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Article by Infofit

Fitness Assessments – The Elite Personal Trainer

Fitness assessments are conducted by fitness professionals to help gauge and determine a workout program tailored to the client.

Why Do Exercise Professional Want to Assess Me?

Elite Trainers work within a precise application of known genetic, behavioral and environmental factors. They take the information from an assessment and put it into a training plan to maximize your genetic, physical and performance potential.  André Noël Potvin, MSc, CES, TFL states “Genetic Exercise puts the personal in personal training.”

What Exactly Does All of that Mean to You the Personal Training Client?

Fitness assessments will be conducted by fitness professionals to help gauge and determine a very specific workout program tailored to your physiological response to exercise. Your plan should entail everything you need to guide you on your path to attaining specific fitness goals.

Fitness assessments will differ between personal training companies and so will the length of time the assessments take to complete. They will also be specific to the information you provide the personal trainer with during your consultation. Depending on your physical capabilities the elite coach will choose which are safe for your specific goals and parameters.

What do I need to do Before my Assessment?

Protocol for testing is going to vary depending on what test you will be doing during your appointment. Have a light meal about 45 minutes before your session such as a protein shake. Drink 1-2 glasses of water about 30 to 60 minutes before the appointment.

Don’t do any exercise at all on the same day and keep your training light the day before. Take all of your regular medications. Supplements are fine to take unless they increase your heart rate. Clarify with the instructor whether they would like you also to refrain from having any caffeine products for the same reason.

What Should I Bring to a Fitness Assessment?

Your personal trainer will give specific instructions on what to bring to your assessment with you depending on what they are doing with you. You can be certain, however that they will want you to bring proper workout gear with you (runners, shorts or capris, tank top). Bring a towel if they don’t have towel service, water, and a snack for after your session.

What is Going to Happen?

Initially, your trainer will take you into the assessment room and do all of your anthropometric measurements (height, weight, body fat) and your basic hemodynamic measurements (resting pulse, blood pressure). The elite personal trainer will ask you several questions to try to get to know you better, and so you feel more comfortable. I ask questions that will be specific to the tests such as whether you have used a treadmill before and how often you work out if at all. They will explain what tests they will be doing, how the test is performed and what is done with the results.

The Fitness Tests

Fitness tests are done to determine your current capacity regarding; cardio, core control, upper and lower body strength as well as flexibility. The specific tests will be different depending on the company you choose to use, the equipment available and also will differ depending on your capabilities and goals.

Infofit does a graded exercise test (SubMax VO2), then we do a PPFA (Pain/Posture Functional Analysis). The latter test entails testing the core, strength, and flexibility. The basics of the PPFA include pelvic and scapular mobility, squats, core strength (side planks/bridges/cat-cow), shoulder girdle/hamstring/quadricep flexibility and spinal mobility.

Post-testing Recommendations

Recommendations are then made based on your test results for “postural hygiene” and a more extensive cardiovascular and resistance training program is developed specific to your goals and structural alignment issues.

Infofit is an elite personal training studio, not a gym. Our approach is different than that of a gym; we are teachers, guides, and inspirational mentors. We teach and promote self-responsibility and self-management, instead of reliance on others for personal growth and success. We want our clients to “learn” and “do” for themselves; we prescribe a training package that best suits the client’s goals, expectations, willingness, physical capabilities, lifestyle and budget.

Our objective is to ensure the client learns how to become his/her own “personal trainer” through education and training. Once this is achieved the client goes on a maintenance review and revision program. This maintenance program is a monthly review, revise and re-implement training session.

Hiring a certified Personal Trainer is the best investment you can make about your overall health and fitness. When you are serious about a future, fuelled by good nutrition and increased activity, then start with your very own Infofit life coach and personal trainer.

Cathie Glennon – BCRPA/SFL