Ace vs nasm

[vancityrolla]

from all the bad reviews I have read about people taking the ACE exam and failing because they give you 3-4 answers and you have to choose what ACE preaches to get it right. Some people have said if you dont know everything in the ACE manual its very hard to pass the test and if you didnt learn it from ACE then you wont get it right. I DL the NASM study guide with all the videos and everything plus I took 2 in class course's FT and WT. Im just trying to decide what one to take I already know alot about NASM but I always skipped the OPT part on the videos because I was just using the general information not the NASM guidelines. How is the NASM test compared to the ACE anyone done both?


also about recertification...it says every 2 years you have to get re-certified what dose that mean? you have to take the test again? ( $500)

here is the info i found on both test

NASM Certification Personal Trainer NASM
Certification Certified Personal Trainer (CPT)
Established 1987
Workshop length 2 days
Workshop Availability Select US cities
Program Cost $629-$799
Materials cost Included
Industry recognition High
Accreditations NCCA
Prerequisites 18 years old, Adult CPR/AED Certificate
Exam Questions 120
Exam Time 2 hours
Exam Cost Included
Retest Cost $199
Exam deadline 180 days
Exam locations Major US Cities
Time to Complete (Approx.)
Browse Personal Training Schools
Recertification every 2 years
Recertification Cost (Approx.) $500




ACE Certification Personal Trainer ACE
Certification Personal Trainer
Established 1985
Workshop length 2 days
Workshop Availability US major cities
Program Cost $399
Materials cost included
Industry recognition High
Accreditations NCCA
Prerequisites 18 years old, Adult CPR/AED Certificate
Find Accredited Personal Training Schools
Zip Code -or- Browse all Schools
Exam Questions 150
Exam Time 3 hours
Exam Cost $219 (pencil/paper), $249 (computer)
Retest Cost $135 (pencil/paper) $184 (computer)
Exam deadline
Exam locations Major cities worldwide
Time to Complete (Approx.) 3-6 months
Recertification every 2 years
Recertification Cost (Approx.) $400

[mikehayman]

I've taken ACE (and let it expire) and I'm about to take NASM. Go with NASM, ACE has outdated information and is considered a joke amongst highly educated fitness professionals.

[klew347]

You don't have to take the test again from what I understand, just pay to renew.

And I went with NASM, everyone I talked to said they got more out of it then ACE and wish they would have just started with NASM. I went to many gyms and talked to PT's and got their opinions.

[vancityrolla]

great! thanks for the info, i'll go with NASM.. dose is really cost around 500 every 2 years to stay certified? thats crazzzy expensive

rep'ed

[ericmackcarter]

I've taken ACE (and let it expire) and I'm about to take NASM. Go with NASM, ACE has outdated information and is considered a joke amongst highly educated fitness professionals.

This. ACE is a joke.

[TheClips]

For everyone saying to go with NASM instead of ACE, could you give a little more reasoning behind your opinion?

I've been studying an ACE book (3rd edition too, just cuz I got it for free.....I know the test is based on 4th edition, so hopefully not that much $hit has been changed), and I'm admittedly frustrated with some of the seemingly needlessly-complicated formulas and concepts, and I have seen some things that I know are now thought of as "wrong," such as stretching before exercise, etc.

Anyway, I was attracted to ACE both because it was cheap to test and I heard it was pretty easy to learn....but I don't want a trash certification, nor do I really like the idea of just jumping through hoops and answering questions based simply on what the book says is right if it's not.

So how complicated is NASM in comparison to ACE? What makes it better than ACE, in your opinion? Do you feel as though you improved your concept of fitness through NASM?

Any and all thoughts will be welcome.


And I'm not gonna lie--as much as I like a challenge, I'm not looking to take a test that I'll fail, lol! I'm basically looking to improve on knowledge and learn some new and sound methods for exercising, not memorize more or less useless $hit to stroke my ego by making me feel exhaustively smart.....That being said, is the test super-complicated or crazy-radical in their approach?

[lives2bfit]

You don't have to take the test again from what I understand, just pay to renew.

And I went with NASM, everyone I talked to said they got more out of it then ACE and wish they would have just started with NASM. I went to many gyms and talked to PT's and got their opinions.

So the people you talked to, actually took ACE first and then decided to go with NASM? I'm just wondering if this is how they compared the two.

[spartanf1tness]

This is not a new argument, or not even a new question, as this has been asked countless times before on this forum. I will add my .02 cents for what its worth, and hopefully it will be helpful to some.

BACKGROUND
I have been a fitness professional working out of various gyms since 2001. I have had an ACE certification since I began, and studied exercise science while in college. I continue to hold a current and valid ACE certification, and throughout my travels have found it to be a reputable, helpful, and profitable asset.

