Brand new ACE PT exam study Guide 2023

To protect yourself legally, and the client, when should you supervise your client?

During all working sets

If a client has diabetes, when should you avoid exercise?

During periods of peak insulin activity If a client has diabetes, it is actually better to train in a fed state than an unfed state given they are less likely to be hypoglycemic. When insulin activity is peaked, diabetics should avoid exercise to prevent interfering with glucose reuptake into active cells.

Personal trainers are obligated to do which of the following?

Ensure that the facilities and workspaces are clear of unreasonable hazards and Ensure that clients have bathroom and water access.

if a client has stage II hypertension, what should you avoid?

Exercises that put their head below their heart It is typically advised that clients with this condition maintain their head in line with or above their heart when training due to the effects of gravity on blood flow and distribution to different parts of the body. Exercise inherently increases heart rate due to increased oxygen demands so it is almost impossible to not increase heart rate during exercise.

True or false, The aerobic system is the fastest way for the human body to generate energy?

False The anaerobic energy pathways respond the fastest to acute needs for ATP in the body. The fastest of all of these pathways is the Phosphagen system, which involves the resynthesis of ATP from reactions of ADP and CP. The anaerobic pathway is most heavily relied on when undergoing heavy resistance training or sprinting.

True or false, Dynamic stretches should be held for at least 30 seconds?

False, Static stretches should be held for at least 30 seconds. Dynamic stretches involve active movement throughout a joint's full range of motion.

the six essential nutrients the human body must have to be healthy.

Fat, Protein, Carbohydrates, Water, Vitamins, Minerals

Investigation Stage (part 2) motivational interviewing.

Four key components make up the spirit of motivational interviewing. These are: Engaging: all relationships start with engagement. The trainer should talk to the clients and understand their own perspectives in a way that is without judgement being passed. Focusing: the process of engaging will lead the client to express areas that they would like to have the focus put on. This brings about the need to focus on some goal that the client wants. You can elaborate on how you may help with the attainment of that goal. Evoking: After focusing on the particular changes, the trainer should elicit the client's motivations for change. Evoking is the prompting of the client to voice their own opinion or argument for change, and it is the heart of the idea of motivational interviewing. Planning: during the process of planning, the client and the trainer should work together on how they wish to execute the change that is desired. Trainers will talk clients through their goals, find the resources needed for the achievement of the goals, and then set up ways for the personal trainer to redirect the conversation back to change talk.

Which of the following is a positive risk factor?

HDL cholesterol at 37 mg/dl

A blood pressure of 142/92 is considered

High

Shelly is a 29-year-old woman who you recently took through a thorough health-risk appraisal. She is motivated and wants to begin exercising. During the appraisal, you found that her BMI is 32, she was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes last year and is taking medication for it. Shelly has been walking at a moderate intensity for at least 60 minutes for the past 6 months. Her systolic BP is 138 mmHg and diastolic is 87 mmHg. LDL cholesterol = 125, HDL = 55. What is her risk classification and risk factor count according to ACSM guidelines?

High risk, 1 factor

A client wishes to be as healthy as possible and also build muscle. What should you prescribe?

In order to optimize a client's health and their quality of life, it is important to increase their fitness across all dimensions of health and wellness. Improving a client's cardiorespiratory health, flexibility, mobility, and muscular strength can all facilitate these ends.

This form states that the client is acknowledging having been notified about the risks associated with exercise.

Informed Consent

Which of the following muscle contraction types generates force with little to no joint movement?

Isometric contractions, they do not involve a lengthening or shortening of the involved muscle tissue.

Daily stress and barriers to being active would most likely be found in which of the following questionnaires?

Lifestyle Questionnaire

The human body stores carbohydrates in the form of glycogen. This glycogen is stored in several places until it is needed. In which of the following locations is glycogen stored?

Liver tissue and Muscle tissue Glycogen is stored intramuscularly to allow for fast transport to active tissue to replenish ATP during exercise.

You have a client who is interested in improving his muscular strength. He is young and healthy, with no known medical conditions and no history of injury. What prescription should you give him?

Low reps and high weight strength is most readily improved when prescribing heavy loads for a low number of reps. If reps and weight are high, the movement would not be able to be completed. If weight is low, then independent of reps, it will not increase strength very much because most type IIa and type IIx fibers will not be recruited for the movement.

a person performing an adduction of the hip joint and engaging the adductor longus, brevis, and magus, gracilis and pectineus is likely performing which exercise?

