Certifications

Passing the NASM CPT Exam

April 18, 2020 by Dan Ma Leave a Comment

I am most happy to say that I just passed my exam today! Because of the COVD-19 outbreak, NASM chose to use ProctorU as an option to take the test online. The experience was a little buggy, but hey I passed and that’s what counts.

I first conceived the goal of getting a CPT back in August 18, 2018. Thanks to being laid off late last year due to a company reorganization, I used a portion of my continuing education from my severance package to pay for this endeavor, which I began studying in the middle of January this year.

NASM CPT: GUIDED STUDY COURSE – MODULE 10

March 21, 2020 by Dan Ma 6 Comments

Final

~~Complete the Course Exam with a score of 80% or higher~~
Practice taking Practice Exam 1 and 2
Review the Personal Training Resources module
Study the NASM-CPT Study Guide module
Complete the End-of-Course requirements

Domain 4

Chapter 6 is in module 2
Chapters 7-9 is in module 3
Chapters 10-12 is in module 4
Chapter 13 is in module 1

Domain 3

Chapters 14 & 15: module 6
Appendix E: module 9

Domain 2

Chapter 6 is in module 2
Appendix E: module 9

Acute Variables

Phase	Sets	Reps	% of 1RM	Rest
Muscular & Stabilization	1-3	12-20	50-70	0-90 secs
Hypertrophy	3-5	6-12	75-85	0-60 secs
Maximal	4-6	1-5	85-100	3-5 mins
Power	3-6	1-10	30-45	3-5 mins

Knees move inwards

Overactive: The thighs (both inner and outer).
- Biceps femoris (short head)
- Vastus lateralis (the largest and most powerful part of the quadriceps femoris, a muscle in the thigh…together with other muscles of the quadriceps group, it serves to extend the knee joint, moving the lower leg forward, pg 626).
- TFL (tensor fascia latae, a tiny muscle, inferior to the iliotibial band. This band, also called the IT band, pg 631)
- Adductor complex (a group of muscles that primarily function to adduct the femur at the hip joint…they are all located somewhere along the medial side of the thigh…they all originate in different places at the front of the pelvis, adductor longus, adductor magnus, adductor brevis, gracilis, & pectineus, pg 628)
Underactive:
- Vastus medialis oblique (VMO) (one of the four quadriceps muscles, located on the front of your thigh, above your kneecap, pg 627)
- Gluteus medius/maximus
Stretching:
- SMR: Adductors
- SMR: TFL / IT band
- Static: supine biceps femoris stretch
- Static: stand TFL stretch
Exercises:
- Tube walking (side to side)

Cardio-respiratory (chapter 6 & 8)

Intensity

Peak V02 Method: the maximal amount of oxygen that an individual can use during intense exercise. Often impractical for personal trainers.
V02 Reserve Method: the preferred method. V02R requires the calculation of V02max.
Peak Metabolic Equivalent (MET): used to describe the energy cost of physical activity as multiples of resting metabolic rate.
Peak maximal Heart Rate (MHR): the most commonly used formula for estimating HRmax: [220 – age] or [208 – (0.7 x age).
HR Reserve Method (HRR, Karvonen): the difference between a client’s predicted maximal heart rate and their resting heart rate.
Ratings of Perceived Exertion Method: the client’s subjective ratin on the perceived difficulty of exercise.
Talk Test Method: if a client is unable to carry a simple conversation during exercise, then they are exercising too hard.

Category of Cardiovascular Fitness

Category	Zone	%	Formula
Poor	1	65-75	HRmax X .65
Fair	1	65-75	HRmax X .75
Average	2	76-85	HRmax X .76
Good	2	76-85	HRmax X .85
Very Good	3	86-95	HRmax X .86
Very Good	3	86-95	HRmax X .95

Nutrition

Adenosine Triphosphate

Energy storage and transfer unit within the cells of the body. Three metabolic pathways in which cells can generate ATP:

The ATP-PC system: 10-15 seconds.
The glycolytic system (glycolysis): 30-50 seconds.
The oxidative system (oxidative phosphorylation): Indefinite period of time.
1. Aerobic glycolysis: The process is the the same as anaerobic except oxygen with pyruvic acid is converted into acetyl coenzyme A (acetyl CoA).
2. The Krebs cycle: a key metabolic pathway that connects carbohydrate, fat, and protein metabolism. The reactions of the cycle are carried out by eight enzymes that completely oxidize acetate (a two carbon molecule), in the form of acetyl-CoA, into two molecules each of carbon dioxide and water.
3. The electron transport chain (ETC)

Anatomic Locations

Superior
Inferior
Proximal
Distal: refers to a position away from the center of the body or point of reference.
Anterior
Posterior
Medial
Lateral
Contralateral: refers to a position on the opposite side of the body.
Ipsilateral: refers to a position on the same side of the body.

Functional Anatomy of Muscles

Force: An influence applied by one object to another, which results in an acceleration or deceleration of the second object.
Length-tension relationship: The resting length of a muscle and the tension the muscle can produce at this resting length.
Force-couple: Muscle groups moving together to produce movement around a joint.

Effective Communication Skills

Nonverbal & verbal
Active listening
Asking questions
- Closed-ended (directive)
- Open-ended (nondirective)
Reflecting: conversational techniques that express the purported meaning of what was just heard…an opportunity to make sure that what a client says is accurately understood.
Summarizing: a series of reflections.
Using Affirmations: shows appreciation for clients and their strengths.
Asking permission

Miscellaneous

Autogenic inhibition relies on the nerve fibers from a stretched muscle to cause that muscle to relax, thus allowing for a greater stretch. Reciprocal inhibition involves an agonist and antagonist effect. In order for an agonist to contract and cause movement, the antagonist incurs a reflexive relaxation to allow the movement.
- Autogenic inhibition: The process by which neural impulses that sense tension are greater than the impulses that cause muscles to contract, providing an inhibitory effect to the muscle spindles.
- Reciprocal inhibition: The simultaneous contraction of one muscle and the relaxation of its antagonist to allow movement to take place.
- Golgi tendon organ: When excited, causes the muscle to relax to prevent injury. Prolonged stimulation provides an inhibitory action to muscle spindles. This neuromuscular phenomenon is called autogenic inhibition.