ACE-certified Personal Trainer Scott Gordon credits the ACE Integrated Fitness Training (ACE IFT) Model for his rising success as a new business owner. He isn’t alone. Kimberly Fleming, owner of Keep It Moving Fitness, and Joanne Duncan-Carnesciali, owner of Focused Wellness Inc., also feel that adopting the revolutionary ACE IFT Model into their personal training programs has given them the critical tools they needed to take their personal-training careers to a higher level.
ACE IFT Model at a Glance
Ultimately, the ACE IFT Model was created to meet the needs of an evolving fitness industry. It addresses the most commonly overlooked critical issue—the relationship between trainers and clients. The foundation of the model is to create a connection with clients. Too many personal trainers fail to really connect with their clients and, to draw a parallel, build a solid foundation upon which to build a robust home. The model also has a new approach to Cardiorespiratory Training: There are four phases that allow you to assess clients right away and progress them safely along the health-fitness-performance continuum. The second component is Functional Movement and Resistance Training, a blueprint to address a client’s need for stability and mobility training and movement training: Phase 1 addresses assessments and training for postural and joint stability and mobility; Phase 2 focuses on training the basic movement patterns of single-leg actions, squatting, bending, pushing and pulling, and rotating. Trainers learn how to assess clients’ posture, balance, movement and range of motion and how to progress them safely and effectively through the kinetic chain of stability and mobility movements.
What does the IFT Model Mean for You? Read These Success Stories by Real Trainers
If you’re wondering what the ACE IFT Model can do for you, your clients and your business and career, know that its revolutionary approach is life-changing.
For business owner Scott Gordon, learning about the ACE IFT Model has been instrumental in connecting with his clients and truly understanding their needs and goals. This has allowed him to grow a successful business in one year.
“Before I learned about the ACE IFT Model, I used to assess everyone the same,” Gordon said. “I used to do body compositions, a fitness and health assessment and movement screens, not realizing that some clients were turned off by some of these tests.”
Thanks to the ACE IFT Model, Gordon first focuses on learning what makes his clients tick, and then proceeds with his assessments. Among his success stories is a 40-year-old female client, whose negative perception of the “in-your-face-trainer-approach” as seen in the TV show The Biggest Loser, created a tremendous barrier for Gordon. But his empathetic style and attentive listening skills paid off. The client lost 40 pounds, became an avid runner and is now one of Gordon’s loyal clients.
For Kimberly Fleming, the ACE IFT Model meant a real breakthrough with her toughest client—her mother.
“My mother was always scared of exercise,” Fleming said. “This (her new training approach) has made my mother jump into exercise and love it.”
Like Gordon, Fleming used to "scare off” clients with a battery of initial tests. Now, she knows that every client is unique, needs to start off at a place of comfort and wants to address specific needs. The model has taught her how to do all that.
Joanne Duncan-Carnesciali, an experienced trainer who has earned the advanced ACE Lifestyle & Weight Management Coach Certification, feels that every trainer should learn and understand the ACE IFT Model.
“What is fabulous about the Model is that it includes all the tools personal trainers need to assist clients to meet their goals in a safe, progressive manner,” Duncan-Carnesciali said. Moreover, she said, “I’ve learned that I can learn a whole lot about what assessments to perform, or not to perform, if I ask the right questions and listen well during the fact-finding/rapport-building section of the assessment.”
Because it is our desire and goal to watch every trainer succeed, we encourage you to learn more about the ACE IFT Model today. Our free online course offers an excellent introduction. Earn 0.1 CECs and tell us how the ACE IFT Model has changed the way you train your clients.