Level 2 Certificate in Gym Instructing (online)

This is the starting point for everything. Our Level 2 Gym Instructor Course, the first step toward becoming a fully trained personal trainer.

This Level 2 Fitness Instructor Course will prepare you to work in a gym or fitness centre in the United Kingdom or internationally. Our Level 2 Gym Instructor Courses, provides an ideal platform to progress on to the  Level 3 Personal Trainer Course, so you’ll be well equipped if you decide to pursue the higher qualification after completing your Gym Instructor Level 2 Course.

If you would prefer to study for your gym instructor course via a workshop method look at our Level 2 Gym Instructor workshop course.

If you already have a Level 2 Certificate in Fitness/Gym Instructing and want to become a Personal Trainer, our Level 3 Diploma in Personal Training is for you.

If you would like to fast track to being a Level 3 Personal Trainer from a standing start then look at our online Level 3 Diploma in Gym Instructing and Personal Training which merges the Level 2 Certificate in Gym Instrcuting and the Level 3 Diploma in to one larger qualification.

You will receive an Active IQ Level 2 fitness qualification after completing this level 2 gym instructor course.

The Level 2 Certificate in Gym Instructing is awarded by Active IQ and is recognised by the Chartered Institute for the Management of Sport and Physical Activity (CIMSPA).

Level 2 Certificate in Gym Instructing - Example 4 Month Online Pathway

Unit	Timeframe for Completion in Days
Unit 1: Anatomy and physiology for exercise (H/600/9013)	0-90
Unit 2: Know how to support clients who take part in exercise and physical activity (M/600/9015)	0-60
Unit 3: Health, safety and welfare in a fitness environment (T/600/9016)	0-60
Unit 4: Principles of exercise, fitness and health (A/600/9017)	60-120
Unit 5: Planning gym-based exercise (F/600/9018)	60-120
Unit 6: Instructing gym-based exercise (A/600/9020)	60-120

This table illustrates the planned unit order of delivery against a 4 months learning timeframe. For learners wishing to achieve in 2 months they should half the timeframes.

 

The Level 2 Certificate in Gym Instructing can be delivered 100% online.

Studying this way allows you to complete your gym instructor learning and assessments at a time, place and speed of your liking. In addition to this, you will also receive the same high-quality fitness instructor resources and tutor support learners attending our gym instructor workshop days receive.

This online gym instructor course is designed for an expected achievement duration of 4 months with a maximum allowed timeframe of 6 months. Where this timeframe is exceeded, additional fees may be incurred. Duration of study for the online gym instructor course can vary learner to learner, with completion timeframes varying between 2 to 6 months, depending on individual backgrounds and time available to study on a weekly basis.

During your online gym instructor course you will be supported by a highly qualified and experienced tutor to induct you on to our ‘Netflix Style’ Learning Portal. As a minimum, all learners are supported via mandatory live 1:1 webinars, ensuring actions are agreed and you know what work needs to be completed by when.

The content and structure of the level 2 gym instructor is delivered in a specific order to ensure learning is completed in a coherent and logical sequence. This ensures you learn the fundamentals before progressing on to the more advanced content.

Unit 1 Anatomy and Physiology

You will typically start revising this unit from the very start of your programme in preparation for your exam. Once you have completed this unit you will understand the skeletal and neuromuscular system and the effects of exercise, the function and structure of the cardiovascular and respiratory systems, be able to explain how energy is produced in the body and the effects of exercise on energy production, understand the structure and function of the digestive system and how all of these factors can impact on your clients health and well-being.

After completing the online eLearning resources and interactive assessment materials, you will have access to a mock exam and then finally book your online remote exam. It is expected you will achieve this unit within 45-90 days.

Unit 2 Professionalism and Customer Care for Fitness Instructors

Whilst studying towards your Unit 1 Anatomy and Physiology exam you will also work towards your Unit 2 Professionalism and customer care for fitness instructor’s assessments. This unit will help you understand the legal and professional requirements for fitness instructing and understand the products and services offered by fitness instructors and facilities. You will learn the skills and behaviours needed to deliver effective customer care and how to communicate clearly and interact with a variety of customers in different situations. You will learn how an instructor can help all types of customers to have a positive exercise experience, and the importance of personal and professional development throughout the rest of your career. It is expected you will achieve this unit within 30-60 days.

