In 2019, people have become more aware of those who are differently abled. With shows like Atypical and movies like The Rosie Project (coming soon with Ryan Reynolds), people are becoming particularly accepting of those with more independent forms of Autism. While we might argue that this isn’t enough of a change, it is refreshing to see so many opportunities spring up for those with Autism, like coding classes and vocational training. An Adaptive Autism Fitness Personal Training Certification would go one step further by providing fitness education to people on the spectrum.
The career opportunities continue to increase as the adaptive fitness industry grows. If you want to become an autism personal trainer, being certified is imperative for your success. A certification program can secure the safety of your special needs client. Obtaining your Adaptive Autism Fitness Personal Training Certification means you are serious about your career and you want it to thrive. If you see yourself being an adaptive fitness trainer for more than five years, the first step is to get certified with Strong Education.
Read on to find out the importance of an adaptive fitness certification, the benefits, a quick overview of the program, and the career opportunities that await as soon as you complete the certification program.
How Personal Training Helps Those with Autism
The benefits of consistent exercise are endless, especially for people with Autism. However, it can be tough for those on the spectrum to change their routines. For example: If they’re used to playing video games when they get home from work or school, it can be particularly difficult to convince them to do something else, something that seems like a chore at first.
As a Certified Autism Personal Trainer, you will be able to:
- Utilize health assessment tools in developing an autism exercise program that is suitable for your clients’ needs.
- Create an exercise program and demonstrate workout routines to apply research-based teaching strategies to the autism population.
- Lead and motivate individuals in a personal or group setting environment.
- Create a positive fitness experience and enhance the social skills of an individual with autism.
- Communicate to the parents, guardians, instructors, and educators about the importance of fitness and exercise in the autism community.
- Use different instructional materials and strategies to train a special needs client.
- Make a difference in the client’s life and an impact on the autism community.
What Does an Autism Personal Training Fitness Certification Entail?
The Strong Education Special Needs Adaptive Personal Training Certification uses the CBSE Training Model. This training model was created by the founder of Special Strong, a company that focuses on personal training for individuals with special needs. It teaches four major portions of special needs fitness training:
Core, Balance & Flexibility
The right exercises can improve core strength, which in turn improves both balance and flexibility. A special needs personal trainer can discern between different core exercises and determine which ones are best for their clients’ needs.
Brain & Sensory System
Grounding and staying present are very important for developing the sensory system. Exercise can be a great way to be in the moment, taking in nearly all five senses. This also improves focus and increases attention span.
Strength & Muscle Development
Of course, weight loss and muscle development are benefits of routine exercise. Personal training can be great motivation to work out.
Endurance & Stamina
Cardio exercises can grow endurance and stamina. This is great for developing personal fitness, but it’s also good for growing self-discipline. This means that those with Autism can learn to work on one project for longer periods of time.
Why Should You Apply for Autism Personal Fitness Training Certification?
Strong Education is one of the highly-recognized personal training fitness certifications that aim to work with the autistic population. It’s a great opportunity to jumpstart your career and help you become an expert adaptive fitness trainer. Here are the other benefits that you can enjoy if you apply for this certification:
Strong Education offers an inclusive environment to work with.
Applying for Autism Personal Training Fitness Certification gives you a chance to work in an inclusive environment. Albeit its main target population is autistic people, rest assured that you’ll still be able to apply your skills and knowledge in other conditions. Strong Education ensures that once you get certified, you will have multiple job opportunities to choose from.
Being an autistic personal trainer is a rewarding job.
Most of the autism personal trainers are living contented, fulfilling lives because of their job. Why? Working with the autism population helps to broaden your mind and can even change your life. It can make you feel more grateful and empathetic. If you have been wandering aimlessly in your life, asking yourself when you’re going to make a difference, perhaps you should consider becoming an autism personal trainer. You can provide an enjoyable fitness experience for your clients and improve their life quality while generating a stable profit. Encounters with certified autism personal fitness trainers are always life-changing and give them a chance for a better life.
