NESTA

What NESTA is

NESTA, the National Exercise & Sports Trainers Association, is a fitness certification body that delivers its programs as 100% online, self-paced courses. It is a learner product: people who want to become personal trainers or coaches, and working trainers who want a specialty credential or continuing education units. The About page says NESTA and the Spencer Institute began in 1992 in Southern California, and that NESTA is now "a global education partner for fitness and coaching professionals with more than 65,000 members in over 60 countries." The home page puts the figure at "50,000+" trainers and coaches and refers to "32+ years" of history. The company's mailing address is in Laguna Hills, California.

The home page pitches certifications "that teach real skills you can use with clients right away", for people who want practical education and a clear path into the industry. Its stated strengths are a fully online format, science-based education, support for members, practical application and "a strong business curriculum".

The catalog

The flagship is the Certified Personal Fitness Trainer, with a Certified Master Personal Trainer above it for "higher-level program design, client assessment, and practical methods", and a Certified Fitness Nutrition Coach beside it. On the home page, the personal trainer certification is headed with the label "Ncca Accredited". Around these sits a long list of specialty courses, which the site groups into conditioning, nutrition and behavior coaching, and specialty training:

• conditioning: HIIT Conditioning, MMA Conditioning Coach, Core Conditioning Specialist, Biomechanics and Human Movement Kinesiology, Speed Agility & Quickness Specialist, Heart Rate Fitness Trainer;
• nutrition and behavior: Fitness Nutrition Coach, Sports Nutrition Specialist, Lifestyle & Weight Management Coach;
• specialty: GLP-1 Exercise Specialist, Sport Yoga Instructor, Kettlebell, Group Exercise Instructor and Triathlon Coach.

There are also Mini CEU Training courses and fitness bundles. For existing trainers, the site carries recertification requirements for the personal trainer credential, certification board details and a public certificate verification search.

How a NESTA specialty course works

The two specialty pages in this entry, Sports Nutrition Specialist and Group Exercise Instructor, show the format. Both are 100% online with immediate access to the training and exam, flexible self-study, and a digital training system that works on any device and includes progress tracking. Both list "Prerequisites: None". The exam is described the same way on both pages: "Take the 100-question, online, non-proctored exam (3 attempts) at your own pace. Know your results instantly!" A $95 retest fee applies if a student has not passed after the third attempt, and NESTA recommends finishing within one year of purchase.

On passing, students get a digital certificate straight away, and a paper certificate with an official seal is mailed within North America in 2 to 3 weeks after verification, with extra shipping for students elsewhere. Both pages say the certificate does not expire, and the training stays available for life.

Sports Nutrition Specialist

The Sports Nutrition Specialist course covers the science of performance nutrition, carbohydrate needs for high-performance athletes, protein timing, dietary fat, micronutrients, antioxidants, performance, recovery and "event" eating, hydration and electrolytes, supplements and their pitfalls, vegetarian and vegan athletes, and training in altitude, heat, cold and other extreme environments. The page suggests using it to add online sports nutrition coaching to a boot camp, sports coaching or personal training business, or simply for your own athletic goals.

It costs $487 as a single payment. The alternative is the NESTA 6-Month Payment Plan at $86 a month with no credit check, debited every 30 days for 6 months and including a onetime $30 processing fee. Coupons cannot be applied to the plan, and the exam opens only after all payments are received. The course carries NESTA 2.0 CEUs, ITCA 2.0 CEUs, MMACA 2.0 CEUs, ISSA 15 CECs, NASM 1.9 and Spencer Institute 2.0 CEUs.

Group Exercise Instructor

The Group Exercise Instructor course teaches the science behind exercise (kinesiology, the kinetic chain, skeletal and muscular systems, exercise physiology, energy systems and nutrition basics), then choreography and class building, equipment, cueing and learning styles, and finally safety, liability and scope of practice. Students learn to build hour-long classes with warm-up, cardio, sculpting, cool-down and stretching, to work with musical beat and phrasing, and to recognize special populations. The material comes as a digital manual with a printable PDF and a training video library, plus a bonus video from Scott Gaines, PhD, whom the page calls NESTA VP.

It costs $397 as a single payment, with a $71 six-month payment option. It carries 2.0 NESTA CEUs, 20 ISSA CECs, 2.0 Spencer Institute CEUs, 2.0 MMACA CEUs and 2.0 ITCA CEUs. The page quotes a reviewer, Hema Sudhakar Tanna, praising "Great course materials. Awesome C.E.U. courses. Very affordable. Great staff support."

Who writes the courses

The About page says all curriculum development and strategic guidance comes from a network of expert advisors who work as independent consultants to NESTA. Scott Gaines, listed there as Co-CEO and a professor of Anatomy & Physiology at Concordia University, Irvine, oversees continuing education program development; Michelle Adams is the other Co-CEO. Eric Durak, the chief exercise physiologist, developed the GLP-1 Exercise Specialist course. Other advisors include nutrition scientist Chris Mohr, UFC Hall of Fame fighter Chuck Liddell as design lead for the MMA Conditioning Coach program, Jason Karp, described as the 2011 IDEA Personal Trainer of the Year, for running and endurance, Norma Shechtman for group exercise, athletic trainer Janet Olsen of Irvine Valley College, and Phil Black, who co-developed the Aqualogix Water Fitness Certification & Business Program.

Career and support resources

Beyond the courses, the site's resources menu includes a career path planner, business and career resources, a job board and a blog, and the footer lists a club partner program and NESTA approved providers. Support is available on a toll-free number, 1-877-348-6692, and through a contact page. The price of the personal trainer certification itself is not shown on the pages in this entry.

Who it suits

NESTA suits a self-directed learner who wants an online fitness credential without prerequisites, a non-proctored online exam taken at home, and a certificate that does not expire. It suits working trainers who want to add a narrow specialty such as sports nutrition, group exercise, kettlebells or GLP-1 clients, and who can use the CEUs toward NESTA, ISSA, NASM and other renewals. For the specialty courses, the single price or six-month plan makes the cost clear up front.

It is a weaker fit for someone who wants live, scheduled teaching, since the specialty courses are self-study, or who is outside North America and wants a printed certificate quickly, as shipping elsewhere costs extra.