PFI Online Blog

Are you still trying to keep your New Year’s resolution or have you fallen off the wagon…or is it on the wagon? Regardless, now is about the time that most individuals give up on what they initially considered a life changing moment in their life. Improving ones health and fitness has typically been the most cited goal when the New Year begins. Some people state that they are “changing their diet” or “getting more exercise”. However you want to label it, it is a fact that most people, especially those who do not have the motivation or support, start to leave those resolutions behind. How do individuals stick to resolutions? Find something that is motivating…or someone. Hiring a personal trainer is a great way to keep yourself motivated and to ensure that you have all the up to date information regarding exercise and nutrition. However, why hire a trainer when you can become one? Now is the perfect time to work on the second most popular resolution, to change jobs or “find something” enjoyable in the area of employment. Personal trainers have a unique schedule and lifestyle. You have independence and the flexibility to work around life instead of letting life work about you. Finding a school near you that offers the ability to be a certified personal trainer is easy however be careful of those programs that offer the “short time” certification. Once you become a certified personal trainer, it will be your turn to educate people on the basics of health and wellness.  The ultimate goal of a personal trainer is to get people to learn how to make fitness a way of life and that a lifestyle of fitness is not something you do for a few months…it is year round.

My staff and a few of my colleagues came up with this phrase as we were trying to decide what the theme for 2010 should be. In the previous years we came up with some good mantras, 2007 is going to be heaven, 2008 is going to be great, 2009 is going to be fine but when it came to 2010, we did not know what to come up with.  As you know, personal trainers are generally Type-A personalities so they are always trying to “one up” or “do one better” then the next person. The big question is, “How do we do that when it comes to education?” Luckily, one can go several avenues. Attending conferences and seminars are a great way to “up your game”. You can discover new programs and develop new training ideas. Speaking of idea’s one of the best ways to learn new ones is to attend IDEA’s world conference, at the Los Angeles Convention Center in Los Angeles, California August 4-8, 2010. The IDEA World Fitness Convention is the world’s largest, most comprehensive and longest-running event in the health and wellness industry. IDEA is the world’s largest organization for fitness and wellness professionals and they do not limit their conference too nationally, it is worldwide. They have reached across globally to bring together many nations in the stand against obesity and disease. However, even before IDEA’s World Conference comes in August, the NSCA holds their Personal Trainers Conference in Las Vegas, NV, March 7-8^th and their National Conference is in Orlando, FL, July 14-17. Both are great opportunities to “up your game”. Some of you might wonder why NSCA? The NSCA-CPT certification is considered to be one of the most highly respected and credible fitness-related certification available. By attending one of our several PFI partner schools and enrolling in our Personal Fitness Trainer program, you too can join the ranks of the more than 36,000 professionals who have obtained their prestigious NSCA-CPT certifications. If you want to “up your game”, seeking some form of higher education is one of the best ways to do so.

What’s in store for you this January? If you’re anything like millions of other people around the world, you’re looking to make a new beginning this new year.Ever since the Romans named the first month of the year after Janus, the ancient Roman god of beginnings, people have been resolving to make life changes every time January rolls around.

Today, Janus himself would be proud of the new beginnings millions of Americans resolve to make around this time of year. Among the most popular pledges every year? Losing weight! And a great way to do this can be choosing the right personal fitness training program for you.

While a nutritious diet full of fruits and vegetables is a surefire way to get healthy, physical activity can make a dramatic difference in weight loss efforts. If you want to make physical fitness a part of your daily routine, consider a career in personal training. You’ll get to stay active on the job as you inspire others to get in shape and change their lives.

So, as people all over the country are making resolutions to lose weight this year, why not resolve to get yourself a better career? If you have motivation, dedication and great people skills, you could start a career that lets you practice excellent fitness habits every day. Personal fitness training schools all across the country train students in healthy and effective exercise practices. This is one career path that won’t keep you stuck in a rut!