Growing demand and career opportunities await.
One of the biggest benefits of working with the autism community is the growing demand and career opportunities. According to the CDC’s Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring Network (ADDM), one in every 68 children in the US is diagnosed with autism. With its 350 million population, around 6 million people are autistic. Many adults with the disorder are starting to get treated to qualify for their jobs.
Due to its high prevalence, the demand for autism personal trainers continues to increase. Most of the gyms, fitness centers, community centers, and even churches are looking for qualified people suitable to work with this kind of special population. However, one needs proper education and a degree to serve special needs clients. Hence, getting certified in the Autism Personal Fitness Training Certification program is a starting step that you can do to start your career as an ASD authority.
Benefit from good compensation.
If you are still looking for a career you are passionate about and can give you a stable revenue, consider becoming an autism personal trainer. Designing an autism exercise program is not an easy task. Hence, you are compensated well for your services. Working with children and adults with the spectrum is most likely a higher-paying work than most standard office jobs. Even professionals who are still starting in the industry get compensated well for their services.
It can improve your patience.
Working with special needs clients requires utmost patience and perseverance. Your clients will most likely have a delay in understanding and processing. Hence, you need to be patient while working with them while waiting for the delay to process. Even autistic adults may have a harder time mastering what could have been a simple skill for most individuals.
Not many jobs can help you to develop patience except for becoming an adaptive autism fitness personal trainer. Working with them day by day is learning something new. In turn, you’ll be able to increase your patience—a trait that can take you to many places.
Is an Adaptive Autism Personal Trainer an In-Demand Job?
The adaptive fitness industry continues to expand. Companies are starting to fill the employment gap by hiring an autistic worker. However, most companies require a certification of training from these individuals to prove their capability at work. That’s where you come in. ASD authorities are now respected individuals of the society and have reached higher positions in their associations, allowing them to earn hefty compensations. An autism spectrum disorder pro can earn as much as an applied conduct examiner.
To make it clear, applied conduct examiners have a middle year compensation of up to $41,500. If you belong to the top-acquiring experts in this industry, it can increase to up to $67,000 annually. There are also yearly rewards that allow you to earn $3000 base compensation.
The passage level compensation of an adaptive fitness trainer starts at $29,000. If you become an expert, the raise will continue to increase. Thanks to the cutting edge training, knowledge, and experience you will gain from the Autism Personal Fitness Training Certification, you can be an ASD master in as short as three years.
What Skills are Needed to Become an Autism Personal Fitness Trainer?
Not everyone can design an autism exercise suitable for your group or individual clients’ needs. Most of the skills you need to become an ASD specialist are included in the training. To prepare yourself for the training and work, here are the following skills you need to have:
- Passion for working with the mentally unbalanced children and adults
- Enthusiasm in working in an inclusive, diverse environment
- Mastery in autism spectrum disorder
- Experience in a clinical setting is optional but a great advantage.
- Enthusiasm is living a healthy, active lifestyle.
- Patience in waiting out the delays of processing for your special needs client
If you have decided to become an adaptive fitness trainer, you can start preparing as early as now. These skills are needed to become a successful ASD authority. The program consists of different activities that will help you become a fully-realized adaptive fitness trainer who can design autism exercise programs that are innovative, safe, and reliable.
What Should I Do with my Autism Fitness Personal Training Certificate?
Earning an autism personal training certificate is not easy, so pat yourself in the back for completing the training. Now, it is time to decide on your future career. One of the biggest advantages of this career is the opportunity to help people whose lives are greatly affected by their medical condition. It also gives you a chance to see progress and make a difference in their lives. In the long run, you can enjoy higher compensation and a great working environment.
However, there are also downsides to this career. For instance, you witness the unpleasant experience of kids who have been diagnosed with the disorder and their everyday struggles. At the early stages of your career, work can be distressing, and the low beginning compensation is not very inspiring. Still, once you complete the early stages of your career, you’ll be able to progress and enjoy greater benefits. Most of the successful adaptive fitness trainers in the industry have seen that advantages outweigh the downsides. It is indeed a career worth investing your time and money.
