Well the dust has settled...

Well it has been a couple of days since the test and I apologize for not posting anything. But it was such an intense day and I just wanted to spend the rest of the weekend with Agi and the girls relaxing. I'm sure you understand. But let me tell you about Saturday!

Well myself and a few of my classmates (we called ourselves the A team) had been getting together to study for this monster of a test. The instructor had told us that the test was to consist of "hundreds" of questions including fill in the blanks and essays. It ends up that the test was not as long but was very in depth.

I feel very confident that I did well on the multiple choice, matching, true/false questions and the musclo-skeletal identification. As far as the essay and listing section, it is hard to tell. I think I answered everything correctly, but because it was essay it is hard to predict how they will grade it. The tests are graded by hand as opposed to a computer. So it really depends. I feel like I did pretty well. The entire written portion represented 75% of the total grade.

The practical portion (25% or grade) was very intense. We each took the practical in the order that we completed the test. Oh by the way...During the written part of the test, I was actually one of the first ones finished. So I was like "cool!" But when I went back to check over my answers I realized that I had totally skipped an entire page of questions! I nearly crapped right there! I would have been so pissed. So I decided to just chill and take my time going over the questions again. I was the 5th person to hand in my test. Total time 3 hours. So back to the practical..

Like I mentioned above, we each took the practical in the order that we finished the written portion. So we were all out in the hallway outside of the gym waiting for our turn. That was tough cause we all were talking about the test, double thinking everything and some of us were trying to cram in last minute information. After about 2 hours of waiting, we all started to get kinda loopy and silly. Which was good cause it kinda broke the tension. That was until of of our classmates Ahmad, who is normally really peppy and happy came out of the gym looking like the dude from the movie "The Green Mile." You know..."Dead Man Walking!" We all kinda freaked a little and settled down. It was at that point that I told the group that when I finish I am going to do the "Moonwalk" outside of the door!

The practical consisted of lots of rapid fire questions covering everything that we learned in class. We had to demonstrate taking fat caliper measurements, identify the anatomical reference sites for the measurements, demonstrate certain types of exercises for certain types of muscle groups, identify the primary (agonist) and secondary (antagonist) muscle groups involved in each movement, and on and on.... It was very intense. I got one wrong in the beginning of the practical. Keep in mind that we could only get 2 questions wrong on the entire practical. When I got the answer wrong , the instructor says, "Bro, you can only get one more wrong then you fail." HELLLOOOO! So I said, "Okay, Lets keep going!"

So once I regained my composure and lowered my heart rate, I completed the rest of the practical with no problem. It was intense but I felt pretty confident throughout. At the completion of the practical, I peeked at the instructors clipboard and it said "pass". WHEWW!!

You should have seen my jacked up Moonwalk when I stepped outside the door of the gym. We weren't allowed to talk to anyone after we finished, but when the doors closed, all I could hear were my classmates laughing like a bunch of crazy people just before medication time!

So now all I have to do is wait for the results which may take up to 4 to 6 weeks. I really hope that it doesn't take that long. I keep you all posted.

Thanks for all of you support and comments. Stay tuned...more to come!


C.

Only 3 days left...

Holy Moley! D-day is rapidly approaching. I participated in a study group with some classmates at a gym in Hialeah and that was very helpful. As a matter of fact, I am just posting this really quick as I get my stuff ready for another study group this evening.

I still have a lot to memorize (i.e. names and location of bones, & muscles, formulas) but I am feeling pretty confident but anxious at the same time. I have been running some of my business ideas with people both in and out of the industry and I am getting positive feedback. More on that later.

Well gotta run!

C.

Still here...still studying

Just a quick update:

1. I have been super busy at work.
   
2. I have been studying when I have the energy.
3. I have collected some guides and resources on writing a business plan.
4. I am still super psyched.

Good night.

Crunch Time

No pun intended...

Well just got home from my last lecture class before the final CPT test. I got an 86 on my quiz. Awesome. Apparently, nobody every gets a hundred on these quizzes and my scores have been above average for the class. Pat on back here. So I'm feeling confident so far. Just one more class where we will review the "practical application" portion of the exam. The entire next class will be spent in the gym. 6 hours of actual work in the gym; i.e. PNF stretching, H.I.T. workout, body fat measurement, blood pressure measurement, etc.

But for now, it's chill and relax with the family for Kim's Birthday!

C.

Sorry, it's been awhile...

Isn't that the beginning of a cheesy 70's song?

Anyway. It has been about a week since my last post. Sorry about that. But I am happy to report that I have been reading my text and I am almost caught up to the lecture notes. Whew! It is a lot of material to take in but it really isn't that bad. I feel for the rest of the class cause they will be getting the books tomorrow. I have no excuse now.

I have two weeks until the exam. I feel confident that I will be ready. Just got back from a brisk walk with the girls and now I'm going to hit the shower then hit the books. Another big quiz tomorrow and then a review for the test.

C.

Ask and you shall receive...eventually

Well my book finally came in. I'm not sure if my classmates were notified that the book had arrived 'cause she originally wanted me to pick it up on Saturday. Needless to say, I just went and got it. She put a copy aside for me with my name on it, how nice.

It's a pretty big book so I really have my work cut out for me. Page one.....

C.

Good News and Bads news

Which one do you want to hear first? First the bad news...

So I show up to the class today and "guess what?" NO BOOKS! Can you believe it?! We have two weeks of lecture remaining until the certification test, and still no book. CRAP! Needless to say the class was pretty upset about it. Despite the obvious effort on our instructors part to practically give us the test in the lecture materials and handouts, most of the class feels at a great disadvantage. Most of the students in the class have experience in a gym either personally or professionally, but other students are completely new at the "iron game" and are totally lost or at least struggling. So during the break I sent a pretty rough email to the educational coordinator stating how I felt about the situation. I added that if I did not feel adequately prepared for the exam (for which I have to pay and additional $150 fee) I would demand a refund. Come to think of it, the school should pay for the retest if anyone fails the test. If it comes to that I will be sure to suggest that next week. So lets see if the coordinator contacts me.

But now the good news...

I got an 85% on my quiz! Myself and another dude were the highest in the class. Plus I got extra credit or at least props from the instructor because I knew the rationale behind one of the trick questions (even though I got it wrong on the test). Here is the question:

"When utilizing the Phosphagen Energy System, you mostly deplete or breakdown your stored ATP, ADP and CP. TRUE or FALSE"

I should have read the question more carefully, that is the reason I got it wrong. Because the answer is clear...

Do you know the answer?


C.

Answer: False. Adenosine Diphosphate (ADP) is not broken down during phosphagentic energy synthesis. It is created through the giving up of a phosphate from Adenosine Triphosphate (ATP) and binds with Creatine Phosphate (CP) to resynthesize back to ATP. WHEEWW!