Unit 3 Health and Safety in the Fitness Environment

You will also work towards your Unit 3 Health and safety in the fitness Environment assessments at the same time as your Unit and Unit 2 studies. The unit 3 health safety module will help you understand health and safety in the workplace, including normal and emergency operating procedures in the and how to maintain a safe and effective fitness environment via the application of risk assessments. You will also learn the cleaning requirements in fitness environments including key legislation relating to working practices such as the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH) Regulations and the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences (RIDDOR) Regulations. It is expected you will sit this exam within 30-60 days.

From day 60 onwards you will start completing your learning towards your Unit 4 Conducting client consultations to support positive behaviour change, as well as your Unit 5 Planning and instructing gym-based exercise unit.

Unit 4 Conducting Client Consultations to Support Positive Behaviour Change

By the end of your Unit 4 you will be able to complete a client consultation interview, using established protocols for health screening and fitness assessments, and support clients to change their exercise behaviours. You will understand the importance of a healthy lifestyle and the importance of healthy eating. As well as how technology can be used to support exercise adherence and the benefits of technology for both the client and the instructor.  The assessments for the Unit 4 Conducting client consultations to support positive behaviour change unit, include the submission of a knowledge-based worksheet, an educational leaflet, and a video assessment, of you completing a consultation with your client. It is expected you will achieve this unit within 60-120 days.

Unit 5 Planning and Instructing Gym-based Exercise

The Unit 5 Planning and instructing gym-based exercise module is final, and arguably one of the most important units of your qualification. As you complete your studies for Unit 5 you will learn how to plan and deliver a safe and effective gym-based exercise session to both individuals and groups. You will learn the fundamental teaching points and coaching cues to demonstrate, instruct and correct a wide range of exercise techniques to support a variety of different clients. You will also learn how to encourage clients to increase physical activity and exercise adherence and be able to evaluate your own practice to continuously improve your knowledge and skills. It is expected you will achieve this unit within 60-120 days.

Areas of study for these online gym instructor units include how to assess your client’s fitness levels, understand their goals and be able to competently prescribe correct cardiovascular exercises and intensities to suit their needs. You will learn how to plan, prescribe, and deliver cardiovascular sessions including, warm-ups, main sessions, and cool downs, covering how to introduce and instruct correct technique as well as how to monitor intensity effectively. In addition, you will also learn how to apply a variety of stretching techniques including dynamic, static, and developmental stretching.

Following on from the cardiovascular training sections you will start to explore the benefits and theory of resistance training. This includes topics such as understanding the importance of exercise choices, exercise sequence, and the prescription of reps and sets, as well as other key topics such as progression and overload, to ensure you can competently prescribe resistance training to your clients.

As part of your eLearning content, you will learn how to perform, instruct, and correct all major exercise techniques, such as squats, deadlifts, rows, and presses, as well as be able to prescribe suitable alternatives, progressions, and regressions, to ensure you can support all types of clients. You will learn the principles of safe and effective lifting techniques and spotting, allowing you to perform the techniques and support a variety of clients in the gym.

In addition to one-on-one programme delivery, you will cover the principles of group instruction. This is a key role of a gym instructor and ensures you are competent in the delivery of exercise both one-to-one, as well as to a small group.

By following the curriculum and learning pathway set out by see CMS, you should have completed all assessments for all five units of your level 2 gym instructor qualification by the end of the final workshop day, allowing you to progress onto your next qualification, and/or gain a job as a level 2 gym instructor.

When you sign up for the online Level 2 Certificate in Gym Instructing, you will receive an email containing your joining instructions, which will provide you with access to your online Level 2 Certificate in Gym Instructing learning resources.

The resources are organised by unit, so you can find the manuals, worksheets, case study documents, mock tests, and knowledge checks you need to progress with your learning and prepare for your assessments.

Learning Portal

A wide range of learning resources are available through our ‘Netflix-style’ learning environment. Each one contributes to the success of your educational journey. Lessons are made up of learning resources that are released by your tutor as you progress through your personal training qualification.

• Manuals — high-resolution PDF manuals in colour
• E-Learning Content — Each personal training course unit includes comprehensive, high-quality e-learning content.
• Checkers of Knowledge – Complete a set of questions from a bank of hundreds to assess your knowledge of a subject area. Multiple choice, true and false, drag and drop, fill in the gaps, and mark the words are just a few examples of question formats.

