Set yourself apart

Equip yourself with BOTH personal training and nutrition coaching qualifications so you can offer the complete package to clients, strengthening your credibility and gaining a major edge over your competition.

Attract many more clients

Be the sought-after trainer, providing the fitness and nutrition results clients everywhere are seeking. Whether a client is seeking to gain strength, eat healthier or both, this integrative approach will help you attract clients and achieve ongoing success.

Achieve even better results

Physical activity is only half the battle to healthy lifestyle changes. A well-balanced nutrition is as essential to optimum health. Based on behavior change coaching, these two programs will allow you to deliver lasting results to your clients.

Build a strong foundation with an ACE Personal Trainer Study Program

Gaining an in-depth understanding of how exercise affects nutrition and vice versa will ensure you are maximizing your client's exercise and nutrition program.

The ACE Personal Trainer Plus Study Program provides the most current, highest quality education available. You will learn the latest evidence-based exercise science fundamentals, principles of behavior change and client-centered methodologies you can apply from the start.

What you'll learn:

Gain understanding of the personal trainer's responsibilities and ethics as well as their role within the healthcare continuum and in allied healthcare—plus the various avenues of career development.

Discover the principles of behavior change, effective communication, goal setting and teaching techniques to create a credible and trusting client-personal trainer relationship that's vital to your client's success.

Create client programs that improve and maintain health, fitness, weight, body composition and metabolism. Learn about heart rate, blood pressure and circumference measurements, which can be used as a baseline for future progress—plus how to apply exercise progressions to help a variety of clients reach their goals.

Become an expert in the ACE IFT® Model, a systematic approach to designing and progressing through exercise programs based on the unique abilities, needs and goals of the client.

Explore the philosophy designed to empower clients to make behavioral changes toward improved fitness and overall health.

Gain understanding of the considerations for clients with various diseases, conditions, injuries or stages in life, including youth, women during pregnancy and older adults.

Find out how to thrive on the business side of your personal training with legal guidelines and businesses considerations, such as legal forms, insurance, record keeping and risk management that protect clients, stakeholders and you.

The learning experience is self-paced and takes at least 3-6 months to complete. When ready, you will complete the ACE Personal Trainer exam of your choice. Upon completion of the exam, you will be an ACE Personal Trainer, ready to coach clients!

What's included in your ACE Personal Trainer
Plus Study Program:

  • ACE University (ACE U)
    x

    The core of your study program where you will receive step-by-step guidance from start to finish, moving from learning to applying. With an intuitive learning platform, compatible on any device, learning is at your fingertips. ACE U helps you plan, manage and track your course syllabus and offers engaging videos, ACE in Action demonstrations, helpful quizzes and learning activities, and your first practice test.

  • Exam Options
    x

    You have two options for your ACE Personal Trainer Exam:

    ACE Personal Training Certificate Exam (Non-proctored) – included with all study programs is a 100% online, open-book exam. This is a non-accredited certificate program.

    ACE Certified Personal Trainer Exam (NCCA-accredited) – choose from an in-person proctored exam at a location near you, or an online exam through a Live Remote Proctor.

    Learn more about Live Remote Proctor here.

    ACE Personal Training Certificate Exam (Non-proctored)
    x

    ACE Personal Training Certificate Exam
    (Non-proctored)

    Included with all Study Programs, this exam assesses if you meet the level of competence necessary to earn an ACE Personal Training Certificate.

    Upon completion you will earn:
    - An ACE Personal Training Certificate
    - Digital credentials to display online
    - The designations of:
      ACE Personal Trainer
      ACE Pro
    - Access to exclusive ACE Pro Career Support

    Exam details:
    - 100% online, open-book exam
    - 100 multiple choice questions
    - 3 hours to complete
    - Unlimited attempts to pass
    - Take whenever you're ready, no expiration date
    - Requires a score of 70% or greater to pass
    - Instant exam results and digital certificate delivery

    ACE Certified Personal Trainer Exam (NCCA-accredited)
    x

    ACE Certified Personal Trainer Exam
    (NCCA-accredited)

    Available for JUST $99.00 as an optional add-on with all Study Programs, this exam assesses if you meet the level of competence necessary to earn an NCCA-accredited ACE Personal Trainer Certification—the highest level of excellence.

