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Where do I begin studying?

by Ana

Ok, so I just bought all of the books for the ACSM Personal Trainer test... and I am a little confused about where exactly to start. I started reading the "ACSM's Guidelines For Exercise Testing And Prescription", but in the first chapter, I started wondering if maybe I was supposed to start somewhere else, because I feel like there were things in there that I needed some deeper explanation on to understand? Am I supposed to know what MET's and Vo2 Max are and all that from the get go?

I am not a huge health nut or workout guru, but about 4 months ago I got into working out and eating healthy, and made a HUGE change in my life, and really want to help people do the same in their lives. So I might be lacking some of the knowledge that others may have when starting to study for this, but I feel like the books should have all the information I need? Or am I going to need to google things?

Please help... is there a certain book that I should start with that will give me the foundation I need?

Thank you

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You Made The Right Choice - Study Hard!
by: Your Personal Gym

Hi -

This is Larry (CEO) of Your Personal Gym.
You made the right choice by deciding to take the ACSM certification. It is the best way to educate yourself without having a 4 year degree in the field.
You will be expected to know what a MET is and how to calculate it. You will also be expected to know what VO2 is and all the modes of testing i.e. field, treadmill, bike and step. Know your common conversions and metabolic calcuations.

http://www.yourpersonalgym.org

Train SMART,

Larry

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Where to begin....
by: J.T.

Well Ana...this is a tough topic for all of starting off. There is so much information to absorb and where do we start..Hope this helps since I just took my exam last week. There is a breakdown by sections on the exam with a % on how many questions will be on the exam..mind you there are 150 questions BUT only 100 are graded. 50 questions are sample question used for future exams. The time alloted for the exam is 2hrs 45minutes. The sections with the highest %'s is where you should focus the most of your time studying along with this online prep course. Here ya go:

Exercise Physiology and Related Exercise Science: 24%

Exercise Prescription and Programming: 28%

Human Behavior: 4%

Health Appraisal and Fitness Testing: 13%

Safety,Injury Prevention,Emergency Procedures: 8%

Nutrition and Weight Mgmt: 9%

Clinical and Medical Considerations: 10%

Program Admin,QualityAssur,outcome assmt: 4%

So put your time into those areas with the most %'s....
I only recall one question about METS..
Know ALL the risk factors for CAD.
Know what muscle extends the forearm.
Know muslces of the rotator cuff..and what abducts the shoulder..supraspinatus!!
Know Borg scale
Know Karvonan formula for HRR
Know how to calculate BMI
Know Desired body weight
Know caloric values per gram: Fat(9),Carb(4),Protein(4),Alcohol(7)
I'll be the first to admit that the test was nerve wrecking...but there was alot that i didnt know..You'll see a couple case studies, not to difficult, You'll see no diagrams of the body identifying body muscles or bones..also no videos of someone performing an exercise..my instructor said you might see this on the exam..not so...
Theres alot more but take the time to study..its tough for me since i'm a hands on person..thats why i went to the workshop...which helped a little bit..Sorry so long but this is some of what i remembered...hope it helps... :)

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But what books to start with?
by: Anna

Your answers are great and I truely appreciate all the help... I am curious though as to what book people started with out of the study material? Which one will help break it down the best to give me my base knowledge so I can move onto the others?

Thanks

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Where to start?
by: J.T.

The book that i got from the 3 day workshop gave us the best place to start...along with a worksheet that breaks down the sections and actually gives you page numbers to referrence the material to find the answers for specific questions...was pretty cool to have but the workshop was $375 bucks...Now the certification review book i've noticed goes way more in depth than the resource for the personal trainer book. I'm going back through the cert review book myself now and referrencing the resource book..I also printed out posts from others on here and went through to find the answers myself..that was a great help to..networking with others on here..Let me know if you need anything else...
Hey Katie...here's a question for ya i cant find...or anyone else..
Know the muscular differences- running up and down hill and what happens eccentrically when walking on an incline or decline...i cant find this anywhere in the materials and it WAS a question on the exam...thanks..J.T.

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How to start, Anna...
by: NC-CPT

Anna, start with the textbook with the cheesy photo on the cover. Read it all the way through. Then go through the certification review- read the chapters and take the practice tests. Refer to the textbook as neccessary. Then read the little green book- "..Exercise Testing and Prescription" It's boring, I'm not going to lie, but you MUST read this book. If you decide to take the workshop, do it after that. After the workshop, read all of the books a SECOND time through. Take every practice test you can find. Study very hard and you will do well!

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help
by: KB

i am currently studying for the ACSM cPT exam. I am having a hard time finding some of the KSA's. I have read all the posts on here and they have been very helpful. Is there anyway someone can email or fax me the information that you get at the 3 day workshop? There isnt one near me and there is no way I can take off from work and go (single mom). any help would be greatly appreciated. My email is krisboo2378@yahoo.com if anyone can help me out.

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KSA's
by: Anonymous

Not all of the KSA's are found in the textbooks, but the book you get at the workshop has some. I studied a year and I took the workshop. What I did was:

1. Read the book through.
2. Print out the KSA's to keep as a checklist in a notebook.
3. Made index cards labeled with KSA #'s.
4. Made my own study sheets.
5. Read the Review book and took tests.

To be honest, if I had not gone to the workshop I'm not so sure how well I would have done on the test. It pulled all that information together for me, especially risk stratification.

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workshop
by: KB

There isnt a workshop near where I live and I cant afford to take time off work to travel to one. So I dont really know what I will do to pass. :-(

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where do i begin..
by: jt wood

You do NOT need the workshop to pass the cpt acsm exam...it does help depending on who your instructor is. It wouldn't have mattered in my case if i went or not...just food for thought..

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I need help too!!
by: Anonymous

I am similar to Anna. I am not an anatomy genius or doctor by any means. I just have a passion for working out and want to help others. I ordered all the books to study myself and feeling very overwhelmed, any advice of where to begin. There is sooo much info and I feel like reading the books front to back is pointless if I only need to know certain things.. any help? Thanks

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where to begin...
by: jt wood

ok..here's the deal..i've been certified now and have an awesome job with a growing gym facility. most of what i've learned has nothing to do with what i'm doing on a daily basis. dont get me wrong..knowing what to do and how it impacts the muscle groups is huge. as you work with clients..they dont really care except for you to help take off the pounds..hope that ads value a bit.

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Relevance
by: Anonymous

I would sincerely hope if you are taking this exam that you WILL apply the knowledge you learn and not throw it out the window just to get pounds off which anyone can do without getting certified. If you are just looking for a means to an end, go with one of the cheaper, easier and less intense certifications. Otherwise, take your time, study everything until you know it inside and out, practice, take practice tests, and study some more.

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Cheesy cover?
by: Ultra

To NC-CPT,

Which book is the one with the cheesy cover? "ACSM's Resources for the Personal Trainer"??

Thanks!

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Print out KSA's
by: Ultra

One of you above said you printed out the KSA's. Where did you print them FROM? Also, where does it tell me what KSA's I need to know for the exam? Sorry for the ignorance. Just got my books and am starting the study process.

Thanks!

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Who recommends workshop first?
by: Tammie

What is the recommendation regarding taking the 3-day workshop first? Would that be the best place to begin? It appears that you get a workbook that is extremely helpful in studying....would that lay the foundation for being able to better interpret what you are reading in the ACSM study materials? I want to make the best use of my time and money. Does it really require 6 months of study?

Comments from anyone who has taken the ACSM exam would be much appreciated!

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workshop
by: delosav

So to clarify, do people feel that you should go to the workshop FIRST?

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