I PASSED!

Hi Everyone,

Yesterday morning, I passed the ACSM HFS exam with flying colors.  What a relief! I'm now officially qualified to train special populations.  Look for my upcoming blog:

How to Pass the ACSM HFS exam.

What's next on my list?

A CROSSFIT cert

AG

MY ACSM HFS EXAM is on 12-30-2010...

There's no turning back now!  Less than a week to go to D-day.

Here's the link if you wish to get ACSM HFS certified:


http://www.acsm.org/AM/Template.cfm?Section=Health_Fitness_Instructor1&Template=/CM/ContentDisplay.cfm&ContentID=10829


AG

The Number 1 Team in Southern California!

As of today, the Glendale Bally Total Fitness Personal Training Team is the highest grossing team in Southern California.

Hard Work Always Pays Off!

As of Dec. 1st, I am officially the highest grossing Fitness Manager at Bally Total Fitness in the West Coast.  If I can achieve this in 1.8 years so can you!

Committed to your Success!
AG

I Just Became the Fitness Manager at the Glendale Bally Total Fitness in California!

Hi Everyone,

Today I became the Fitness Manager at the Glendale Bally Total Fitness Gym in California.  


I AM LOOKING FOR FITNESS FANATICS WHO HAVE UNBELIEVABLE WORK ETHIC WITH SERIOUS PEOPLE SKILLS.  IF YOU FEEL THAT THIS IS YOU, THEN SUBMIT YOUR RESUME' AT THE FOLLOWING LINK:

http://www.jobpath.com/CSH/Details.aspx?privjobs=true&did=J8D7Q26Z557NHYQLK7Y&csh=csh_ballys&pubjobs=true&int=false

BALLY JOBS: General Club Openings

www.jobpath.com

Listing of possible positions that may be available throughout our 335+ Clubs in North America (some positions not available in all clubs). For more details about current openings in the club nearest you, please call 1-800-FITNESS.

MAY THE BEST MAN OR WOMEN WIN!

Patrone Dishes on the Contents of the ACSM CPT Exam!

Here's the link:


http://www.starting-a-personal-training-business.com/aced-the-exam-heres-the-inside-scoop.html

Good luck!

Hone Your Selling Skills Before You Become a Personal Trainer...Here's a list of the Best Selling Books!

I AM CURRENTLY THE 5TH HIGHEST GROSSING PERSONAL TRAINER AT BALLY TOTAL FITNESS IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA...DONE WITHIN JUST 1 YEAR.

Now,

If you want to be a successful personal trainer, then you must master sales skills.  Here's a list of books that I have read so far:

1. Selling Personal Training II by Ron Thatcher

2. Sales Bible by Geffrey Gitomer

3. How to Master the Art of Selling by Tom Hopkins
 
4. How I Raised Myself From Failure to Success in Selling by Frank Bettger

5.  Little Red Book of Selling by Jeffrey Gitomer 

6. Close Like the Pros by Steve Marx

7. Getting to Closed by Stephan Schiffman

8. Selling to Big Companies by Jill Konrath

9. Flirting for Success by Jill Spiegel


10. How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie

As you can see, my constant vigil to be the best personal trainer and salesman is paying off....and if it can work for ME, it can work for YOU!

Committed to your Success,
AG

What are the Differences Between GETP 7th edition and GETP 8th Edition?

Recently I was asked the following question:

What are the Differences Between GETP 7th edition and GETP 8th Edition?

Here's the link where you will discover the differences:

http://www.pearsonvue.com/acsm/ACSM-Certification_Transitions_info.pdf

TOTAL WASTE OF MONEY! YOU WILL NOT GET A SINGLE QUESTION OUT OF THIS!

I bought their material for the ACE CPT exam....a total waste..

 http://www.mo-media.com/acsm/

I didn't get a single question from their material.  Lesson:  Spend your precious dollars only on the actual ACSM exams from ACSM.org. 

How to get Free ACSM Sample Test Questions!

I found a great link to where you can get a couple of free sample ACSM CPT test questions.  This is a teaser to get you to buy a bigger package.  However, all I did was use the samples to practice and I never bought the real package.  Here's the link:

ACSM 010-111: ACSM certified Personal Trainer Exam

You will have to give them your email address and set you password...and bamm!  You get free access to their sample practice questions.