Interestingly, around 2004 when I become the training director for a personal training department in a well known national gym in the northeast region, NASM was the go to certification for those who were looking to get certified "on the cheap" and because "it was easy." It appears that NASM was then on the rise, as the agency was reinvesting big in its brand and team, adding many industry pro's and folks from academia to help develop its core programs.

TOP LEVEL CERTIFICATIONS
The top rated certification would be ACSM, which at last check did require an educational background in a related discipline, i.e. kinesiology, exercise science, etc. In addition to their standalone certifications, they have specialty certifications that you can add on to your existing NCCA accredited certification, whether it be NASM, ACE, NSCA, ACSM, etc. The testing is more rigorous than what you would find with ACE and NASM
source: certification.acsm[.]org/get-certified

Another highly esteemed and rigorous certification, or certification options, can be found at NSCA. You can find out information on becoming CSCS certified through this organization. Follow the link below.
source: nsca-cc[.]org

There is no "this is the best certification, so get it," for everyone. Why? Finances, educational background, goals, time availability, these are all considerations for folks that are interested in pursuing a career, or at least aiming to get a foot in the door so to speak in the fitness profession.
In addition, many of the certification agencies now provide specialty sub or super-certifications to augment or supplement your path - you can become a lifestyle and weight management professional, a certified strength and conditioning coach, and a myriad of other options await you depending on your certification choices and goals.

Your journey does not end with a personal training certification. It can be a great tool as I recommend everyone who hopes to become a highly respected and valued fitness professional get certified. You will become exposed to many categories within fitness as you progress, from nutrition, to rehabilitation, to limitations, to sport specific and demographic specific clients. Do your own research, make your own decision. And remember, you will need to renew your certification(s) with continuing education credits (cec's) as you progress in your fitness career.

As for folks looking to take an easy test, you will need to study for all of the above stated certification exams, at least to get familiar with the core categories and foundation of the exam itself. Do you need a PhD? No, but you do need to devote time to it as there are a substantial amount of qualitative questions regarding nutrition and anatomy that are covered.

I hope this has helped clear up some of the confusion or apprehension regarding certification agencies and "the best fit" for some folks.

EDIT: Apparently i need 50 or more posts to include links ... well, i think you all can figure out the below even with the brackets


RESEARCH RESOURCES
acefitness[.]org
nsca-cc[.]org
acsm[.]org
nasm[.]org

To Your Ultimate Fitness Success

spartanfitness[.]com

- JT

[lives2bfit]

There is no "this is the best certification, so get it," for everyone. Why? Finances, educational background, goals, time availability, these are all considerations for folks that are interested in pursuing a career, or at least aiming to get a foot in the door so to speak in the fitness profession.
In addition, many of the certification agencies now provide specialty sub or super-certifications to augment or supplement your path - you can become a lifestyle and weight management professional, a certified strength and conditioning coach, and a myriad of other options await you depending on your certification choices and goals.


- JT

I'm glad to see this as I just started studying for the ACE certification and was getting nervous from the other responses. I think it also depends on if you plan on working for yourself. I doubt too many clients even ask what certification you have or even know what they are if they do ask.

[spartanf1tness]

I'm glad to see this as I just started studying for the ACE certification and was getting nervous from the other responses. I think it also depends on if you plan on working for yourself. I doubt too many clients even ask what certification you have or even know what they are if they do ask.

Most clients have no clue, and neglect to even inquire if the trainer they are working for is certified, which is something that they take for granted.

Your certification is not the end all, be all of your fitness career. It is a launching off point, and I should add that although some folks hate having to get CECs to renew and continue their certification, the CECs themselves offer a window into other opportunities within fitness, DSW and IDEA are two of my favorite CEC "clearinghouses," as they offer a myriad of courses and many options for certified trainers. I also recommend attending "same day" CEC courses, where you can renew your certification in the same day by taking one, two, or more classes - these are usually held in regional conferences and provide fantastic networking opportunities - networking is another big consideration for those who seek certification, and should be done consistently by serious minded fitness professionals.

Good luck on your certification journey Live2bfit. Let me know if i can be of any help to you.

- JT

[klew347]

So the people you talked to, actually took ACE first and then decided to go with NASM? I'm just wondering if this is how they compared the two.

That is correct, most of them tell me they felt that the way the NASM program was designed was a better fit as an overall health and fitness structure for most of the clients that deal with. Some of my friends took it while majoring in fitness and said it fit with their curriculum better.

Again me personally I have not taken at the ACE cert. so I am not discrediting it at all but this is what I gathered from people I know.

And some of them love their ACE cert and are happy with it, and they still get to train and get paid.

