Press Room

New Education Course Applies Evidence-based Coach Approach to the Fight Against Diabetes

Posted: May 15, 2019 in ACE Press Releases

San Diego, May 15, 2019— The American Council on Exercise (ACE) has launched a new continuing-education course, Diabetes Prevention Coaching, to equip certified exercise professionals and health coaches to be more valuable contributors to the diabetes-prevention team.

“The Diabetes Prevention Coaching course arms professionals with behavior-change coaching methods to make a difference in the fight against diabetes,” said Cedric X. Bryant, Ph.D., FACSM, President and Chief Science Office at ACE. “For those exercise professionals and health coaches who seek to help individuals who are working to fend off type 2 diabetes, this course equips them with evidence-based strategies to help those at risk to adopt healthy, lasting lifestyle change.”

The new Diabetes Prevention Coaching course equips the exercise professional to coach clients at risk for diabetes using disease-prevention strategies at the intersection of physical activity, nutrition and lifestyle behavior-change. Throughout this course, professionals will learn the causes, consequences and treatments for prediabetes, as well as the evidence-based behavior-change strategies that allow clients to reach goals related to better overall health and wellness.

This interactive online course is facilitated by board-certified pediatrician and obesity medicine specialist Natalie Digate Muth, MD, MPH, RDN, FAAP, FACSM; nurse practitioner Beth Read, MS, FNP-BC; and health and fitness expert Chet Zelasko, PhD.

“This type of comprehensive course that covers both the basics of diabetes, and how to coach a person toward healthier habits, is sorely needed,” said Bryant. “Behavior-change strategies are key to lasting change and among the primary ways to impact diabetes incidence.”

Prediabetes and the subsequent development of type 2 diabetes are among the greatest health risks of our time. More than 30 million Americans have type 2 diabetes and another 84 million suffer from prediabetes, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

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The American Council on Exercise is a nonprofit organization with global reach that works to improve physical-activity levels by certifying exercise professionals and health coaches, publishing original research, convening experts on physical activity and health, working directly with community groups, and advocating for policies to get people from all walks of life moving. The 80,000 exercise professionals and health coaches certified by ACE are among the most respected in the world of fitness, helping people embrace physical activity and adopt healthier lifestyles. For more information, call 800-825-3636 or visit ACEfitness.org. AMERICAN COUNCIL ON EXERCISE, ACE and ACE logos are Registered Trademarks of the American Council on Exercise.