Group fitness instructor: your advice is needed

[ava75]

Hello to everybody,
I’m a newbie here and need a pro’s advice.
I’d like to start a new chapter in my career and become a group fitness instructor. Group fitness is what I prefer to do vs. being a personal trainer.
But, do you think I should get certified as a PT first and then get an upgrade to GFI? Does it make more sense career-wise?
Another question is, according to NCCAA, I believe only ACE has an accredited certification program in Group Fitness, is this correct? Did anybody get certified with ACE for GFI and is this certification widely accepted by major fitness clubs?
Your opinion would be highly appreciated!
Thanks!

[Phaedrus49er]

17 hours.

[John Izzo]

If you want to instruct group exercise or aerobics class EXCLUSIVELY, than a GX cert is adequate. Down the road you may want to pursue a personal training cert. Of all the aerobics instructors I have hired in the past, most had a ACE, NDEITA, AFAA group certification. The common denominator in all of them was a passion to help people and become the nucleus of a support sysytem.
Most, if not all, did get a PT cert later in their career simply becuase more GX instructors are approached for one on one stuff by participants and they wanted to learn more about anatomy and exericse programming. Most GX certs touch upon that stuff, but the coursework usually is made of cardio respiratory programming, choreography, and safefty,

Hope this helps.

[ava75]

Thanks, John. It sounds like a plan to me.