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Earning a Master Trainer certification can help you further your education and skill as a fitness trainer. Here at International Personal Trainer Academy, we highly value education and evidence based professional practice since both lead to the best outcome for your clients.
Master Trainer certifications are not offered by every major fitness certification body because being a master trainer isn’t as standardized as being a personal trainer or nutrition coach. A Master Trainer certification is simply just a fitness trainer certification that goes into a bit more depth than a standard personal training certification, and is intended to build off of your base personal training certification rather than replace it in a standalone fashion. Think of it as a way to further your education beyond what a typical personal trainer certification offers.
Although not standardized and not often recognized as a stand alone certification, it is still offered by prominent companies in the industry like ISSA and NASM.
Throughout this article, I’ll cover the following topics:
- The Top Master Trainer Certifications
- A Brief Insight Into Being a Master Trainer
- Certifying bodies and Their Special Offerings
- Frequently Asked Questions
Upon finishing this article, you will be able to make an informed decision regarding whether the Master Trainer certification is right for you, and which organization to earn it from if so.
Let’s dive in and look at the nuances of earning a Master Trainer certification!
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What is a Master Trainer?
Personal training is one of the best most common exercise science careers. Professionals that work as personal trainers often have different levels of education, ranging from having one personal training certification to holding graduate level degrees.
Becoming a certified personal trainer is often the first step that a fitness professional interested in coaching takes in their career path. A personal training certification provides you with the minimum amount of training necessary to practice as a professional in the field. You can build upon this base by earning other certifications, like a Master Trainer certification.
One of the key differences between a Master Trainer certification and others that fitness organizations offer is that Master Trainer certifications tend to be less specialized and more broad in scope. They don’t focus on building your knowledge and skill set in just one content area like nutrition. Instead of providing you with a lot of information in a narrow topic area, a Master Trainer certification provides you with information over a large number of different topic areas.
Most Master Trainer certifications require you to have a certain number of other hyper specialized certifications in order to earn Master Trainer status. This normally means earning 4 to 6 specific fitness certifications with a company and then applying for Master Trainer status.
A Master Trainer is equipped to fulfill the job description of a personal trainer, but is equipped to better understand the nuances of personal training than if they only had a personal trainer certification.
Most organizations do not offer NCCA accredited Master Trainer certifications, given it doesn’t set a standard of practice for a particular profession like personal training.
Some of the common certifications that fitness trainers earn in addition to their personal training certification are nutrition certifications, strength and conditioning certifications, health coach certifications, and group fitness certifications.
Personal trainer salaries can sometimes be increased by earning additional certifications. Although most gyms do not have a mechanism for increasing a trainer’s pay when they earn an extra certification, it can be easier to get accepted for a higher paying job if you apply while holding multiple certifications.
The most common organizations that offer Master Trainer certifications are ISSA, NASM, NCSF, Fitness Mentors, and ACE.
Both ISSA and NASM allow for you to bundle multiple certifications or specializations together, which costs more overall but less on a per certification basis.
ISSA has a 5 certification offer for only $1500, which includes a personal training certification, as well as 4 other certification courses. Given that the personal trainer certification itself costs $994.30, and other courses purchased individually usually run in the $200-$300 range, you do save money compared to purchasing them all individually. Visit the site to see if this deal is it’s still running.
In NASM’s case, their Elite Trainer Bundle is $3,288 for 4 certs, which is more than ISSA, but the education provided is generally more robust and it does give you the opportunity to get re-certified for life. This will save you a lot of money and time in the long-run since most organizations require you to recertify any NCCA accreddited certifications that you hold once every 2 to 3 years. people have to do this every 2-3 years. Check NASM’s web page to verify that this offer is still available.
Now, let’s dive in and discuss ISSA.
ISSA Master Trainer
ISSA Intro
ISSA is one of the most popular fitness organizations, and it offers more combined certifications and specializations than any of the other organizations that are covered in this article. Although, their most well known certification is the ISSA Personal Training certification, which is one of the best personal trainer certifications for entry level trainers looking to work at a standard commercial gym.
The International Sports Sciences Association was founded in 1988 by fitness experts who set the goal of assisting the physical decline of the general population.
ISSA has the mission of bringing healthy living to everybody in the world through ways of education and community building. The aim of the organization is to influence around 100 million lives by 2030.
Prospective trainers will often compare ISSA and NASM when trying to figure out which organization to earn a fitness certification through.