Recently there has been a lot of internet buzz around a five-year-old Romanian boy who recently set a Guinness World Record for walking on his hands.  In the video, it is revealed that the child participates in resistance training on a daily basis and has since he was two years old. Needless to say, this boy has gotten the attention of many people in both the fitness community and the general population.  Many in the general population are state that the child looks “abnormally developed”, and complain that the parents are pushing the child to perform these exercises.  To these people I have two points to make; first, how many little boys have you seen that mirror the actions of their father?  This is one of the primary ways that children learn socially acceptable behaviors, and it is the best way for our children to learn movement patterns that will benefit them in their future athletic performance.  This leads me to my second point, that many in the general population are inferring their feelings regarding health, fitness and exercise onto the child.  I have read many comments stating that “this child should be out having fun, not training in the gym”, but who is to say that he’s not having fun?  Look at children playing on a playground, they’re having fun, but they’re also participating in interval training, body weight resistance exercise, and plyometric training.  As a society, we often infer our feelings about exercise (e.g. it’s boring, time-consuming, and there are other things that I could spend my time on) onto fitness programs that are directed towards kids.  The simple fact of the matter is that this child is most likely having fun doing what he’s doing, otherwise he wouldn’t appear so happy in the video!    From the fitness population who have seen the video, most of the comments I’ve heard are that the child is being put at risk for injury because of the resistance training.  This is simply not true.  The most recent scientific research about resistance training and youth has found that resistance training is responsible for 0.7% of 1576 injuries recorded in a one-year period.[1]  Compare that to football (19%), basketball (15%) and soccer (2%), and we can clearly see that the old assumptions about resistance training causing injuries in youth populations are just not true.  Some argue that development, specifically bone growth through injury of the epiphyseal plates of the long bones, is hindered because of resistance training.  To date, there have been no prospective resistance training studies in pre-adolescent youths that have shown any evidence of epiphyseal plate fracture, or delayed/disrupted growth.[2]^,[3]  In fact, the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA) recently released a new position statement in support of youth resistance training.  This document provides clear recommendations youth training, including a discussion of the risks, benefits, and guidelines for including resistance training in exercise prescription for youth populations.In general, we need to get away from the antiquated notion that exercise is not for kids.  Exercise is a great way for kids to learn behaviors and movement patterns that will benefit them far into the future.  If good exercise habits are established in childhood those habits will carry over into adulthood.  If we could get children to start exercising and teach them that exercise can be a fun and fulfilling activity, then we would not have the current childhood obesity crisis that we are currently facing.  As a society, we all need to take a step back and examine exactly why we’re criticizing this boy’s exercise habits- is it really because we’re concerned for the child’s welfare. or is he making us all look bad because he’s exercising and enjoying it?

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[1] Zaricznyj, B, Shattuck, L, Mast, T, Robertson, R, and D’Elia, G. (1980) Sports-related injuries in school-aged children.  American Journal of Sports Medicine 8: 318-324

[2]Falk, B and Eliakim, A. (2003) Resistance training, skeletal muscle and growth. Pediatric Endocrinology Review 1:120-127

[3] Malina, R. (2001) Weight training in youth-growth maturation and safety: An evidence based review. Clinical Journal of Sports Medicine 16: 478-487

The world of fitness is changing…again. Today, we are entering a new world in many ways. Besides economic challenges threatening to exterminate the middle class and epidemic obestity impacting one billion people worldwide, fitness professionals have to prepare for the job market of 2009 and beyond.

Legislation is being presented to various state governments that would require personal fitness trainers (and in some states, group exercise instructors) to be regulated by either the Board of Physical Thearpy or a governor appointed board, or one national overseeing body. The requirements would include a large number of classrooom hours, personal training supervision and the passing of an exam. Those exempt from the requirement would be those with a college degree in the field at the associate’s level or highter.

The question then comes up: Is earning a college degree in the field of exercise, nutrition or health/sports psychology worth it? The answer is: maybe!

Professional Fitness Institute http://www.pf-institute.com and Pinnacle Career Institute http://www.pcitraining.edu have teamed up to offer those who want to pursue higher education that opportunity. The Associate of Occupational Studies-Personal Trainer degree allows those who want to get a step ahead to do just that…come out ahead. The objectives of the Personal Trainer program are to provide graduates with the knowledge, skills and abilities to qualify for personal trainer positions. The aim is to prepare graduates for work in gyms, fitness centers, private studios or corporate wellness programs. Some students even begin their own personal training businesses.

A college degree is not needed or desired by everyone, however in today’s challenging economic and job climate, it is a good idea to give yourself the edge that a college degree provides.