Lunge

A 44 year old man name Roger comes to you wanting to exercise. After a thorough health-risk appraisal you learn than his father had diabetes and smoked cigarettes, he quit smoking last year, he alternates between exercising on the stationary bike and treadmill 3 days per week for 30-45 per session during his lunch break at work. He has a BMI of 31, Systolic BP 142 mmHg, Diastolic BP 88 mmHg, and a total serum cholesterol of 187 mg/dl. What risk classification is Roger and how many risk factors does he have if any according to ACSM guidelines?

Moderate risk, 2 factors

what would be considered outside the scope of practice for ACE trainers

Offering solutions to a client who exhibits signs of depression that impact exercise adherence

This questionnaire is limited by its lack of detail and may overlook important health conditions, medications, and past injuries.

PAR-Q

Which of the following questionnaires would be used as a prerequisite to start a moderate intensity fitness program?

PAR-Q

Asking additional questions in an attempt to gather more information and encourage the client to talk further would best describe which term?

Probing

For a client that has hypertension, what is the recommended exercise intensity?

RPE of 9-13

Which is most common location for detecting a pulse?

Radial artery

What is suggested when a client answers yes to one or more of the PAR-Q questions?

Receive a doctors clearance before beginning exercise

Stretching is important because it helps loosen tight muscles and decreases the likelihood of injuries. It also offers other benefits. what is also a well known benefit of stretching?

Reduced muscle tension, This can be important in helping relieve the strain and stress of a muscular imbalance. If an individual, for example, has tight hamstrings, static stretching them can help reduce tension and result in a more stable pelvis.

A client discusses how they are not comfortable working out in open spaces because they feel that people stare. The trainer responds by saying, "It sounds like you are don't like exercising in public", before suggesting a different area to workout. Which of the following communication techniques is the trainer using?

Reflecting

what resource would be most appropriate for a trainer to utilize when providing dietary advice to clients?

Resources developed or endorsed by the federal government (ex. myplate.gov)

What is the correct definition of the "overload principle"?

You have to regularly challenge your muscles to optimally facilitate muscle growth. Overload is necessary to facilitate adaptation to exercise. If large enough loads are not used, you will not recruit many motor units in the target muscle you are training during an exercise. You need enough of a stimulus to disrupt homeostasis and force the body to release hormones like HGH and testosterone to help build muscle.

There are many forms of aerobic activity, but only a few of them are considered to be primary aerobic activities. what is considered a primary aerobic activity?

walking, Because of its potential duration, it places more of an aerobic demand on the body than activities that are only maintained for short bursts such as weight training, yoga or pilates.

Pre-contemplation stage (Stages of Change)

where people are not physically active and do not intend on seeking a program to take part in. Physical activity is not seen as relevant to their lives and there is not much importance put on it.

Contemplation stage (Stages of Change)

where someone is still inactive, but they are thinking about starting to become active in some way with a program. This is usually seen as being within the next 6 months.

4th: Action Stage (Stages of the Client-Personal Trainer Relationship)

where the client is going to begin to take on the program that you and them have put together. stages of learning: cognitive stage- Introduced to a new skill and a different kind of brain activity is found to occur throughout this stage. You can see the clients actually going through the thinking and processing the new skills learned. associative stage- where the clients begin to master the basics of the skill and are then ready for the more specific types of feedback that will help them to refine the motor skills. autonomous stage- clients begin to perform the skill effectively and seemingly naturally, and the teacher will be doing much less teaching and more feedback on the side of little notes and observations of the skills.

2nd: Investigation Stage (Stages of the Client-Personal Trainer Relationship)

will focus here on gathering information and eliciting insights for their clients. information will be in the realm of medical concerns, fitness assessment results, body weight, and exercise history. try to use forms like the lifestyle and health history questionnaire, or the PAR-Q Some other things we should aim to learn when in this stage will be things that the client likes and dislikes, and even their reasoning for exercise. Active Listening -vital during the investigation stage and it means that when the personal trainer is listening to the client, they do so carefully, empathetically, and with an open mind.