Tutor Support

All of the learning resources in our personal training courses are crucial, but none more so than your tutor. Your tutor will walk you through your personal training qualification step by step, outlining what has to be done, how, when, and why.

Your personal training certification will begin with a thorough induction. In this 60 – 90 minute session we discover more about you, your career aspirations, your academic and job background, your interests, lifestyle, impediments to achievement, and learning needs.

After that, you’ll be taken to our ‘Netflix’-inspired learning portal, where you’ll be given an overview of the programme structure, as well as an overview of our various learning materials and how you can progress with your personal training qualification.

Since 2008, we’ve been providing personal training certifications, and we know how to make your learning experience as enjoyable and stress-free as possible. You will receive a support visit via webinar 1-2 weeks after your induction. This is an opportunity to speak with your instructor in person about your previous experience and to ask any questions you may have regarding your personal training course. Following your support visit, the natural order is for you to attend a tutor webinar with your tutor every calendar month to review your personal training course progress since your last tutor webinar, clarify and develop your understanding of the personal training qualification topic areas studied, and agree on your goals. This is the normal service, with tutor support webinars taking place as needed. Your personal training course tutor is, of course, reachable by phone and email.

Recorded Webinars and Workshops

Our personal training course tutors can record all or parts of your webinar and make them available to you via a 35-day weblink. Ideal for students who prefer to go over their notes again and again.

Furthermore, all of the sessions from our personal training course workshop days have been pre-recorded so you can watch them again. This allows you to get the most out of your personal training sessions while also allowing you to develop and progress at your own pace.

Demonstrations by Tutors

As part of your online personal training course you are able to review a library of tutor demonstrations. Demonstrations include exercise technique, advanced training method and client consultations.

Submissions that have been recorded

We strive to make your online and remote learning experience as helpful as your personal training course workshop days. To help you with this, you can send a link to your instructor with recordings of your method, delivery, and consultation style for him or her to review and give feedback on. This is a terrific approach to ensure that you are developing and implementing your new abilities as needed before, after, or in between your personal training course workshop days.

You can also expect your personal training course tutor, as required, to provide extra demonstrations and explanations via screen recordings and recordings of themselves performing the relevant demonstrations to promote your progress if appropriate.

Example Proforma’s

You will be required to submit pro-forma materials such as worksheets, assignments, and case studies during your Level 3 Personal Training course. Unfamiliar documents might be perplexing, therefore we help you comprehend and finish your tasks faster by supplying you with sample completed pro-forma.

The Level 2 Certificate in  Gym Instructing qualification is accredited by Active IQ, the leading awarding body in the health and fitness sector. It is also recognised by CIMSPA.

The Level 2 Certificate in  Gym Instructing is structured into 5 units which all teach you the vital knowledge in becoming a successful gym instructor or fitness instructor.

Unit 1: Principles of anatomy, physiology and fitness (A/616/7499)
Unit 2: Professionalism and customer care for fitness instructors (K/616/7501)
Unit 3: Health and safety in the fitness environment (M/616/7502)
Unit 4: Conducting client consultations to support positive behaviour change (A/616/7504)
Unit 5: Planning and instructing gym-based exercise (F/616/7505)

Unit 1 is called ‘Principles of Anatomy, Physiology and Fitness’ and covers all the foundational knowledge about the human body a certified personal trainer should know. We will then build on this knowledge in later units. You’ll learn about the cardiorespiratory system, the structure and function of the skeleton joints, the muscular system, energy systems, digestive system and nervous system will also be covered.

This unit is externally set and assessed through multiple choice theory exams which you will sit at the end of the unit.  This assessment can be sat remotely from the comfort of your own home.

Unit 2, ‘Professionalism and Customer Care for Fitness Instructors’ and Unit 3, ‘Health and safety in the fitness environment’, is where we move onto maximising the customer experience in the exercise environment. This is all about putting the customer first and where we learn about those smaller details to become the highest quality gym instructor or personal trainer. We cover customer service skills, how to engage and communicate effectively, understand professional practise and how to maintain a safe gym environment.

These units are assessed through a series or written assignments.

