepted organization in the field for fitness certifications. I have the group fitness instructor certification and am proud to say that I am ACE-GFI certified!

I have been certified by ACE for 11 years and never have a problem or a complain. I also got the PT job I want it in the place I wanted because I was certify by ACE.

I have been CPT and GFI certified four year's and yes i will say it's the best investment i have made in my life because i can train a client even if i am 70yr's old, this field is a long term career and i respect all my fellow trainer's for their hard work in educating themselfs and keeping up with important information. It take dedication and discipline in any field or career but as a personal trainer we must have plenty of patience and motivation its not the training of a persons body that's the challenge its the re-educating of their minds that determines the progress, therefore we as trainers must keep feeding or brain and ace has all the mental food we need , try it you will like it....

I have been a certified trainer since 1998 and a LSWM Coach since 2003. To this day, I am still as proud as the day I received my exam results to say the I'm ACE certified!

ACE is an organization that fosters professional trainers that care about their clients. The support and motivation we get from this organization inspires us to become the best trainers in the industry!

Kim Hellyar

The new updated ACE IFT model is probably the best system on the market and the exercise science in the study materials is the same information that I covered while working towards my B.S.. There is no lack of information and it can be overwhelming, but you won't go wrong with this certification, I feel like the new updated ACE is leading the industry right now. I recommend this certification to anybody who is thinking about a career in personal training.

If you have seen the old manual and were disappointed with it (as I was), its time to take another look at ACE because they set the bar with this new updated course and I can't say enough good about it.

I v'e been certified by ACE for nearly 10 years. I'm proud of the work they have done to stay current with thelatset research. The exam isn't easy & it shouldn't be. We have a responsibility to the buying public, to make sure we train correctly & efficiently. I think the nest step would be to be licensed by every state to practice personal training. The hair & massage industry is required to be licensed.. So should we.

I have been certified through ACE for group exercise since the early 1990's. I attend the World IDEA conference each year to earn my CEC's, and have met some awesome people there! I feel it is the best organization to be certified through, as it is recognized worldwide. I have had other certifications through other agencies which closed up shop, and I feel confident that ACE wi9ll always be around.

There is a lot of status associated with obtaining a certification from a NCCA accredited organization. Certainly these organizations promote themselves as superior. However, I think NCCA has done a disservice to the certification industry by only permitting written exams (or by calling a video with written test questions a "practical" exam). Any certification that still has a real practical exam--one where the candidate must stand and deliver on their feet/ an oral exam--cannot obtain NCCA accreditation. The argument is that an actual practical exam is potentially too subjective and is therefore not valid. Do you agree?
I have obtained over 20 certifications in the industry, many of them back in the 80's and 90's before NCCA became powerful. (ACSM, ACE, NASM, AFAA, etc.). I can tell you the most meaningful and memorable certifications to me, the ones where I learned the most, were the ones with a practical exam that required trial by fire. I had to think on my feet and have my wits together and I've never forgotten the lessons learned. I am proudest of those certifications---they were hard and I know I really earned them!!! Would you really want to be in a plane with a pilot who'd taken a written-only exam? Would you really want to have a surgeon operate on you who'd taken a written-only exam?
Personal training and group exercise instruction are hands-on, applied, practical professions and need to be evaluated as such. As an employer of fitness professionals, I notice a big difference between those who've passed a practical exam and those who haven't. Those who've taken only a written test almost always have a bigger learning curve at first, all other factors being equal. Academics are extremely important, but we are a people-oriented business and certifications should assess our people skills and our ability to think on our feet.
It's time to re-evaluate the undeserved power that NCCA holds over our industry. Why have we given them the authority to say that quality certifications with practical exams cannot attain NCCA accreditation? This is illogical given the nature of our occupations.

Until NCCA either changes its position or (I hope) fades away, my advice is to seek a variety of certifications, including some that have real practical exams. You will learn different things from each certification, and this will only benefit you and your clients.

I also advise staying away from organizations that constantly promote themselves as the "best", while actively putting down their competitors. Again, as a veteran of many, many programs and certifications, it makes me sick to hear presenters of certain organizations puff themselves up and say they or their organization is the "only" one that can really teach you, or that they're the only ones who really understand the body, or that they have the best exam (especially if it's only a written exam), etc, etc. This is nonsense! There are too many quality programs, quality presenters, quality perspectives, and quality certifications out there for anyone to say this. You can learn something from everyone. Keep an open mind and don't buy into rigidity.