ISSA Master Trainer Requirements
ISSA’s requirements for earning a personal trainer certification are similar to those they set for earning a master trainer certification.
You will have to be 18 years old at a minimum to attain master trainer status.
You must also keep your CPR and AED certification up-to-date, which is essential for all fitness professionals / ISSA trainers.
For the specific certification requirements, a master trainer is going to need to attain 6 total certifications from ISSA:
- The ISSA Personal Trainer Certification (ISSA CPT)
- The ISSA Nutrition Certification
- 4 Specializations from one of the three specialization tracks
Afterwards, you will be eligible to become a Master Trainer through ISSA. Let’s look at the three specialization tracks to choose from and the 4 specializations included in each.
The Strength Track features the ISSA Strength and Conditioning Coach, Corrective Exercise Specialist, Bodybuilding Specialist, and Tactical Conditioning Specialist specializations.
However, the level of difficulty, robustness of content, and quality of information covered is much lower than that in the NSCA CSCS certification program.
If you want help studying for the CSCS or any strength and conditioning certification, check out our CSCS study guide and CSCS practice test.
The Advanced Track features the Corrective Exercise Specialist, Exercise Recovery Specialist, Strength and Conditioning Coach, and Transformation Specialist specializations.
Want to become a nutrition coach or a health coach?
The Health Track features the Health Coach, Lifespan Coach, DNA-Based Fitness Coach, and Exercise Recovery Specialist specializations.
You can earn enough certifications to become a Master Trainer through ISSA as soon as you start studying for your personal trainer exam if you purchase the correct bundle through ISSA. Although doing so increases the length of time it takes to become a personal trainer, because you will be studying for a large number of tests back to back.
ISSA Promotions
ISSA offers more deals than other certification organizations in fitness. And they have three of the most popular certification bundles in the industry because they offer a large number of certifications and specializations at once.
ISSA offers multiple bundles, including is the ISSA Elite Trainer Bundle, which includes a personal trainer certification and 5 additional courses of your choice.
The Elite Trainer package is one of ISSA’s many bundle offers. Different bundles are offered at different price points, with the number of courses within the bundle being roughly commensurate to the price point.
The Elite Trainer bundle through International Personal Trainer Academy’s promotional deals comes in at $125 per month for a year or a one-time price of $1,500.
If you want to aim for becoming a Master Trainer, then your cheapest overall option will be to go with the ISSA Master Trainer bundle.
The ISSA Master Trainer bundle with the International Personal Trainer Academy discount covers the personal trainer certification and six additional courses.
The Master Trainer bundle costs $74.98 per month for 12 months or a one-time price of $2,099.76.
Another popular option for getting ISSA certified would be to get started with their BOGO offer and then earn the remaining certifications later in your career.
The Buy One Get One offer from ISSA allows you to purchase both a personal trainer and nutritionist certification at the same time.
It’s also helpful to keep in mind that any bonus certifications you earn count towards your continuing education credits, so if you stagger specializations and certifications out over time, you can use them to recertify more easily. If you earn a bunch at once during the same cycle, they will only contribute to that recertification cycle.
ISSA allows trainers to get their fitness certification online through an online exam.
The program being fully online makes it more convenient. This is the case for most non-NCCA accredited certifications, which is why many specialty certifications for various fitness companies are offered online.
Fitness Topics
Personal Trainer Certification:
- Anatomy and Physiology
- Kinesiology and Biomechanics
- Health and Physical Fitness
- Program Development
- Nutrition
- Fitness for All
Nutritionist Certification:
- Nutrition
- Cells, Organ Systems, and Digestion
- Metabolism and Energy Balance
- Carbohydrates
- Protein
- Client Assessment
- Dietary Guidelines
Other topic options for the additional certifications you could go for include:
- Certified Glute Specialist
- Bodybuilding Specialist
- Certified Indoor Cycling Instructor
- Certified Yoga Instructor
- DNA-based Fitness Coach
- Transformation Specialist
- Exercise Recovery Specialist
- Tactical Conditioning Specialist
- Strength and Conditioning
- Lifespan Coach
- Health Coach
- Corrective Exercise Certification
To get a more in-depth view of ISSA and specifically their CPT certification, view the ISSA exam information page.
Next, let’s check out another popular option, NASM.