Here's another site with free samples:

http://www.docstoc.com/docs/16963157/ACSM-Practice-Tests-and-Exam


My gift to you!

Great Facebook thread that's all about the ACSM!

Here's a great facebook thread all about the ACSM and its various certifications:

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?v=wall&viewas=0&gid=105407395311

Check it out!

A Great Companion to Your ACSM Study Material!

I would definitely recommend that you supplement you studying with the following book:

Exercise Prescription: A Case Study Approach to the ACSM's Guidelines, second edition

This book will give you a good idea of how to approach exercise prescription:

-2 cautions about this book:

1. ACSM's risk stratifications have changed as of 2009.  Therefore, you have skip the case studies on these sections.  I'm sure the 3rd edition, when it comes out, will have the updated risk stratification criteria.
2. You will not need to know the case studies for the metabolic equations as those are used only for the ACSM HFS exam

Sample ACSM CPT Exam Tutorial

If you want to learn what the ACSM CPT exam will look and feel like, click on the following link:

http://www.acsm.org/certification/ACSMSampleExamTutorial.wmv

ACSM Certified Personal Trainer Exam Questions Revealed

BrianB reveals the general topics that appeared on his exam. Here's the link:

BrianB

Brian gives a lot of helpful tips in terms of what to focus on.

How to Study for the ACSM Personal Trainer Exam

1. Study and pass the ACE Certified Personal Trainer Exam first.

2. Take the ACSM 3-day exam review workshop. In the workshop you will receive a review book which will be invaluable to your study.

3. Buy the study materials for the ACSM Certified Personal Trainer Exam. There are 3 books that you will need.

• ACSM’s Resources for the Personal Trainer, 3rd edition
• ACSM’s Guidelines for Exercise Testing and Prescription, 8th edition
• ACSM'S Certification Review, 3rd edition.

4. Browse through the workbook that comes with the 3-day exam review workshop. Then read each chapter in detail.

5. Study the ACSM's Certification Review book after you finish reading the 3-day exam review workshop. Take all the sample tests that come with the book.

6. Read all the dialogue boxes (highlighted in orange) throughout the book "ACSM's Resources for the Personal Trainer".

7. Now, go back and re-read the workbook that came with the 3-day exam review workshop. But this time, read one chapter in the workbook, and then go back to the "ACSM's Resources for the Personal Trainer" and read the corresponding material.

8. When you have finished, doing the above, go to the "ACSM’s Guidelines for Exercise Testing and Prescription, 8th edition" book and read the updated section on how to screen clients that need referral to a doctor prior to beginning an exercise program.

9. Now, you're ready for taking the practice tests that ACSM offers on their website. DO NOT TAKE ANY PRACTICE TESTS OR MATERIAL ADVERTISED BY THIRD PARTY COMPANIES...unless money is not an issue.

10. Here are the links to the practice tests online.

2 of the tests are paid. They are called practice test A and practice test B (50 questions each).
1 test is free (15 Questions)

http://www. acsmlearning.org

Note: you will have to actually register with ACSM and log-in before you can take either the paid or free exam.

VERY IMPORTANT....MAKE SURE YOU TAKE THE PRACTICE ACSM EXAMS THAT I MENTIONED ABOVE BECAUSE SOME OF MATERIAL ON THE REAL EXAM IS EXACTLY THE SAME AS THE QUESTIONS AS ON THE PRACTICE TESTS.

11. That's it! Your are now ready to take the real exam.

Good luck!

My Scores!

My scores on the ACSM CPT exam were as follows:

Exercise Physiology and Related Exercise Science 86%
Exercise Prescription (Training) and Programming 87%
Human Behavior 100%
Health Appraisal and Fitness Exercise Testing 75%
Safety, Injury Prevention and Emergency Procedure 90%
Nutrition and Weight Management 72%
Program Administration, Quality Assurance, and Outcome Assessment 60%
Clinical and Medical Considerations 58%

Passing Score is 550

My score: 656

Which Certification Should I get Prior to the ACSM CPT Certification?

Prior to getting the ACSM certification, I would highly recommend that you get certified through ACE. 90% of the material through ACE overlaps the with the ACSM certification. ACSM, however, is much more in-depth and more detailed than ACE.

How Long is the ACSM CPT Test?

The ACSM CPT is about 2.5 hours long with 15o multiple choice questions. I finished the exam in 1 hour 45 min. I will soon post how I studied for the exam.