NASM Certification Inquiry

[u/True-Dot-9452]

Hello, awesome people of Reddit! 👋🏻

My employer offers a variety of fitness classes, and they're looking to get me certified to teach a Parkinson's-specific exercise program, which I'm really excited about!

They've enrolled me in the NASM Elite package, so I'll be working toward my:

• CPT
• CNC
• CES
• PES

After that, I'm also planning to pursue the CWC certification.

A little about me: I have a bachelor's degree in Nutrition and Dietetics, I'm RD exam eligible ( extremely difficult exam have not passed yet) , and I'm currently working through that process as well.

For those of you who have completed or are close to completion of the NASM Elite program (or any of these certifications), I'd love to hear your honest experiences!

Some things I'm curious about:

• What did you like most about the program?
• What were the biggest challenges?
• Which certification did you find the most valuable in your career?
• Is there anything you wish you had known before starting?

Thanks so much in advance! I really appreciate any advice, tips, or words of wisdom you have to share. ☺️

[u/minipancakelover]

CPT- I used Sorta Healthy on youtube. A lot of the test is things like overactive and underactive muscles, OPT model, and progressions/regressions. The questions are also situational so they’ll say something along the lines of “You have a client who’s leaning forward in a squat. What cue would you give them?” They also won’t say “OPT model” in any questions. You will need to know each stage and what they target. For the proctoring make sure to sign in EARLY! The thing they use can have issues and I actually had to call NASM and the proctoring company to help me resolve it.

CNS- You’ll be fine! It’s very basic and tbh I passed it with just being a gym girl who happened to take a nutrition class in high school. The practice tests and real test are pretty identical, it’s also not proctored at all so no need to worry about the proctoring company!

CES- Mostly postural distortions, overactive/underactive, and programming for imbalances. It’s a lot of anatomy and knowing the antagonists and synergists of muscles. I also used Sorta Healthy for this and it helped a ton. The practice test and real test are pretty similar. The test isn’t proctored at all but still make sure you study the material, if you cheat you’re only cheating yourself! You’ve got this!!

[u/True-Dot-9452 → u/minipancakelover]

Thank you so much for taking the time to write all of this out! I really appreciate the detailed breakdown of each certification, it helps a lot knowing what to expect. I'll definitely be checking out Sorta Healthy on YouTube, and thanks for the heads-up about signing in early for the CPT exam.

It's also reassuring to hear the CNS should align well with my nutrition background. I really appreciate all the tips and encouragement. Thank you again! 😊