NASM Master Trainer
NASM Intro
The National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM) has been established in the fitness industry for 35 total years, and throughout that time, they have become one of the most well known certifying bodies in the fitness industry.
Like ISSA, you can study to be a personal trainer certified online through the state-of-the-art NASM online study portal and other study materials offered. The NASM CPT is a high-quality certification for any type of trainer, but it emphasizes movement mechanics more than most other CPT courses.
According to our NASM personal trainer certification course reviews, this personal trainer certification is high quality contrasted to the average personal trainer certification.
NASM also has many training programs for other fitness specializations, similar to most other large certifying bodies.
The National Academy of Sports Medicine’s certifications are recognized by most employers as being valid for meeting criteria for employment as a personal trainer.
NASM has many partnerships with other fitness organizations to fill in any existing gaps in their specialization option.
NASM Master Trainer Requirements
To be eligible for master training status, you must first have a minimum of 3 years of training 10 or more client hours per week with the OPT model.
You will have to purchase the Master Trainer Summit, but first must meet these requirements:
- Attend a NASM Workshop
- Have a valid NASM CPT cert
- Have a valid NASM CES cert
- Have a valid NASM PES cer
- Attain one more NASM specialization or an approved college degree
The application requires you to provide a resume, provide two letters of recommendation, and write a short essay.
The Master Trainer online course requires video submission and the ability for trainers to perform accurate assessments and demonstrate proper exercise technique and cueing.
The online course requires a pass before the trainer is able to attend the virtual event.
At the master trainers’ summit, a trainer must show the ability to design customized programs and the ability to accurately evaluate fitness information, understand exercise technique, use coaching cues, and coach effectively as part of the final evaluation.
The requirements for becoming a Master Trainer through ISSA are more numerous and more demanding than the average Master Trainer certification in the fitness industry.
NASM Promotions
NASM offers some solid promotions, with the primary value being in its quality. This differs from ISSA in that ISSA focuses more on lower cost per certification over quality of education and information. Either type of bundle can be fine, it just depends on what you personally are looking for.
The only bundle promotion including all of the certifications needed for the Master Trainer status is the NASM Elite Trainer Bundle.
Included in the Elite Trainer Bundle are the Certified Personal Trainer, Corrective Exercise Specializations, Certified Nutrition Coach, Performance Enhancement Specialization, Behavior Change Specialist, and Certified Group Fitness Instructor certifications.
So, in addition to the 4 required for master trainer status, you will also get two additional certifications. This makes it similar to the elite trainer package offered by ISSA.
However, you also have the option of purchasing a smaller certification bundle instead, such as the NASM CPT + CNC bundle. This route is more practical for most new trainers because there is a much lower upfront cost.
The CPT + CNC bundle will cost $1,282 in a one-time payment or $94 per month for 12 months with a $154 down payment.
NASM generally offers moderate to high quality certifications, which are recognized by most fitness facilities that employ personal trainers.
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Fitness Topics
Personal Trainer Certification:
- Anatomy and Physiology
- Kinesiology and Biomechanics
- Health and Physical Fitness
- Program Development
- Nutrition
- Fitness for All
Corrective Exercise Specialist Certification:
- Training Foundations
- Corrective Exercise Techniques
- Assessment Methods
- Programming Strategies
Performance Enhancement Specialist Certification:
- Anatomy and Physiology for Sport
- Sports Performance Testing
- Integrated Training
- Programming
- Olympic Lifting
- Injury Prevention
- Sports Nutrition
- Sports Psychology
Other qualifying certifications:
- Nutrition Certification
- Certified Sports Nutrition Coach
- Certified Wellness Coach
- Corrective Exercise Specialization
- Stretching and Flexibility Coach
- Weight Loss Specialization
- Home Gym Design Specialization
- Virtual Coaching Specialization
If you plan to earn a personal training certification through NASM, check out our free NASM study guide and NASM practice test pages.
If you’re interested in pursuing a personal trainer certification but care more about improving your ability to support health behavior change than your ability to optimize movement mechanics, we recommend considering the American Council on Exercise (ACE) personal trainer certification.
If you’re looking to compare NASM and ACE in order to make a more informed decision about which organization is best for you, we created an in-depth breakdown contrasting both. And, if you ultimately decide to pursue a personal trainer certification through ACE, we recommend checking out our, ACE study guide and ACE practice test
Alternatively, the NSCA offers a high quality personal trainer certification that focuses on strength and conditioning. If this feels like a better fit for you and you have interest in becoming a strength and conditioning coach, it may be worth checking out. We also have an article providing an in-depth breakdown of the differences between NASM and the NSCA: NASM vs. NSCA.