    Upon completion you will earn:
    - An NCCA-accredited ACE Personal Trainer Certification
    - Digital credentials to display online
    - The designations of:
      ACE Certified Personal Trainer
      ACE Pro
    - Access to exclusive ACE Pro Career Support
    - Profile information on the Find an ACE Pro web page directory
    - Recognition on the U.S. Registry of Exercise Professionals (USREPS.org)

    Exam details:
    - In-person or online, live proctored exam
    - 150 multiple choice questions
    - 3 hours to complete
    - Retake available
    - Requires a score of 500 or greater to pass
    -Instant exam results and digital certificate delivery

  • 2 Practice Tests
    x

    Test your readiness to take the ACE Personal Trainer Exam. Each test is unique and can be taken as many times as you like.

  • ACE Personal Trainer Textbook
    Digital + Hard Copy
    x

    Rooted in the latest evidence-based research in exercise science and deep integration of behavior change, The Exercise Professionals Guide to Personal Training textbook is the main resource of your study program. This new, all-in-one textbook delivers essential knowledge, case studies and ACE methodologies in an easy to understand way so you can prepare for your exam and use it as a resource as you begin to work with clients and move through your career.

  • ACE Personal Trainer Study Companion
    Digital + Hard Copy
    x

    As a supplement to the The Exercise Professionals Guide to Personal Training textbook, the Study Companion focuses on multiple levels of learning through a combination of questions and practical application activities. It will help you not only prepare for your exam with confidence, but also be a knowledgeable and effective personal trainer.

  • ACE Answers (Plus)
    Live Q&A Webinars
    x

    Enhance your learning and be confident in your readiness to take the ACE Certification Exam with on-demand study support from ACE Answers. Includes access to ACE Answers Basic plus:

    Live Q&A Webinars where you can get your questions answered on a variety of topics by an ACE Study Coach. Plus, listen and learn while fellow participants ask questions during these engaging webinars.

  • Exercise Science 101
    x

    A supplemental course designed to support your understanding of the anatomy and physiology concepts that serve as foundational knowledge for your career.

  • Free Ground Shipping

*Digital eBooks compatible with desktops (Mac & PC), tablets and smartphones (iOS & Android) only. Cannot be printed.

Boost your nutrition coaching skills with Precision Nutrition

Having the qualifications to coach both exercise and nutrition makes you a more well-rounded health and fitness professional that can make sustainable changes in your clients' lives.

Based not only on theory, but data from coaching over 100,000 real clients in hundreds of real-world situations, Precision Nutrition Level 1 – The Essentials of Nutrition and Coaching, a comprehensive, self-guided course, gives you a practical system that shows you exactly what to do at every stage of the nutrition coaching process.

What you'll learn:

Learn the unique and practical Precision Nutrition approach to coaching, including:

  • How to get clients to follow your advice (and stick to it)
  • The best nutrition and coaching approaches for almost any situation
  • Top strategies to keep clients on track and making progress from Day 1
  • Hundreds of dos and don'ts to avoid pitfalls and achieve success

Dive into the science of nutrition in an easy-to-understand format, including:

  • Macronutrients: protein, carbohydrate and fat
  • Vitamins, minerals and nutrients
  • Calories, metabolism and energy balance
  • Digestion, nutrient absorption and water balance
  • Energy production, fat storage and muscle gain

Review a step-by-step process that applies everything you learned, from coaching to business strategies, so you can get immediate results.

Upon completion of the course, you will be able to:

  • Apply a solid understanding of nutrition science to your practice
  • Coach clients of all types toward changing their behavior in the context of their everyday life–whether it's a busy parent who's constantly pulled in a million directions, an executive whose schedule is filled to the brim, or anyone in between
  • Leverage Precision Nutrition's practical system that shows you exactly what to do at every stage of the nutrition coaching process

What's included in your Precision Nutrition Level 1 course:

Join a family that helps you thrive throughout your career!

ACE is a leading non-profit with 90,000+ certified exercise professionals and health coaches who share a mission to get people moving. We promise to support you beyond certification and through the different stages of your career. As an ACE Pro, you'll get access to exclusive networks, resources, tools and discounts.

  • ACE® Pro Compass
  • ACE Job Board
  • ACE Pro Connect™ App
  • ACE Talks Podcast
  • Digital Credentials
  • Profile in the USREPS national registry
  • CERTIFIED™ Magazine, a free monthly digital publication
  • Discounted liability insurance
  • Discounts and special offers on clothing, equipment, memberships and more
  • Voice in Washington and state capitals

Launch a lasting career in nutrition and fitness!

American Council on Exercise reserves the right to discontinue the sale or support of any product at any time, to remove, correct, or update content based on current industry standards, guidelines, or technological advances. Notification will be given to those who have purchased such products six months prior to expiration. No refund will be given for expiring products.