Shelly is a 29-year-old woman who you recently took through a thorough health-risk appraisal. She is motivated and wants to begin exercising. During the appraisal, you found that her BMI is 32, she was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes last year and is taking medication for it. Shelly has been walking at a moderate intensity for at least 60 minutes for the past 6 months. Her systolic BP is 138 mmHg and diastolic is 87 mmHg. LDL cholesterol = 125, HDL = 55. Would she need to have a medical exam before engaging in moderate exercise?

yes

The Karvonen formula is a popular method for monitoring training intensity. What does this formula calculate?

A client's Target Heart Rate The Karvonen formula is used to calculate an individual's max heart rate based on their current age. It is calculated by subtracting their age from 220, but is only just a prediction. This can be used to determine target heart rate zone.

Intrinsic motivation

- a desire to perform a behavior effectively for its own sake - his is where a person truly gets pleasure from working out and exercising. This will increase adherence because of the emotions and pleasure one gets from working out. - Studies show that intrinsic motivators lead to a greater participation in exercise.

extrinsic motivation

- a desire to perform a behavior to receive promised rewards or avoid threatened punishment - This is where someone is motivated to see the results/benefits of exercise but does not actually like doing it. Some benefits are living a healthier lifestyle, to look good, to lose weight. This is where a feeling of guilt or pressure motivates them to start exercising instead of actually enjoying exercising.

what would be the ideal performance test for a first time client, new to fitness, who would like help returning to fitness after leading a sedentary lifestyle for the past 3 years

1.5 mile test

During communication it is important to give about _____ of distance to respect the clients personal space.

1.5 to 4 feet

how many positive risk factors must a client have to be considered a moderate risk

2 (any client with know cardiovascular, pulmonary or metabolic disease is automatically high risk)

it is recommended that a personal trainer hold a minimum of what amount of professional liability insurance?

2 million

Veronica is 62-year-old woman who has come to you for help. Last year she had a knee replacement surgery and has not been exercising at all since her physical therapy ended 6 months ago. She has been smoking cigarettes for the past 45 years. Her father died of a myocardial infarction when he was 54 and her mother died of the same thing when she was 66. Veronica has a BMI of 23. Systolic BP = 138 mmHg, Diastolic BP = 88 mmHg. LDL cholesterol = 130 mg/dl, HDL cholesterol = 59. According to ACSM guidelines how many risk factors does Veronica have and what is her risk classification?

5 factors, moderate risk

If you have a client that has a goal of gaining muscular strength, what is the rate of resistance increase you should use for progressing that client?

5%

what is the appropriate length of time for the cool down phase of a training session?

5-10 minutes

What is considered to be the average approximate resting heart rate for both men and women?

70-72 BPM

what is the lean mass percentage of a client with a body fat percentage of 17%?

83% (100-17%=83%)

What is periodization?

A planned progression of resistance exercise that intentionally varies acute training variables

which communication form requires trust, attention, and understanding to be effective/

Active listening

You notice your client, who has had 3 months of training experience and who has hypertension, is holding his breath during the concentric phase of heavy reps. What should you do?

Advise not to hold his breath during hard reps because it can be bad for blood pressure. Never advise a client with hypertension to hold their breath during an exercise. This is called the valsalva maneuver, and although it can help improve intraset performance it can increase blood pressure during the set making the maneuver dangerous. It is also dangerous to breath as fast as possible since hyperventilation can disrupt homeostasis in the body.

Which of the following should be easily accessible in your facility at all times?

An AED An automated external defibrillator (AED) should always be accessible during any personal training session in case an acute cardiac event occurs. Because all ACE certified personal trainers are required to be certified in first aid, CPR, and AED, there should always be a trained individual able to operate the AED if a cardiac event were ever to occur.

ABC Approach

Ask open ended questions Break down barriers Collaborate

Cardiovascular disease characterized by hardening of arteries as well as thickening of arterial walls and loss of elasticity.

Atherosclerosis

One of your newest clients has diabetes. How should you handle her condition?

Check her blood glucose level before you begin each session and Keep fast acting carbohydrates on hand in case she develops hypoglycemia

Which of the following assessments cannot determine actual body fat composition?

BMI , is a ratio of body weight to height and has nothing to do with body composition.

If you discover during your initial evaluation that your client has rotator cuff tendinitis, what should you do?

Begin training the client without medical clearance, designing a modified exercise program that would not exacerbate the condition. Medical clearance to begin a structured exercise program is not necessary for this condition

A young man is just beginning a strength training routine and has hired you as his trainer. Listed below are some generic strength training guidelines. Determine which of them is inappropriate for a beginner.