[klew347]

For everyone saying to go with NASM instead of ACE, could you give a little more reasoning behind your opinion?

I've been studying an ACE book (3rd edition too, just cuz I got it for free.....I know the test is based on 4th edition, so hopefully not that much $hit has been changed), and I'm admittedly frustrated with some of the seemingly needlessly-complicated formulas and concepts, and I have seen some things that I know are now thought of as "wrong," such as stretching before exercise, etc.

Anyway, I was attracted to ACE both because it was cheap to test and I heard it was pretty easy to learn....but I don't want a trash certification, nor do I really like the idea of just jumping through hoops and answering questions based simply on what the book says is right if it's not.

So how complicated is NASM in comparison to ACE? What makes it better than ACE, in your opinion? Do you feel as though you improved your concept of fitness through NASM?

Any and all thoughts will be welcome.


And I'm not gonna lie--as much as I like a challenge, I'm not looking to take a test that I'll fail, lol! I'm basically looking to improve on knowledge and learn some new and sound methods for exercising, not memorize more or less useless $hit to stroke my ego by making me feel exhaustively smart.....That being said, is the test super-complicated or crazy-radical in their approach?

Here are my thoughts, take them as you will. Some may agree some may disagree. Whatever


All in all I don't think you can go wrong with any of the top *****. Just pick the one you like best and get to work. You will learn more from hands on training with people, a cert just puts practical matters in to place with assessing people and helping design a program from them.

I have been working out for years and know how to take care of myself, but I always want to learn more and have proper knowledge in the areas of my life I enjoy.Thats why I decided to get a cert. And since doing NASM I have learned a lot more about anatomy and functional movements way in more depth then I was aware of before.

I like the approach the NASM program takes at helping people achieve their goals. And thats the way its designed is per client basis. You start them off by working out any imbalances that might/will have from not being active for quiet some time while building up their endurance. Then the next step is to pick what they want for their goal and can look at (strength endurance, size, max strength) and from there you can take it to the next level of max power if the client chooses. Which I find this beneficial to the clients you will most likely be dealing with, because most of the people that will be coming to you for help are the people that have let themselves go and don't know what steps to take or where to start to. So you are there to teach them how to do things the right way with out injuring themselves.

Unfortunately we all won't be able to train bodybuilders and smoking hot chicks that we all want to ****. The majority are overweight and lack self discipline and thats why they come to us. So assessment and knowing what kind of person you are dealing with will help get them results. And most of this is learned from on the job training.

Feel like I'm rambling on so I going to end it here.

[vancityrolla]

Thanks for all the feedback, im sticking with NASM for now can anyone confirm if these flashcards are any good for the test I see they were made in 2009 is all the info still the same? im getting no reply on my other post.. Thanks

http://www.studystack.com/flashcard-245512

[mikehayman]

One thing you have to consider is where/how far are you looking to go with your career? Is it going to be just personal training in a chain gym or maybe independent? If that's the case your certification isn't really going to matter. 99% of your clients won't care or know the difference between cert A and cert B. All that will matter at the point is delivering results and/or selling yourself.

Now if you want to work in a big time gym like Lifetime Fitness for example (who requires NASM within 6 months of hiring) or want to work training athletes in schools (just an example) then certifications definitely begin to play a larger role.

Figure out how high your personal career ceiling is and go from there. If it's at the high end, go with a more reputable certification (ACSM, NSCA, NASM). If you think you're just going to be training in a gym or maybe go independent one day, then you can get away with a less reputable certification. Good luck!

[scottsdalesun13]

NASM, no contest.

[lovemelissa]

I originally was studying with ACE and due to unfortunate circumstances of having to re-purchase the books, a friend encouraged me to check out NASM. I was so happy to have made the switch. I felt like ACE was not as organized as NASM, the course itself has a much better flow to it and I am personally getting so much more out of what I am learning. The book itself is layed out more like a college textbook than the ACE workbooks, which I find helps keep me more focused and on track. Hope that helps!

[JoeCannonMSCSCS]

I think some of these past reviews should help answer some of your questions

http://www.joe-cannon.com/best-perso...asm-acsm-nsca/

http://www.joe-cannon.com/nsca-or-na...certification/

http://www.joe-cannon.com/nasm-perso...t-how-to-pass/

http://www.joe-cannon.com/ace-person...st-study-tips/

Good luck

[Borschtbeet]

It's interesting because the ACE certification is very widely recognized yet at the same time some of the absolute biggest dolts I've met in the industry have the ACE certification. Although I generally don't think a trainer should be judged by his/her certification. One of the best trainers I have ever met had only NESTA which is supposed to be tied with the ISSA as the worst certification.

