ACE Personal Trainer Manual

5 th Edition
Chapter 1: Role and Scope of Practice for the Personal Trainer
Lesson 1
 LEARNING OBJECTIVES

• After completing this session, you will be able to:

 List the major research findings of the 2008 Physical
Activity Guidelines for Americans
 Discuss the allied healthcare continuum and the position
of the personal trainer
 Describe the objective of the ACE Personal Trainer
Certification
 Define “scope of practice” and the ACE Certified Personal
Trainer scope of practice
 Review the ACE Code of Ethics
 Discuss accreditation of allied healthcare credentials
through the NCCA
 Discuss career development and the role of continuing
education
© 2014 ACE
 2008 PHYSICAL ACTIVITY GUIDELINES FOR AMERICANS

• These guidelines list the following major

research findings regarding physical
activity and its associated health benefits:
 Regular physical activity reduces the risk
of many adverse health outcomes.
 Some physical activity is better than
none.
 Additional benefits occur as the amount
of physical activity increases through
higher intensity, greater frequency,
and/or longer duration.
 Most health benefits occur with at least
150 minutes a week of moderate-
intensity physical activity, and additional
benefits occur with more physical activity.

© 2014 ACE
 2008 PHYSICAL ACTIVITY GUIDELINES FOR AMERICANS

• Health benefits (continued):

 Both aerobic (endurance) and
muscle-strengthening (resistance)
physical activity are beneficial.
 Health benefits occur for children and
adolescents, young and middle-aged
adults, older adults, and those in
every studied racial and ethnic group.
 The health benefits of physical
activity occur for people with
disabilities.
 The benefits of physical activity far
outweigh the possibility of adverse
outcomes.

© 2014 ACE
 UNDERSTANDING THE ALLIED HEALTHCARE CONTINUUM

• The allied healthcare

continuum is composed of
health professionals who are
credentialed through
certifications, registrations,
and/or licensure and provide
services to identify, prevent,
and treat diseases and
disorders.

© 2014 ACE
 UNDERSTANDING THE ALLIED HEALTHCARE CONTINUUM

© 2014 ACE
 THE ACE PERSONAL TRAINER CERTIFICATION

• Fitness professionals who earn the ACE

Personal Trainer Certification are competent
to work as professional personal trainers
with:
 Apparently healthy individuals
 Clients with special needs who have a
physician’s clearance for exercise
 Small groups with minimal supervision

© 2014 ACE
 THE ACE PERSONAL TRAINER CERTIFICATION

• The primary purpose of a certification is to

protect the public from harm by assessing
established levels of competence in the
knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to
perform the job in a safe and effective
manner.
• Candidates who achieve a passing score meet
or exceed the level of competency required
to work as a professional personal trainer
with minimum supervision.
• In the credentialing world, this threshold of
professional competence is referred to as the
“minimum competency” required for a
person to work in the profession.

© 2014 ACE
 ACE CERTIFIED PERSONAL TRAINER SCOPE OF PRACTICE

• Developing and implementing exercise programs that are safe, effective, and appropriate for
individuals who are apparently healthy or have medical clearance to exercise
• Conducting health-history interviews and stratifying risk for cardiovascular disease with
clients in order to determine the need for referral and identify contraindications for exercise
• Administering appropriate fitness assessments based on the client’s health history, current
fitness, lifestyle factors, and goals utilizing research-proven and published protocols
• Assisting clients in setting and achieving realistic fitness goals
• Teaching correct exercise methods and progressions through demonstration, explanation,
and proper cueing and spotting techniques
• Empowering individuals to begin and adhere to their exercise programs using guidance,
support, motivation, lapse-prevention strategies, and effective feedback
• Designing structured exercise programs for one-on-one and small-group personal training
• Educating clients about fitness- and health-related topics to help them in adopting healthful
behaviors that facilitate exercise program success
• Protecting client confidentiality according to the Health Insurance Portability and
Accountability Act (HIPAA) and related regional and national laws

© 2014 ACE
ACE CODE OF ETHICS

The ACE Code of Ethics governs the ethical and

professional conduct of ACE Certified
Professionals when working with clients, the
public, or other health and fitness professionals.

Every individual who registers for an ACE

certification exam must agree to uphold the ACE
Code of Ethics throughout the exam process and
as a professional, should he or she earn an ACE
certification.

© 2014 ACE
 NETWORKING

Many people struggle when introducing

themselves to strangers, actively promoting
their services, and making those all-important
professional connections.
• How comfortable are you with the notion,
and actual process, of networking?
• If this is an area of concern for you,
how might you address this potential
weakness?
It is also important to develop a network of
referral sources to meet the varying needs of
clients. Trainers should identify allied health
professionals who are reputable and aspire to
the same professional standards as an ACE
Certified Personal Trainer.