The NSCA CPT review may be helpful if you decide to pursue an NSCA CPT.
Next, let’s look at NCSF’s master trainer certification status.
NCSF Master Trainer
NCSF Intro
Despite its name, the National Council of Strength and Fitness, which is headquartered in Florida, serves fitness professionals internationally across over 160 countries.
The NCSF has the mission of establishing, assessing, and promoting qualification standards for exercise professionals in a continued effort to foster high levels of professional competency and ethical practices to serve the interest and safety of the public.
NCSF is a for-profit organization, but offers certifications that tend to be less robust and lower quality than those offered in organizations like NASM, ACE, NSCA, or ACSM. It is also generally less well known than most other large certifying bodies.
Despite this, NCSF still offers a Master Trainer certification program that can help you further your fitness education. This can build off of what you learned when attaining the NCSF Personal Trainer Certification if you already have earned a certification through the NCSF.
NCSF Master Trainer Requirements
NCSF has fewer requirements for its Master Trainer certified trainer course than most of the other organizations people go to.
First, you must be at least 18 years old.
Second, you need to have a high school diploma or an equivalent level of education as a minimum.
Third, NCSF requires you to have relevant work experience and to hold three relevant certifications.
NCSF Promotions
The NCSF offers a has its Master Trainer Program bundle which includes three certifications. It includes the Personal Trainer Certification, the Sports Nutrition Specialist Certification, and the Strength Coach Certification.
Earning all three of these certifications will be enough to qualify you to become an NCSF Master Trainer, provided that you meet work experience, age, and formal education requirements.
Fitness Topics
Personal Trainer Certification
- Functional Anatomy
- Exercise Physiology
- Health and Physical Fitness
- Professionalism and Risk Management
Sports Nutrition Specialist Certification
- Macronutrients
- Micronutrients
- Dietary Supplements and Ergogenic Aids
- Nutritional Analysis and Weight Management
Certified Strength Coach Certification
- Functional Anatomy and Biomechanics
- Performance Assessment and Evaluation
- Nutrition and Ergogenic Aids
- Professionalism and Risk Management
Next, let’s look at Fitness Mentors and their Master Trainer bundle/program.
Fitness Mentors Master Trainer
Fitness Mentors Intro
Of the organizations in this article, Fitness Mentors is the newest option. Their Master Trainer certification is also similar to most others in terms of what you’d have to do to attain it.
Fitness Mentors focus more on providing education about effective online training than most other organizations, which can be helpful if you plan to become a successful online trainer. Similar to all other major certifying bodies, you can study for the Fitness Mentor certification exams fully online.
Although Fitness Mentors is a bit more focused on supporting candidates with an interest in becoming an online personal trainer, it still prepares you for professional practice in real time. You will be able to practice with at least a minimum level of competency in a traditional gym setting. However, the quality of the education it provides is lesser than major certifying bodies like NASM, NSCA, or ACE.
In total, a personal trainer will need 6 certifications from Fitness Mentors to be considered a master trainer.
Let’s dive into the requirements for master trainer status with fitness mentors.
Fitness Mentors Master Trainer Requirements
Fitness Mentors requirements for their master trainer status is more simple than most other organizations and more in line with what is required from NCSF.
First, a master trainer needs to have a high school diploma or the equivalent level of education.
Second, a master trainer needs to have a valid government-issued photo ID.
Lastly, a master trainer through fitness mentors needs to have their CPR and AED certifications stay current.
And that is essentially all for the Fitness Mentors Master Trainer certification requirements. Let’s look and see some of the promotions they offer.
Fitness Mentors Promotions
Fitness Mentors offer an ultimate bundle for people who want to get all they can from fitness mentors and ensure they are a master trainer.
While the bundle used to be titled Personal Trainer Master Bundle, it is now titled the Personal Trainer Ultimate Bundle.
The Ultimate Bundle from fitness mentors will include the essential 6 personal training and health-related certifications, which are:
- Certified Personal Trainer Certification
- Certified Online Personal Trainer
- Certified Nutrition Specialist
- Pain Management Specialist
- Virtual Group Fitness Instructor
- Virtual Health Coach
Three of these certifications focus on online and virtual training, which reflects the organization’s priorities. This underscores the value of Fitness Mentors for someone interested in training clients primarily online.