[SCfitness7]

I know this is a fairly old post, but if anybody is still looking for a good comparison on these 2 certifications I have a great resource talking about the most popular personal trainer certifications. My specific article talking about NASM and ACE can be found here: http://www.bestpersonaltrainercertif...t/ace-vs-nasm/

[Ronin4help]

I've taken ACE (and let it expire) and I'm about to take NASM. Go with NASM, ACE has outdated information and is considered a joke amongst highly educated fitness professionals.

I agree and you may not have to go very high up to hear this.

[JoeCannonMSCSCS]

Id still pick ACE over NASM. Having interacted with NASM trainers during classes I teach, I feel ACE is more well rounded. Ive also heard people tell me NASM books are overly technical. Many certification books can be accused of this but having read the ACE books I can say they are very high quality.

Whatever you pick remember, no matter what you hear, there is no best cert. Certification is the first step. Its about being qualified, not certified.
Joe

[BC02]

ace hands down. nasm seems more like physical therapy then training. also everyone loves nasm because of the opt model of training but fail to realize that ace has their own model also

[FLChamp]

The trainer makes the certification. You're not going to regurgitate all the info ad verbatim from your certification books.

[LeoneStarr]

All that NASM being physical therapy is helping me a lot dealing with clients with structural and functional issues. combining what I read in NSCA CSCS textbook along with NASM PES and the AcSm strength and conditoning textbook is helping me with training athletes.

I've also looked at the ACE model but I am just not into it.

ACE or NASM...it doesn't really matter, you make the certification, don't let the ceetification make you. At the end of the day, it's just a certification, not a license.

[elCPT]

This post is a little outdated, but NASM has really stepped up their game in the last few years. Brand new updated materials that set trainers up a lot better then it used to 5 years ago. It is slightly more expensive, but you are also paying for the most recognized Fitness Cert in the nation, and this helps when getting clients and/or hired at a gym. The NASM test is difficult but I found this site that made it easy to pass with the their NASM study guide. fitnessmentors.com/free-nasm-cpt-study-guide/ I appreciate the Science base that NASM gives and think that ACE lacks in that area, making it tough to understand the reasoning for certain types of training.

[Ronin4help]

I've taken ACE (and let it expire) and I'm about to take NASM. Go with NASM, ACE has outdated information and is considered a joke amongst highly educated fitness professionals.

I agree.

[jschott65]

For everyone saying to go with NASM instead of ACE, could you give a little more reasoning behind your opinion?

I've been studying an ACE book (3rd edition too, just cuz I got it for free.....I know the test is based on 4th edition, so hopefully not that much $hit has been changed), and I'm admittedly frustrated with some of the seemingly needlessly-complicated formulas and concepts, and I have seen some things that I know are now thought of as "wrong," such as stretching before exercise, etc.

Anyway, I was attracted to ACE both because it was cheap to test and I heard it was pretty easy to learn....but I don't want a trash certification, nor do I really like the idea of just jumping through hoops and answering questions based simply on what the book says is right if it's not.

So how complicated is NASM in comparison to ACE? What makes it better than ACE, in your opinion? Do you feel as though you improved your concept of fitness through NASM?

Any and all thoughts will be welcome.


And I'm not gonna lie--as much as I like a challenge, I'm not looking to take a test that I'll fail, lol! I'm basically looking to improve on knowledge and learn some new and sound methods for exercising, not memorize more or less useless $hit to stroke my ego by making me feel exhaustively smart.....That being said, is the test super-complicated or crazy-radical in their approach?

I got my ACE in the early 90's, and it really hasn't changed much since. I got my first NASM in 2007 and absolutely loved it. It's more science based with their OPT model. It changed the way I trained, not only my clients, but myself as well. It opened up doors for me with regard to my company too. Having said all of that, I've been working out/training for 37 years, so I combine old-school training techniques, sports training, and the OPT training model and it's worked well for me. NASM will get you hired at the higher-end gyms, where ACE may not.

[MikeCaulo]

NASM is the leader in personal training and functional movement / assessments plain and simple. Plus it is basically accepted everywhere.

[Ronin4help]

Whatever you pick remember, no matter what you hear, there is no best cert. Certification is the first step. Its about being qualified, not certified.
Joe

The fact that you believe there should be a distinction is where the problem lies.

[SCfitness7]

Both certifications are extremely well recognized within the industry, are accepted by almost every employer and have excellent study materials. It really comes down to the type of individuals that you would like to train. NASM focuses more on corrective exercise and progressing people through their OPT training model. ACE covers all of this bases evenly and does not really focus on one area more than others which makes it a great beginners certification at the same time. There is much more to consider and I suggest you check out my updated article on NASM vs ACE to find out which one would be perfect for you to start out with. http://www.ptpioneer.com/nasm-vs-ace/