Best Health & Fitness Certification (my favorite certification after 17+ years in the industry)

If you’re considering becoming a health professional, share a roundup of my favorite reputable health and fitness certifications. See all the details below!

Hi friends! Are you OK? I hope you’re having a great week so far! My schedule is packed with client calls and podcast interviews, but I’m looking forward to a long, relaxing Easter weekend with my family.

In today’s post, I want to talk about health and wellness certifications, especially now that I’m working toward two new certifications: High Performance Health and Integrative Health Practitioner Level 3.

I love learning and have completed quite a few health and fitness certifications over the past 17 years of working in the health industry. I won’t recap them again here (they’re all on the About page!), but I definitely have a few favorites. 😉

I thought I would share my top certification options if you are considering expanding your knowledge in the health and wellness field, teaching fitness, or pursuing a new career.

Whether you want to coach clients, teach classes, delve into functional health, or simply deepen your knowledge, there are so many incredible programs out there.

Best Health and Fitness Certification

One of the biggest questions I have is: where do I start?

The answer really depends on your goals.

Do you want to:

Working one-on-one with clients?

Teach fitness classes?

Building an online wellness business?

Or just to learn more about yourself and your family?

I’ve broken it down into several categories to help you find the perfect fit.

Health Coach/Functional Practitioner Certification

Functional lab testing is the biggest game changer if you want to help clients get to the root cause of health imbalances.

It’s an incredible way to serve your clients on a deeper level when you can run labs, analyze them, and recommend appropriate protocols.

(Friendly reminder, we do not diagnose, prescribe, cure, or treat. We are looking for deficiencies and toxicity and how to support the body back into balance.)

Institute for Integrative Health Practitioners (IHP)

This is by far my favorite certification.

I have completed Level 1 and 2 and am currently studying High Performance Fitness and Level 3. I am not exaggerating when I say that IHP has completely changed my life.

It allows me to help clients more deeply, and I also use these tests and protocols on myself and our family. This was an important part of my own healing journey.

What I like most about IHP is:

It combines Eastern and Western approaches

You learn how to read and interpret functional lab tests

You have a clear agreement that can be implemented

Very practical and actionable

If you are interested in working with clients, running a lab, or truly understanding the root causes of health, this is what I recommend time and time again.

You can check it out here and use code FITNESSISTA for a huge discount.

Functional Diagnostic Nutritionist (FDNP)

I personally did not earn this certification, but I have many friends who have completed it and gone on to build thriving online practices.

From what I understand, it’s similar to IHP in that you’re learning how to become a “health detective” and use functional labs to observe patterns in the body.

The course and quiz options are very similar, and the goal is the same: to help clients get to the root cause of what they’re experiencing, not just manage symptoms. You can view details here.

Nutrition Coach Certification

Note that this is very different from being a registered dietitian.

Only a licensed RD can tell you exactly what to eat or create a specific diet plan. Nutritional coaches can provide guidance, education, macro support and balance advice based on your goals, but cannot prescribe individualized medical nutrition therapy.

Institute of Integrative Nutrition (IIN)

I didn’t get this certification, but I seriously considered it.

One of the biggest benefits is that you can specialize based on your interests, whether that’s plant-based nutrition, paleo, hormonal health, or other dietary approaches.

If you’re looking for a broad, comprehensive introduction to health coaching and want the flexibility to apply it, this is a great option.

Precision nutrition

I completed the Precision Nutrition course a few years ago and I thought it was very simple and practical.

My favorites are:

Learn how to calculate macros based on personal goals

Learn about nutritional timing and supplementation strategies

Go deeper into specific goals like endurance training or fat loss

Counseling Strategies and Behavior Change

This is a great option if you want to build a solid foundation in nutritional coaching, especially if your focus is fitness, body composition, or performance. You can learn more here.

Biohacking Certification

High Performance Health (HPH)

I’m currently going through this certification and loving it.

It covers the following topics:

Optimize cardiorespiratory function

Brain health and cognitive function

Advanced nutrition strategies

Biohacking Tools and Stacking

Take your already healthy habits to the next level

If you’re already into the health field and want to learn more about optimization and performance, this is a great option. Learn more about HPH here.

There was little in the old days of Zumba that was explosive. Bring it with you!

Fitness certification

If you want to work in a gym, train clients, or teach classes, fitness certification is essential.

NASM personal trainer

I have been a NASM certified personal trainer for many years and I really appreciate the depth and science of the program.

It covers:

Anatomy and Physiology

programming

Injury prevention

Customer evaluation

I also have to maintain continuing education credits and CPR certification to stay current, which I think is very important.

This certification has really taken my personal training to the next level.

AFAA Group Fitness

This is a group fitness certification I earned years ago and I would recommend it if you are considering teaching group fitness.

Its focus is:

Category structure

Tips and guidance

security and modification

Create engaging experiences

If you like the energy of group classes, this is a great place to start.

Fitness expertise

If you want to narrow or expand your product range, professional certification can be a great addition.

Some I’ve done:

NASM corrective exercises

NASM Women’s Fitness Expert

NASM Weight Loss Expert

body pump

These allow you to:

Work with specific groups of people

Address injury or imbalance issues

Create more custom programs

Yoga (RYT)

If you’re interested in teaching yoga, the Registered Yoga Teacher (RYT) certification is the standard.

As well as teaching, this is an incredible personal development experience that deepens your understanding of movement, breathing and mindfulness. Your local yoga studio may offer a 200-hour certification course. Get certified at the studio you love!

barre

Barre is a little different in that there aren’t that many universal certifications that are widely accepted.

If you are interested in teaching barre, I recommend contacting the specific studio you would like to teach at. Many studios offer in-house training programs.

The best thing you can do is take as many classes there as possible, as each studio tends to have its own unique approach and style.

If I could give one piece of advice it would be:

Start with something that really excites you.

You don’t have to do everything at once. You don’t need 10 certifications to get started!

A certification can open a door and you can start building from there.

for me, Continuing education is one of the most valuable parts of this career. It allows me to grow, evolve, and serve others in a deeper way.

If you are considering entering the health field, I am rooting for you and if you have any questions about these certifications, I will be happy to assist you!

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