Unit 4 is ‘Conducting Client Consultations to Support Positive Behaviour Change’. You will begin to learn how to lead a consultation as gym instructor or personal trainer and the value of exercise adherence by personal training clients, which is why we also teach you the principles of behaviour change which is fundamental in helping personal training clients achieve their long-term goals.

This unit is assessed with a combination of written assignments and video submissions of you leading a personal training client consultation and health assessment. We will provide you with recorded examples and guidance on how to record this evidence.

Unit 5, ‘Planning and Instructing Gym-Based Exercise’ is where you learn how to plan and then deliver gym instructor programmes. These are the core skills you need to learn as a certified personal trainer and you will be building on and utilising the knowledge you have learnt in the previous four units. Our expert tutors will be walking you through the important steps you need to take in building an effective and appropriate personal training programme for any personal training client.

These units are assessed through a combination of written assignments, video submissions programme cards and self-reflection documents. Please note: Students will be required to bring a participant to two of the assessment days.

Your video submissions need to be recorded in a suitable environment. This requires you and your personal training clients to remain in view of the camera and to be always heard. This can be difficult in a busy public gym with background music. But don’t worry, if you do not have access to a suitable environment in order to record your practical assessments, we also allow you to attend our own gym facility in Batley, West Yorkshire. Alternatively, a member of our assessor network will be able to attend a facility of your choosing to conduct your practical assessment in person.

The Level 2 Certificate in Gym Instructing is priced at £600

CMS wants to make paying for your Level 2 Certificate in Gym Instructing as accessible as possible.

Therefore, we offer three routes to purchasing your Level 2 Certificate in Gym Instructing:

Please note CMS will not ask you for any bank details over the phone or email and you should not provide any payment details in this way.

Pay in 0% Interest Monthly Installments

CMS offers the ability to pay for your Level 2 Certificate in Gym Instructing qualification in 4 or 7 0% interest monthly installments.

If you would prefer to pay for your Level 2 Certificate in Gym Instructing qualification via 0% interest monthly installments, you can do this in one of two ways:

1. Purchase via this webpage by selecting a personal training course date above and clicking ‘self-fund’, select the ‘Direct Debit’ payment option. You will pay an immediate deposit with the option to make a further 3, 6 or 9 installments.
2. Alternatively, call CMS on 01924 470 477 and we can send you a direct debit payment link via email.

Installments	Deposit	Monthly Installment	Total Cost
3	£150	3 x £150	£600
7	£150	6 x £75	£600

Pay in Full

If you would prefer to pay for your Level 2 Certificate in Gym Instructing qualifciation in a one-time upfront installment, you can do this in one of two ways:

1. Make payment via our payments URL making sure to include notes on the personal training course you wish to enroll on and a CMS representative will call you back to confirm the details, issue your joining instruction, learning portal access and arrange your induction.
2. Alternatively purchase via this webpage by selecting a course date above and clicking ‘self-fund’, select the PayPal or ePDQ payment option to pay in full.

To enroll on the online Level 2 Certificate in Gym Instructing qualification you need to:

• Be at least 16 years old
• The course requires physical exertion and individual participation is essential, therefore a degree of physical fitness is necessary.
• There is an element of communication (discussing, presenting, reading and writing) and maths involved, so learners should have basic skills in communication and maths pitched at level 2 (as a minimum).

In addition, to complete the 100% online pathway you will:

• Complete the course over a duration and speed that suits you
• Have 24/7 access to our high-quality digital technology learning platform and regular support from your personal tutor
• Learning can be completed in your own time and at your own pace
• Need to have access to a commercial/professional gym environment
• Be required to complete all practical delivery sessions within a gym setting
• Need to have access to a video camera/smart phone to record some of your assessments

Completion of the Level 2 Certificate in Gym Instructing qualification allows progression on to a wide range of CPD and career development opportunities.

• Level 3 Diploma in Personal Training (Online)
• Level 3 Diploma in Long Term Conditions (Online)
• Level 3 Award in Designing Pre and Post Natal Exercise Programmes (Online)

Other courses also available include:

• Level 3 Diploma in Sports Massage
• Level 4 Certificate in Exercise for the Management of Low Back Pain (Online)
• Level 4 Certificate in Physical Activity and Weight Management for Obese and Diabetic Clients (Online)