Fitness Topics
Personal Training Certification
- The Fitness Assessment
- Anatomy, Physiology, and the Study of Human Movement
- Exercise Physiology and the Energy Systems
- Psychology: The Science and Behaviour of Mind
- Introduction to Online Personal Training
Online Personal Training Certification
- Prepare Your Business
- Take Your Business Online
- Lead Generation
- Convert Sales
- Care For Your Clients
Certified Nutrition Specialist
- Scope of Practice
- The Digestive System
- Metabolism
- Carbohydrates
- Exercise and Sports Nutrition
Pain Management Specialist
- Programming Considerations for Exercise-Related Injuries
- Fitness Assessments for Pain
- Pain Management Through Corrective Exercise
Virtual Group Fitness Instructor Certification
- Scope of Practice
- Components of the Virtual Group Fitness Class
- Anatomy, Physiology, and the Study of Human Movement
- Format and Design
- Online Assessments
Virtual Health Coach Certification
- Considerations for Lifestyle Change
- Stress Management
- Nutrition
- Legal Guidelines for Health Coaches
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
How do I become a certified Master Trainer?
You can start the process of becoming a certified master trainer by choosing an organization to focus on attaining the certification through. Because becoming a Master Trainer requires you to earn a number of different certifications, it’s usually best to do so within a single organization. This means that you should pick an organization that reflects your preferences overall, across all of their available certifications.
How much does it cost to become a Master Trainer?
The cost depends on which of the fitness trainer organizations you choose and the specific study package or bundle you end up purchasing. NASM and ISSA offer bundles that tend to be considered more valuable than others in the market when factoring in the ratio between quality, number of certifications, and cost.
What certifications should a trainer have?
The requirement to become a Master Trainer differs by organization. Both the total number of certifications and the specific certifications required differ depending on the organization’s priorities. This is largely because Master Trainer status isn’t standardized and isn’t directly linked to performance of a specific job. It just represents a trainer who furthered their education by earning extra certifications with a certifying body. Aside from being a Master Trainer, it’s best to think about certifications based on what you can gain from them and how you can use what you can to better help your clients. If a certification furthers your education in a meaningful way and you will be able to apply that information to better help one of your clients, then it can be helpful.
Are online study programs legit?
Yes, online programs offered by large fitness organizations can be valuable. It is also important to keep in mind that online programs will differ in terms of their accreditation status. Fully accredited programs that are accredited by the NCCA will generally be of higher quality and will be more directly translatable to job performance. Most modern certification programs also involve some online component, which ranges from online study materials to an online exam.
What are the qualities of a Master Trainer?
Master Trainers don’t necessarily share many qualities, since education only matters as much as you are able to meaningfully use that education to have an impact. What two people get out of the same certification can vastly differ depending on the people and their approach to education. Being a Master Trainer simply means you’ve earned enough certifications of specific types for an organization to recognize that you have reached a certain level of education. What you do with that education is up to you.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the fitness certification organizations in this article offer a variety of different certifications which can be used to become a Master Trainer through those respective organizations.
When it comes to picking the best organization for you, it’s important to pick one that generally aligns with your interests overall, since investing in a Master Trainer certification through an organization means investing in many of their certifications in most instances.
It’s also possible for you to organically get close to becoming a Master Trainer over the course of your career. Even if you don’t set out to become one, you may find yourself close to meeting the requirements anyway. If so, it might be worthwhile to consider taking advantage of the opportunity.
References
- Ahmed S, Rashid M, Sarkar A, et al. Fitness Trainers’ Educational Qualification and Experience and Its Association with Their Trainees’ Musculoskeletal Pain: A Cross-Sectional Study. Sports. 2022;10(9):129. doi: https://doi.org/10.3390/sports10090129
- Dominski FH, Tibana RA, Andrade A. “Functional Fitness Training”, CrossFit, HIMT, or HIFT: What Is the Preferable Terminology?. Frontiers in Sports and Active Living. 2022;4:882195. doi: https://doi.org/10.3389/fspor.2022.882195
- Zhou S, Davison K, Qin F, Lin KF, Chow BC, Zhao JX. The roles of exercise professionals in the health care system: A comparison between Australia and China. Journal of Exercise Science & Fitness. 2019;17(3):81-90. doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jesf.2019.04.001
