SAN DIEGO, CA—July 8, 2021—Today, the American Council on Exercise (ACE) furthers its commitment to advancing equity, diversity and inclusion with a first-of-its-kind course on how exercise professionals and health coaches can build a more inclusive fitness industry. The course, Taking Action with ACE: Practicing Equity, Diversity and Inclusion as an Exercise Professional, is the first step on a journey to ensure all physical activity participants have equal access and feel welcome in every environment.

Este curso capacitará mejor a los profesionales del ejercicio y a los entrenadores de salud para apoyar a comunidades diversas, utilizar un entorno acogedor para impulsar el compromiso y la retención de clientes, y ser un mejor defensor de la industria del fitness.

“For too long, inclusion just hasn’t been a priority of the fitness industry,” said ACE Chief Executive Officer, Scott Goudeseune. “This course will help exercise professionals and health coaches provide effective services to communities that have felt left out of health and fitness spaces.”

ACE collaborated with Jessica Jackson, MBA, M.Ed, instructional designer and racial equity strategist at TorranceLearning and subject matter experts in equity, diversity and inclusion to produce the course’s six modules. Upon completion of Taking Action with ACE, which is free for ACE Certified Professionals, health and exercise professionals will be able to:

• Considerar cómo los determinantes sociales de la salud y las disparidades sanitarias afectan al acceso a los recursos de salud y forma física.
• Mitigar los prejuicios implícitos en las interacciones con compañeros, clientes y miembros diversos.
• Reforzar la comunicación con personas de orígenes diversos utilizando un lenguaje centrado en la persona.
• Demostrar empatía y comprensión como entrenador de salud y profesional del ejercicio.

“In order to make meaningful change of systemic inequities, we need to ensure everyone has equitable access to health and fitness resources,” said ACE President and Chief Science Officer Cedric Bryant, Ph.D. “There are clear data about the health disparities among populations who are medically underserved. We hope this new course works toward ensuring all communities have the support they need to live healthy, balanced lives.”

"El sector del ejercicio físico está empezando a abordar sus desigualdades", afirmó Goudeseune. "Con ese fin, ACE pretende que una quinta parte de los profesionales del ejercicio y entrenadores de salud realicen este curso en su primer año de disponibilidad".

Hechos

One year ago, ACE strengthened its commitment to the role it could play in contributing to the much-needed change of structural inequities. Since then, ACE has hosted dialogues on issues within the health and fitness industry that affect diverse populations. ACE also partnered with the Women In Fitness Association (WIFA) to create the WIFA Growth Grant, a scholarship providing current ACE Certified Professionals the opportunity to build and grow their careers with a 1-year WIFA membership.

Taking Action with ACE is built upon ACE’s continuous effort to Get People Moving, and reflections from the past year. Access to support within the fitness industry has not been widely available to underserved communities.

• Inactivity levels vary among U.S. adults by race/ethnicity and location (CDC, 2020).
• U.S. teens, adults, and older adults do not exercise enough. Only 25% of U.S. adults and 20% of high school students fully meet physical activity guidelines for aerobic and muscle-strengthening activities, and nearly 31M adults 50+ don’t get physical activity beyond their daily living (CDC Active People, Healthy Nation).
• Physical activity levels are also influenced by cultural values. In most countries, girls, women, older adults, underprivileged groups, and people with disabilities and chronic diseases all have fewer opportunities to access safe, affordable and appropriate programs and places to be physically active (WHO GAPPA).
• Predominantly Black populated areas are less likely to have a gym and recreational center and that people in those areas are 51% more likely to be obese compared to non-Hispanic Whites (Fit For Us).
• The majority of Black people in America don’t have access to quality health- and fitness-related resources (Fit For Us).
• Los adultos gays, lesbianas y bisexuales pueden tener un 12% menos de probabilidades de gozar de una salud excelente o muy buena en comparación con sus compañeros heterosexuales(Encuesta Nacional de Salud de los CDC).

Acerca del American Council on Exercise 

El American Council on Exercise (ACE) es una organización sin ánimo de lucro de alcance mundial que trabaja para mejorar los niveles de actividad física mediante la certificación de profesionales del ejercicio y entrenadores de salud, la publicación de investigaciones originales, la convocatoria de expertos en actividad física y salud, el trabajo directo con grupos comunitarios y la defensa de políticas para que la gente de todos los ámbitos se mueva. Los 90.000 profesionales del ejercicio y entrenadores de salud certificados por ACE se encuentran entre los más respetados en el mundo del fitness, ayudando a la gente a adoptar la actividad física y un estilo de vida más saludable. Para más información, llame al 800-825-3636 o visite ACEfitness.org. AMERICAN COUNCIL ON EXERCISE, ACE y los logotipos de ACE son marcas registradas del American Council on Exercise.

Contacto con los medios de comunicación:

Patrick Grieve
Patrick@gomixte.com
619-732-0789 x728