 Reference

Farley, J.J. (2009). Degrees of success. Personal Fitness Professional, 11(8), 24-26.

http://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/rbpublishing/pfp_200910/#/24

“Always be in learning mode” This was the answer that was given to me by a student when I asked him, “How do you keep yourself ahead of everyone else?” At the time I thought that it was an odd yet thought provoking answer. As an educator it took me a few years to realize the depth of the answer. If we are always in a learning mode we allow ourselves to growth both intellectually and personally.  What does this mean for you and I. Well we constantly have to put value both monetarily and emotionally into what we feel is educationally valuable to us. I frequently challenge my instructors to learn more, teach more and to be more. Not only is an accreditation standard it should be a professional standard. Wanting to learn more should arise from intrinsic motivation and self satisfying advocacy. People come to us because we possess a certain skill set that makes us “the expert”. While we cannot be experts in everything (and I know there are those of you who think you are) we should be an expert in something(s).  By not developing your niche in the industry you will have an extremely hard time branding yourself and therefore developing a position within the industry. How do Gray Cook, J.C. Santana, and Mark Verstegen get to be consummate professionals in the fitness industry? Simple, they developed a niche and educated themselves to the upmost level in that particular sector of the field. What about your trainers or you? Here is what we have to do as educated fitness professional. We have to raise our standards and then bring our employees and clients up to your standard. Set the bar high and eventually people will start reaching, grasping and soon thereafter clinging to that bar. 

Wii can get you fit!

Video game consoles are evolving, so it’s no surprise that the average PlayStation or Xbox doubles as an Internet browser, DVD player, music player or all of the above. Nintendo is no different – and perhaps is even taking it further than Sony or Microsoft with their Wii.

The Wii video game console hit the market in 2006 and since then has turned the gaming world upside-down by being one of the first video consoles to incorporate a player’s motion during gaming. The difference lies with the Wii remote, which is used as a handheld pointing device that detects movement in three dimensions.

For example, with the Wii tennis game, movements that mimic actually playing tennis are used to play tennis on the game screen. Some are even saying that this new gaming style can help people become more active.

Nintendo has taken the concept of movement-based gaming even further by introducing the Wii Fit, which is a game that combines the technology of the Wii remote with exercise. Through the Wii Balance Board, gamers can play while exercising. Some of the exercises that are found on the Wii Fit are:

• Yoga
• Aerobics
• Strength training
• And more!

Some personal trainers have even created workout programs for clients to supplement their exercise when they are away from the gym!

Professional Fitness Institute offers personal training programs! If you want to start playing with your career, then they have the hands-on training you need. Contact us today!

During a recession how can you weather the economic storms? The right training can be all the difference in making a career or filing for unemployment. There’s one career that is taking off amidst layoffs: Personal Trainers. According to the Bureau Labor of Statistics, fitness workers should have good opportunities due to rapid job growth in health clubs, fitness facilities, and other settings where fitness workers are concentrated. The industry is expected to grow 27% through 2016.

Why not take your affection for working out and being healthy and transform that into a fulfilling career? Whether you’ve just graduated or looking to switch a career that offers stability – personal training should offer ample career opportunities.

There are several schools that offer personal training as a program, like Professional Fitness Institute. Gain the skills you need to be success!

 

After students successfully complete their nine online classes the tenth month is their extern. During the extern the student gets the opportunity to go to Las Vegas for a boot camp. While there the student interacts with many different fitness instructors. Two of the people that the students may interact with is Jay Cutler and Jenny Hendershott. Jay Cutler just won the 2007 Mr. Olympia and Jenny Hendershott placed 3rd at the Ms. Fitness Olympia.

June 26, 2008 by PFI

Hi June Boot Campers!

Just a friendly reminder that I’m looking for your pictures to post here in the online blog! I’m looking forward to seeing what you took pictures of and how you remember the week.

For me the week was a whirlwind of highlights- when I think back on the week it’s pretty hard to choose one “favorite moment”. Maybe it was watching you guys push yourselves and challenge each other at Camp Lee, or the excitement that you all had when Tommy was going through the sport workouts (even though the temperature was over 100 degrees!), or the relief on everyone’s face after getting out of the exam? One thing does stick out in my mind though- the snores that I heard during Yoga class! It’s all good though- at least you were relaxed enough to fall asleep the morning of the exam

Here are a few of the pictures that I took over the week- I’ll be posting more soon!

Thanks,

Tina