Do I Need a Degree to Apply for the Autism Personal Fitness Training Certification?
The training is carefully crafted by experts, ASD professionals, and personal fitness professionals. It is the leading certification program when it comes to adaptive training in the autism population.
If you wish to become an ASD personal fitness authority, you need to have a graduate degree. This certification requires a four-year college education. Since the demand for adaptive fitness trainers is high, this certification program is commonly achievable for most applicants. It’s great if you want to become an adaptive fitness trainer at such a young age, as it allows you to choose a degree in related fields. It gives you an edge and increases your chances of becoming a successful adaptive fitness personal trainer.
What Should You Do When Working With Autistic Clients?
The autism population has a harder time finding a “fun” way to stay in shape, especially when struggling with their mental and physical disabilities. The Autism Personal Fitness Training Certification entails training that will help you communicate and work properly by knowing what are the exercises that are safe to them . Here is a brief overview of how autism personal trainers work with their clients:
Do not generalize the autism population.
Since you are working with special needs clients, it’s crucial to be very sensitive and not make any assumptions about them. For instance, a client with autism upfront doesn’t mean they cannot understand how an exercise works. Some higher-cognitive functioning individuals can still act accordingly. Do not treat your clients as if fitness is a foreign concept to them.
You may find out that your client is independent and needs little to no assistance. Some of them even have their own home workout routine that they follow. Your role is to become their guide in overcoming a certain plateau to unlock their full potential. Understanding your special needs client’s abilities and goals can help you design an accurate autism exercise program.
Communicate properly with your client.
In the Autism Personal Fitness Training Certification, you will be trained on communicating effectively and correctly with your special needs client. Do not assume that your client has fewer abilities or cannot comprehend what you are saying. Some special needs clients are easily offended when trainers and other people talk to them like children who are not capable of understanding.
It’s crucial to treat your client with dignity and respect. Talk to them properly, and they are most likely to listen to your instructions. Establishing respect between the two of you can help to cultivate a healthy client-instructor relationship and achieve success altogether.
Connect with your clients.
Be empathetic. You don’t want to bring out frustration from both ends because you do not know how to empathize with your special needs clients. They have gone through different difficulties in their lives while growing up. Most of them are discriminated against, if not cast out from participating in various events and activities. Special needs clients may have built a wall to protect themselves from people trying to harm and discriminate against them. Your goal here is to get through that wall and connect with your client. Make him/her feel that they are enough and that they would lead a healthy lifestyle just like most of the population. By training them, you can improve their social skills, health, and mobility. As a result, your client has higher chances of landing his dream job or being able to participate in an event he’d always wanted. The untold opportunities for them are endless after rigorous training.
Is Autism Personal Fitness Training Certification Worth It?
The program is every bit as worthy as it claims to be. It wouldn’t be recognized as one of the best certification programs for the autism population if not for its world-class training, excellent foundational knowledge, and accessible learning materials. You can finish the course online, giving you the flexibility to finish it at your own pace.
Once you get certified, job opportunities in the field await you. With the increasing demand for autism personal trainers, you can travel anywhere you want and still land a job. There will always be someone who needs an autism personal trainer out there.
How to become an Autism Personal Training Fitness Instructor
The Special Needs Training Certification can help you grow in your career as a personal trainer, but it can also improve people’s lives. This ACE- and NASM-accredited certification program only requires applicants to study/take the course, pass the exam and to have a CPR/AED certification.
Get Certified Today!
So, what are you waiting for? Undoubtedly, the Autism Personal Fitness Training Certification is one of the best programs worth investing in. Are you ready to start your career as an adaptive fitness trainer? If yes, get certified today and make a profound difference!
Strong Education teaches personal trainers and service providers on how to adapt fitness and nutrition for children, adolescents, and adults with autism, Down Syndrome, and other disabilities through our online adaptive special needs certification course.