Do 3 sets of 8-16 reps for each exercise, would mean that repetitions are prescribed in both the hypertrophy and endurance training paradigms.

A young woman has engaged you as her trainer. She is in her early 20s, appears to be very fit, is within her proper weight range and has no known health concerns. Given all of this, what is the very first thing you should do?

Discuss and have her sign an informed consent. important when onboarding a new client to cover liability, potential risks and have the client sign an informed consent, can later protect you if you are ever sued.

SMART goals (3rd: Planning Stage)

S - Specific: goals must be sure to be clear and unambiguous, stating the precise thing that needs to be accomplished in it. M - Measurable: goals need to be trackable so that the client is able to see when they are making progress. A - Attainable: the goals should be realistically attainable for the client individually. The achievement of the goal will reinforce commitment to the program and encourage the client to continue exercising. R - Relevant: goals should be pertinent to the interests, needs, and the abilities of the client on an individual basis. T - Time bound: goals should have timeline for their completion in order to have some frame of reference for what to expect and to make the monitoring of progress easier.

The trainer and client have been working out for the past two weeks when the trainer becomes aware that the client has had multiple back injuries in the past. The client wants to continue to exercise as their back is not hurting that day. What is the best course of action for the trainer to take?

Stop the session and have the client receive medical clearance from their doctor before scheduling another training session

Which three muscles cause external rotation of the shoulder?

Teres minor, Posterior deltoid, and Infraspinatus

There are three energy systems in the body used to resynthesize ATP. Which of the following energy systems occurs almost immediately?

The Phosphagen System acts first and involves the breakdown of CP to produce ATP from ADP. It can only sustain up to 6 seconds of exercise at a time, so it is mostly relied on in fast, short duration, and high power movements.

Which movement is not dangerous to spot?

The barbell back squat Movements that are considered high power movements and have to be performed quickly to be performed correctly are not safe to spot. They put both the client and trainer at greater risk by spotting them. The only movement listed that does not fall in this category is the barbell back squat.

The pectoralis major is a primary antagonist of which movement listed below?

The barbell bent over row An antagonist has the opposite joint action of the working muscle during a movement.

What exercise should you not spot?

The barbell bent over row Movements that are performed over the face or head and carry risk to the trainee should be spotted. The barbell bent over row is not a high-risk movement and it is not performed over the face or head.

Your client wants to improve his grip strength. Which exercise will least accomplish this?

The barbell overhead press, will do the least to help improve the client's grip strength. The movement is performed with the forearm inferior to the bar and the resistance force pointed in the direction of the forearm. The other movements involve the resistance force vector being oriented in the opposite way, challenging grip strength.

During an initial assessment, what planes of the body can you use a plumbline to observe?

The frontal plane The sagittal plane The transverse plane

which model of behavior change is dependent on the weighing of barriers to change and the perceived benefits of change?

The health belief model

1st: Rapport Stage (Stages of the Client-Personal Trainer Relationship)

The trainer should pay close attention to the client throughout the session to understand the types of nonverbal communication they are conveying so that they can adjust and make the session better for them. main comments of nonverbal communication -Voice quality -Eye contact -Facial expression - Hand gestures - Body position

Which rule for progression in a resistance training program can be considered a gold standard?

The two for two rule It is a standard for progression in programming. If an individual can perform 2 reps more than prescribed for an exercise 2 training sessions in a row, then they can increase the load used on the subsequent training day.

What should you take into account during exercise for a client taking beta blockers?

Their resting and submax heart rate are lower, and you should take this into account in your programming. they decrease resting heart rate and heart rate at submaximal exercise activities. This is important to account for when programming because using beta blockers can make it appear as if a client is training at a lower intensity than they actually are

Extrinsic feedback

This is feedback that the trainer, family members or friends give a client. This can include correcting errors, forms of encouragement and reinforcement.

Social support (Keeping client motivation)

This is having a network of friends, family, work buddies or any other person close in your life that will support exercise and fitness. These people can help prevent the person from returning to unhealthy/inactive lifestyle choices.

intrinsic feedback:

This is how your client feels with their own senses (what they see, hear and feel)..

self-efficacy (Motivation for exercising)

This is the belief in your own capability to partake in an exercise program.

Knowledge of results

This provides progress information.