© 2014 ACE
 ACCREDITATION OF ALLIED HEALTHCARE CREDENTIALS

• ACE and other top professional fitness organizations have

earned third-party accreditation from the National Commission
for Certifying Agencies (NCCA) for their certification programs.
• The NCCA has reviewed and accredited the certification
programs for most professions within allied healthcare. This
includes registered dietitians, athletic trainers, nurse
practitioners, massage therapists, personal trainers, and more.
• By earning NCCA accreditation for all four of its certification
programs, ACE has taken the professional and responsible
steps necessary to help position ACE Certified Professionals as
legitimate members of the allied healthcare continuum.

© 2014 ACE
 ACCREDITATION OF ALLIED HEALTHCARE CREDENTIALS

• Recognition from the

fitness and health
industry
 In the fitness
industry, NCCA
accreditation has
become recognized
as the third-party
standard for
accreditation of
certifications for
personal trainers and
other fitness
professionals.

© 2014 ACE
 ACCREDITATION OF ALLIED HEALTHCARE CREDENTIALS

Recognition from the Department of Labor (DOL)

• The DOL reports that most personal trainers must obtain a
certification in the fitness field to gain employment.
• The DOL also states that one way to ensure that a certifying
organization is reputable is to see that it is accredited by the
NCCA.

ACE is one of the few organizations specifically identified by

the DOL as offering quality certifications for personal trainers.

Other professions listed as fitness workers by the DOL include

group exercise instructors, fitness directors, and those teaching
specializations such as yoga and Pilates.
© 2014 ACE
ACCREDITATION OF ALLIED HEALTHCARE CREDENTIALS

• Coalition for the Registration of Exercise Professionals (CREP) is a not-for-

profit corporation composed of organizations that offer NCCA-accredited
fitness certifications.
 Members are committed to advancing the fitness profession and earning
recognition as health providers for practitioners who have passed a
competency-based fitness certification exam accredited by the NCCA.
 The mission is to ensure that individuals of all ages and abilities have the
resources and leadership to safely and effectively reach their goals of
achieving more active, healthy lifestyles through movement, physical activity,
or exercise for recreation or performance.
 CREP maintains an internationally recognized registry of exercise
professionals in the United States, and is a primary advocate for fitness
professionals who hold NCCA-accredited fitness certifications on issues that
pertain to regulation, access, and scope of work.
• ACE supports the CREP position that well-qualified health and fitness
professionals should hold an NCCA-accredited fitness certification at a
minimum before they should be able to practice.

© 2014 ACE
 CAREER DEVELOPMENT FOR THE PERSONAL TRAINER

• It is important for every personal trainer to

have a general idea of the career path that he
or she wants to follow.
• Career goals are personal and are based on
the specific needs of the professional to meet
career objectives and balance with other
commitments:
 Personal Trainer
• Part time
• Full time
 Fitness Director
 General Manager
 Owner
• Home-based business
• Personal-training studio

© 2014 ACE
 CAREER DEVELOPMENT FOR THE PERSONAL TRAINER

• Career paths should be viewed as

guidelines to help the
professional reach certain career
goals.
• A career plan can help a
professional determine if a new
opportunity or continuing
education offering is in line with
his or her goals:
 Continuing education
 Degrees
 Additional fitness certifications
 New areas of expertise within
allied healthcare

© 2014 ACE
 CAREER DEVELOPMENT FOR THE PERSONAL TRAINER

• Continuing education
 By completing continuing
education in one or more
areas of focus, a personal
trainer can advance his
or her career by
becoming a specialist in
areas such as weight
management, youth
fitness, sports
conditioning, or senior
fitness.

© 2014 ACE
 CAREER DEVELOPMENT FOR THE PERSONAL TRAINER

• Degrees
 While not a requirement, a degree
can prove helpful as trainers try to
advance their careers into
management or advanced
positions within medical fitness or
teaching.
• Additional fitness certifications
 ACE Group Fitness Instructor
 ACE Health Coach
 ACE Advanced Health & Fitness
Specialist
• New areas of expertise within allied
healthcare
 Licensed massage therapist
 Registered dietician
 Physical therapist
© 2014 ACE
 SUMMARY

• As a member of the allied healthcare continuum, the ACE Certified

Personal Trainer is in a service industry focused on helping people
enhance fitness and modify risk factors for disease to improve
health.
• The ACE Certified Personal Trainer’s scope of practice defines a
unique profession dedicated to helping people improve their
fitness, health, and quality of life through physical activity.
• By upholding ACE’s Code of Ethics, ACE Certified Professionals
understand the conduct expected from them as healthcare
professionals in protecting the public from harm.
• By completing continuing education in one or more areas of focus,
a personal trainer can advance his or her career by becoming a
specialist which can help the trainer become recognized as an
expert in a given field, and attract specific clientele.

© 2014 ACE