Behavior Change Specialization
(NASM-BCS)

There are no prerequisites for this course. A fitness or wellness credential or a bachelor's degree is recommended but not required.

Chapter 1: Introduction to Behavior Change
Learn how to identify and define emerging occupations in the area of wellness and coaching.

Chapter 2: Coaching and Communication
Understand how to define the term coaching in the context of a helping profession and be able to explain the scope of practice involved with the real of the coach. Additionally, you will be able to describe the basic elements of coaching communication along with how learning preferences play a role in achieving coaching outcomes.

Chapter 3: Client Screening and Assessment
Discover Lazarus's multimodal assessment framework and understand client functioning from a multimodal perspective which can help determine appropriate behavior change techniques. This chapter will allow you to be able to explain the importance of identifying the stage of change a client is in to determine the best intervention strategies.

Chapter 4: Effective Goal Setting
Understand the importance of goal setting a behavior change technique.

Chapter 5: Behavior Therapy Techniques
Discuss the fundamental concepts of behavior therapy that support long-lasting behavioral change and describe major behavior therapy techniques, including contingency contracting, Premacking, stimulus control, modeling, and relaxation training

Chapter 6: Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Understand cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and its techniques relevant to health and fitness. Moreover, determine which CBT self-help strategies are appropriate for each stage of change for health and fitness clients.

Chapter 7: Effective Imagery
Describe how imagery is used to facilitate behavior change in health and fitness along with identifying the functions for which imagery techniques are employed.

Chapter 8: Interpersonal and Social Influences on Behavior Change
Understand social influence as it relates to the adoption of a new behavior and identify social influences that affect adherence to exercise and nutrition programs.

Chapter 9: Professional Practice and Ethics
Familiarize yourself with the benefits to clients and professionals of adhering to a high standard of ethical conduct. Further, differentiate the scope of practice between a wellness professional and a licensed healthcare professional which will allow you to describe conditions under which referrals to other professionals are warranted. You will be able to therefore outline a system to maintain good records of client process through identifying critical ethical standards to which the wellness professionals should adhere.

After the completion of the course, you will take an online final exam from the comfort of your own home or wherever you prefer to take tests. The exam consists of 100 questions and there is a time limit of 90 minutes. You must pass with a scaled score of 70% or better.

You will have 365 days from the day of enrollment to complete the course and take your final exam.

No, you do not need to renew your NASM Behavior Change Specialization. Once you pass your final exam, this specialization never expires.

You will have 3 attempts to pass the final exam.

No, is it not required to take the Behavior Change Specialist program.