Question 1

What is exercise and why is it important?

Accepted Answer

Exercise is physical activity for the purpose of improving health or achieving fitness and training goals. Depending on the type of activity, exercise is typically used to increase endurance, strength, balance, or flexibility, as well as for weight loss or other aims. Exercise is increasingly recognized as important for personal as well as public health, as it can play a major role in preventing or managing cardiovascular disease, diabetes, obesity, depression, and other conditions that impact a growing number of people around the world.

The potential health and fitness benefits of exercise have increased in recent decades thanks to a growing understanding of human physiology and the science of exercise. Properly designed training regimens can reduce the physical stress and injury risks from doing too much or the wrong type of exercise for your needs, and the science of nutrition has also provided insights into choosing optimal diets for individual needs and goals. Health data is also playing a growing role in exercise, as mobile phones, wearable devices, and apps can help record physical activity as well as track metrics like caloric expenditures and body mass index (BMI).

Question 2

What kinds of careers can I have with an understanding of exercise?

Accepted Answer

If you love to exercise and are passionate about helping people achieve their fitness goals, you can pursue a career as a personal trainer. These fitness experts are responsible for designing exercise and often dietary plans to meet their clients’ needs, instruct them on the proper ways to do these exercises so they don’t injure themselves, and motivate them to power through their workouts and stick with their training regimen.

If your love of exercise is rooted in a desire to help people address health challenges and recover from injuries, you may wish to get the education required to become a licensed physical therapist. Physical therapists use exercise and other training techniques to help their patients improve movement, manage pain from chronic conditions, and rehabilitate from injuries like torn ligaments or broken bones. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, physical therapists earned a median annual salary of $89,440 per year in 2019, and entering this field requires a doctor of physical therapy degree and state licensing to practice.

Question 3

Can I learn about exercise by taking online courses on Coursera?

Accepted Answer

Yes! Coursera offers opportunities to learn about exercise from a variety of perspectives, whether you want to improve your own health and fitness or deepen your understanding of the science of exercise and physical therapy. You can take courses remotely from top-ranked schools like University of Colorado Boulder, McMaster University, University of Toronto, and Case Western Reserve University, while paying a significantly lower tuition than on-campus students. And, because you can view course materials and complete assignments on a flexible schedule, you can build this valuable knowledge in your free time even with a busy work or family life.

Question 4

What skills or experience do I need to already have, before starting to learn about exercise?

Accepted Answer

Anyone can learn about exercise without any special skills or experience, because everyone can benefit from movement or physical activity. All you really need is an interest in improving your health and fitness. However, if you're studying exercise for professional reasons, a background in nutrition, anatomy, physiology, biology, sports medicine, physical therapy, or any type of health care may be beneficial.

Question 5

What kind of people are best suited for roles that use exercise?

Accepted Answer

People who enjoy helping and motivating others are best-suited for professional roles that incorporate exercise. Whether you're training someone in a gym or helping them lose weight as a medical professional, you'll need to be a good teacher who can clearly communicate how to exercise and why it's beneficial to their health. This also means you'll need to be a good verbal communicator, and you should have a positive, outgoing attitude. You'll need a passion for health and fitness and a willingness to work with people from all walks of life. You'll need to be a good problem solver too.

Question 6

How do I know if learning about exercise is right for me?

Accepted Answer

Learning about exercise is right for you if you want to have a better understanding of how movement improves and benefits the human body. For personal reasons, you may want to improve or maintain your own health, lose weight, or learn a new way to stay active. For professional reasons, you may want to start a new career that involves exercise or learn new skills to build on your experience in industries like health care, personal training, nutrition, and sports.

Question 7

What topics can I study that are related to exercise?

Accepted Answer

Many people who study exercise also learn about nutrition because both are needed for a healthy human body. Sports-related topics may also help if you're an athlete or coach or have an interest in learning more about a particular activity. If you are interested in a career in health care, you may study exercise alongside topics like physical therapy, health, nursing, biology, anatomy, and physiology. Depending on your personal or professional goals, you may want to learn about topics like choreography or fitness instruction too.

Question 8

What types of places hire people with a background in exercise?

Accepted Answer

People with a background in exercise may work in the health care field as therapists, nurses, doctors, nutritionists, and other professionals in settings like clinics, rehab facilities, hospitals, nursing homes, and doctor's offices. You may also find a job in a gym, working for a sports team, or teaching physical education or fitness in elementary, middle, or high school.

Question 9

What are the benefits of taking an online Exercise course?

Accepted Answer

Online Exercise courses offer a convenient and flexible way to enhance your knowledge or learn new Exercise skills. Choose from a wide range of Exercise courses offered by top universities and industry leaders tailored to various skill levels.

Question 10

What Exercise courses are best for training and upskilling employees or the workforce?

Accepted Answer

When looking to enhance your workforce's skills in Exercise, it's crucial to select a course that aligns with their current abilities and learning objectives. Our Skills Dashboard is an invaluable tool for identifying skill gaps and choosing the most appropriate course for effective upskilling. For a comprehensive understanding of how our courses can benefit your employees, explore the enterprise solutions we offer. Discover more about our tailored programs at Coursera for Business here.

Exercise Courses Online

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Explore the Exercise Course Catalog

NASM Personal Fitness Trainer

Science of Exercise

Science of Diet and Exercise

Managing Your Health: The Role of Physical Therapy and Exercise

Hacking Exercise For Health. The surprising new science of fitness.

Foundations of Exercise and Nutrition

What brings you to Coursera today?

Aligning Diet and Exercise

Intro to Personal Training: A Career Starter Course

Anatomy, Physiology, and Kinesiology for Fitness Professions

Nutrition Education for the Consumer

The Science of Movement

Impact of Exercise on Weight Loss

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In summary, here are 10 of our most popular exercise courses

Frequently Asked Questions about Exercise

What is exercise and why is it important?‎

What kinds of careers can I have with an understanding of exercise?‎

Can I learn about exercise by taking online courses on Coursera?‎

What skills or experience do I need to already have, before starting to learn about exercise?‎

What kind of people are best suited for roles that use exercise?‎

How do I know if learning about exercise is right for me?‎

What topics can I study that are related to exercise?‎

What types of places hire people with a background in exercise?‎

What are the benefits of taking an online Exercise course?‎

What Exercise courses are best for training and upskilling employees or the workforce?‎

Other topics to explore