Question by cmoney18: I really want to learn how to teach aerobics & not pay an arm & leg.?

Best answer:

Answer by gobaby74
i would suggest to get started:
– DO NOT to get a general group fitness certification from AFAA or ACE (which usually run about $ 300+) . . . at least at first
– DO get your First Aid/CPR certification (there is no getting around that, you absolutely MUST have it to teach).

some places (though NOT MANY, but college rec centers are a good place to look) don’t require you to have more than your First Aid/CPR, and you just use your prior knowledge/skill to teach the class you want to teach

but most places will require at least a specialty certification (in a specific class style: kickboxing, yoga, step aerobics, pilates, sculpting, etc.) in addition to your First Aid/CPR . . . i would HIGHLY RECOMMEND getting one of these (they usually run about $ 200 for the ones i’m familiar with, though yoga and pilates can be much higher) . . . BEWARE, for some of these specialty certifications, you must already have a general group exercise certification and/or you can only teach at certain locations that have licenses with that certifying company (including the popular Les Mills classes http://www.lesmills.com/global/en/members/programs/les-mills-programs.aspx), so i would suggest researching your specialty certification options

while a general group exercise certification is great, they are very expensive and don’t give you the knowledge to teach a specific class style/type (which is ok if you already know a class) . . . however because more and more places are requiring their instructors to have them, i would definitely plan to get one, just not right when you’re starting out

i am just getting into teaching fitness classes myself and it is expensive . . . what i have done is gotten a specialty certification and a First Aid/CPR certification (which total was only $ 250) and i’ve started teaching at gyms that only require First Aid/CPR and a specialty certification . . . i’m planning on taking half of what i make teaching classes and putting it aside, and when i have enough money, i’m going to get my general group exercise certification (so i will be able to teach more places, and you learn a lot of stuff about kinesiology/physiology which is important to know when you are teaching fitness classes)

while you said you did not want to pay an arm and a leg, i realize none of this is exactly cheap . . . as i said, i only got a specialty certification (which was $ 200) . . . what i did was have my dad pay for it as my birthday present . . . so i ended up only paying $ 50 for my First Aid/CPR

depending on where you teach and what geographic area, you can make anywhere from about $ 15-$ 35 for a one-hour class

good luck! send me an email if you have any more questions

What do you think? Answer below!

Email This Post Email This Post