There are TONS of personal training programs and personal training “certifications” but there are only a handful of board certifications.

These are:

• NASM
• ACE
• NSCA
• ACSM
• NCCPT **
• NESTA
• NCSF

Please note with NCCPT, they currently have two programs and only one of them is Board Certified.  This is confusing but if you are going to opt for them, double check that you are buying the board certified one.

If you are hiring a personal trainer, do what is best for you and check them out.  Many of these certification have online tools for you to check credentials.

If you are considering personal training as a career, then get the BEST one that is going to prepare you for all the variables you can run into and it may cost a bit more but get board certified. It is really the smart way to go.