About the Program
CEUs: 1.5 NASM, 15 AFAA
Learn how to become a helping hand and a guiding force for aging adults looking to stay fit and active in a safe environment. As a Senior Fitness Specialist, you’ll play a vital role in keeping active aging adults moving, motivated, and healthy. Pick up the skills necessary to safely progress active older clients through the OPT™ Model, while being aware of their physiological considerations and physical goals.
Keep this growing segment healthy and fit! NASM Senior Fitness Specialists:
- Boost their reputation, career, and client base by capitalizing on the growing demand for physical fitness experts for active older adults
- Enjoy the convenience of many active older adult's flexible schedules
- Reduce risks for falls and preserve their independence
- Understand limitations, common medical conditions, aging process, and frequent fitness obstacles
- Invest in their client’s lives and futures . . . as well as their own!
Program Includes:
✔ 13 In-Depth Chapters
NASM’s Senior Fitness Specialization course contains 13 in-depth chapters covering everything from program design for older adults, assessment strategies, nutrition considerations and so much more!
✔ 12 Learning Videos
Dispersed through the 13 chapters are 12 high-quality videos to aid in your learning.
✔ Fully Interactive Learning Platform
Our online course portal brings everything you need to provide the best insight and guidance available on any device.
✔ In-Depth Glossary
This course includes a fully interactive digital glossary so that you can look up terms and see what page you're on.
✔ Downloadable Handouts
Access the handout library to download PDFs so that you can easily access or print them at any time.
✔ Chapter Quizzes
There are quizzes throughout the course, which can be taken as many times as you need. A practice exam is provided to help you prepare for the final exam.
Table of Content
Section 1: SFS Scope of Practice
Chapter 1: Introduction to Senior Fitness
The Senior Fitness Specialization (SFS) is a comprehensive program for fitness professionals delivered in an immersive online experience that combines current evidence-based information on the physiological and psychological considerations of aging, assessment strategies for the older adult, exercise progressions, and program design considerations for the older client.
Chapter 2: Scope of Practice
In this chapter, you'll examine the scope of practice for Senior Fitness Specialists and understand their role in the healthcare continuum.
Section 2: Physical, Physiological, and Psychological Considerations of Aging
Chapter 3: Physical and Physiological Considerations of Aging
You'll understand the physiological changes that occur in the nervous system and the cardiorespiratory system as people age. Learn how the musculoskeletal system changes with age and understand safety concerns.
Chapter 4: Psychological Considerations of Aging
In this chapter, you'll learn age-related influences on the quality of life, emotional well-being, and self-perception for the older adult client. You'll also understand the psychosocial effects that exercise can have.
Section 3: Assessment Strategies for the Older Adult
Chapter 5: Fitness Assessments for the Active Older Adult
This chapter will help you understand the components of an integrated assessment to be used with older adults. Learn how to conduct a screening process and interpret the data to reveal health risks. Utilize several different assessments to enable successful behavior change, physiological and functional fitness improvement.
Section 4: Program Components for the Older Adult
Chapter 6: Flexibility Guidelines for Active Older Adults
This chapter discusses the rationale for flexibility training. Learn to safely progress an older adult through flexibility training and apply appropriate acute variables when performing flexibility training with older adults.
Chapter 7: Cardiorespiratory Training Guidelines for Active Older Adults
You'll get an understanding of cardiorespiratory training and how to safely assist older adults through it. Find out how to apply the FITTE principles when performing this type of training.
Chapter 8: Core, Balance, and Plyometric Training Guidelines for Active Older Adults
This section explains the epidemiology of falls and importance for fall prevention programming in older adults. Learn different core, balance and reactive trainings to help prevent the risk of falls.
Chapter 9: Resistance Training Guidelines for Active Older Adults
In this chapter, you'll learn the adaptations that occur during the stabilization-endurance, strength-endurance, muscular hypertrophy, maximal strength, and power phases on the Optimum Performance Training (OPT™) Model. Know how to use appropriate resistance training exercises based on the different levels of the OPT™ Model.
Section 5: Program Design
Chapter 10: Program Design for the Active Older Adult
This chapter will help you define and describe the acute training variables within each phase of the Optimum Performance Training (OPT™) Model. Be familiar with the physiological considerations when designing cardiorespiratory and resistance training programs for older adult clients.
Chapter 11: Common Medical Conditions and Programming Modifications
Be able to determine various chronic conditions and comorbidities associated with active older adults. Understand how medical conditions affect the body and be able to outline exercise recommendations for those with chronic conditions and comorbidities.
Section 6: Nutrition Guidelines and Considerations
Chapter 12: Nutrition Guidelines and Considerations for Active Older Adults
You'll understand the caloric requirements, guidelines and considerations for macronutrient consumption for older client health. Explain proper micronutrient considerations and determine nutrition guidelines for them.
Section 7: Business Development
Chapter 13: Professional and Business Development
In this chapter, you'll learn the legal requirements when working as a personal trainer and NASM's Code of Professional Conduct. Develop a plan of action to best market services.
Final Exam
You will have 365 days from the date of enrollment to take your final exam, which consists of 100 multiple-choice questions. There is a time limit of 90 minutes, and you must pass with a 70% or higher. You will have 3 attempts to pass, but additional retests can be purchased by reaching out to our customer service team.
This course is available in English only.