Why is it necessary for the personal trainer to have a client fill out a risk stratification before beginning exercise?

To discover the potential presence of diseases to the cardiopulmonary system

If a risk is highly severe and occurs seldomly, what should you do?

Transfer According to the ACE strategies for risk management, it is recommended that risk be transferred when a risk is highly severe but occurs seldomly. It can only be transferred because it occurs infrequently, and is not worth confronting directly due to its severity. Transferring risk means to shift pure risk from one group (typically yourself) to another (typically an insurance company).

True or false, Insulin is an example of a fast acting hormone.

True, Insulin acts immediately in the body during exercise to respond to acute changes in blood glucose. If intramuscular glucose stores get too low from exercise, then insulin will immediately be upregulated to help the cell with glucose reuptake.

true or false, Subcutaneous fat is stored under the skin.

True, Subcutaneous fat is stored under the skin and is not prevalent at the layer of the visceral tissue and major organs of the body. Visceral fat is the type of fat that exists at the organ level.

Muscle fiber types have different characteristics. Which muscle fiber type is least prone to fatigue?

Type I much smaller, but have more mitochondria. These mitochondria allow type I fibers to better utilize aerobic energy pathways, making them much harder to fatigue than the less mitochondria dense type IIa and type IIx fibers.

Skeletal muscle consists of two main types of muscle fibers. Which of these muscle fibers are the largest and fastest?

Type IIx fibers are larger fast twitch muscle fibers than type I and type IIa. Formally referred to as type IIb fibers in humans, these fibers produce the most force per contractile unit and tend to have greater cross sectional area.

How do you calculate a client's Body Mass Index (BMI)?

Weight (lbs)/ [Height (in) x Height (in)] x 703

what type of joint is the glenohumeral?

ball and socket (shoulder joint)

what is within the scope of practice for a trainer

conducting fitness assessments and health screenings to identify exercise limitations

what is within the ACE scope of practice regarding training clients with weight loss goals?

designing exercise programs that lead to increased energy expenditure and positive changes in body composition

a client who has dyslipidemia has what?

elevated low-density lipoprotein (LDL) and total cholesterol

True or false, .It is considered within the scope of practice to offer a specific dietary plan for your clients.

false, it is not within the scope of practice for a personal trainer to advise others on diet plans. Only registered dietitians can legally advise others on diet plans in the United States.

3rd: Planning Stage (Stages of the Client-Personal Trainer Relationship)

going to consist of the four stages of setting goals, generating and discussing alternatives, formulating a plan, and evaluating the exercise program. Setting SMART goals is a good way to make sure that the goals are most effective.

The Maintenance stage (Stages of Change)

hen the participation in physical activity is longer than 6 months and the person is consistent with their working out still.

The Preparation Stage (Stages of Change)

marked by some engagement in physical activity, as individuals are mentally and physically preparing to adapt a program of activity. They may have some form of physical activity starting in this stage, but it is not consistent enough.

A 45-year-old lady named Susan comes to looking for an exercise program. After you go through the full health risk appraisal you find out that her mother has diabetes, and used to smoke cigarettes. Susan used to smoke as well but quit a year ago. Currently, she switches off between the treadmill and stationary bike three days per week for approximately 30 or 45 minutes. She has a body mass index of 31, a systolic blood pressure of 142 mmHg, a diastolic reading of 88 mmHg and 187 mg/dl of total serum cholesterol. What is the risk classification that you would put Susan in and according to the ACSM and guidelines, how many risk factors to Susan have?

moderate risk, two risk factors

when working with clients who have been referred by their physicians for exercise programing, which of the following steps would be most important for the personal trainer to take?

obtain written permission from the client prior to communicating with the referring physician

This sign or symptom is synonymous with ischemia

pain (tightness) or discomfort in jaw

what muscles of the scapulothoracic joint are the major agonists when performing a push up?

serratus anterior, pectoralis minor, trapezius, levator scapulae, and rhomboids all found in the scapulothoratic joint

which model of behavior change states that self efficacy and expectations are the most important factors for behavioral change?

social cognitive theory

he Action stage (Stages of Change)

stage in which the person is actually working out and has been consistent for less than 6 moths.

According to reversibility, what is the rate of strength loss associated with it?

strength is lost at approximately half of the rate that it was gained.

what is the primary purpose of the personal trainer certification program

to protect the public from harm