How to Perform Virtual Fitness Assessments

If you're like the majority of the fitness community, 2020 quickly transformed your live personal training business into virtual personal training. Online training has its pros and cons but one common challenge, for many trainers, is administering accurate assessments online.

In this article, we highlight the importance of assessments, keys to successful virtual assessments, and important tips you can apply to your online testing.

The Importance of Assessments

Proper fitness assessments are an essential component of personal training regardless of whether the training is virtual or not. Assessments provide:

• A starting point: Baseline data outlining the client's starting point before they begin their fitness program.

• Insight for realistic goals: Once you know where the client's starting point is, where they want to be, and when they want to be there, you can determine if the goals the client has are achievable.

• A measurement of progress: Periodic fitness assessments can help determine if the client is on track with their fitness goals.

• Motivation: Seeing improvements in movement, strength, and measurements can be encouraging for the client.

Keys to Successful Virtual Assessments

As you plan out your virtual fitness assessments, there are a few important elements to ensure your success as an online personal trainer.

• Pick the correct assessments for the client and their goals: Although there are some assessments every client will complete (e.g., health questionnaire), it's crucial you know what information you need to gather for an individual and what assessments are appropriate for collecting the info. For example, if you're helping a senior client improve their balance, you wouldn't take them through a broad jump test.

• Consistency: Because you are not in-person to administer the assessments yourself, you must take the time to educate each client on how to properly conduct their assessments. We'll talk about this more later in the article, but clients need to know what to do and how to measure consistently to get accurate data.

• Invest in technology: Although many personal trainers adapted to virtual personal training in a manner that wasn't necessarily ideal for anyone, online personal training is a perfect opportunity for fitness professionals to develop new skills and reach different clients. That being said, virtual personal training likely isn't going anywhere any time soon. So, invest in good technology, apps, and platforms that can help you automate and organize some of these processes.

• Document everything: Fitness assessment data and the notes associated with it are the keys to evaluating progress. Document tips/cues you are providing, things your client is struggling with, their data, and anything else relevant to their development. You may also want to video record your assessment sessions when you can because they can provide insight into your clients' progress as well.

• Have an assessment schedule: Assessments don't need to be taken every day and can be demotivating to the client if they are. Gather baseline data and then organize a schedule to evaluate periodic progress and ensure it fits with your availability to give each client the attention they deserve.

How to Administer Virtual Assessments

There are several different fitness assessments that you may use as a personal trainer depending on your clients' needs and goals. Here are some of the most important assessments and tips for you to be successful in a virtual setting.

1. Health History Forms

Each client should complete a Physical Activity Readiness Questionnaire (Par-Q) and a Health History Questionnaire (HHQ) before they begin their workout program. These documents will provide you with health conditions and concerns, limitations, and other risk factors that are important to know before starting an exercise routine.

Tips for success:

• Independent submission: Although it's important to have an initial face-to-face consultation to understand the needs of your client and build rapport, the health history forms can be completed independently by the client without the need for much oversight from you as a personal trainer.

• Use technology: You can make this process easier by utilizing apps, electronic forms, etc.

2. Biometric Data

Biometric measurements (circumference, weight, body fat, etc.) can help evaluate progress, indicate compliance, and become a useful motivator as your client moves through their workout program. However, with clients at home, it's important to stick with simple, inexpensive, and effective measurements that clients can do on their own. For example, it's unlikely clients will have access to a bod pod or bioelectrical impedance to measure their body composition, but it's common for clients to be able to purchase or get access to a scale, measuring tape, a watch for resting heart rate, and a blood pressure cuff.

Tips for success:

• Live first assessments: Administer the first biometric assessments from a live virtual setting (google meet, zoom, skype, etc.), so you can provide your clients tips and feedback on how to measure correctly and consistently.

• Measurement consistency: Teach clients how to measure properly and record detailed notes to replicate the process each time (ex. bicep circumference measurement is taken __inches up from the client's elbow each time).

• Time of day consistency: Because the body can fluctuate throughout the day, remind your personal training clients to complete each measurement at the same time of day (ex. weigh themselves at 7 am each day).

• Use technology: Again, use it to reduce excess work. If your clients can easily input their data into a platform that is automatically sent to you, it can minimize the need for emailing, texting, and scanning documents back and forth.

• Tutorial recordings: Consider pre-recording example videos your clients can use if they need a reminder on how to properly measure.

• Complete calculations for your clients: Don't rely on the client to do the math. Gather the data you need to calculate body fat, BMI, heart rate, etc. and establish which standard calculations you want to use. Plug in their data after each assessment and record to track their progress.

3. Postural Assessments

Posture can be evaluated via virtual live or photo submission. It's vital to evaluate posture to help improve movement, be aware of injury risks, and notice limitations.

Tips for success:

• Positioning: Have personal training clients find a friend (or camera set up) that can take pictures/video of the client in a relaxed position from the front, back, and sides.

• Attire: Clients should wear minimal or fitted clothing, so you have a clear view of each checkpoint.

• Background: Clients should position themselves in front of a solid color wall during the assessment (ideally one that contrasts the colors of their attire).

• Proper lighting: Encourage clients to take some test shots to ensure lighting doesn't impact your view. Typically, positioning the lighting in front of the client instead of behind is ideal.

4. Movement Assessments

Although this type of fitness assessment is a little more challenging when it's not face-to-face, movement assessments are an important part of personal training. Improper movement can be a precursor to injury, so take the time and build the processes to capture your clients' movement assessments.

Tips for success:

• Use a large computer screen: Viewing movement dysfunction on a cell phone will be challenging.

• Speak your clients' language: If you ask a client to externally rotate their foot or tuck their pelvis, make sure they understand what you mean. If not, simplify your cues.

• Align with tips for postural and biometric assessments: Similar to the previous assessments, the movement assessments should be live with recorded video documentation so you can observe, cue, and analyze movement. Their attire should be tighter fitting so you can see the kinetic checkpoints. The background should be a solid color that contrasts their attire. And, proper lighting is imperative.

5. Strength & Performance Assessments

Strength and performance tests can also be challenging to do virtually. Much like the postural and movement assessments, strength and performance tests should be evaluated in a virtual live setting (with recorded video to help analyze). There are many different types of assessments within this category and client safety is of utmost importance.

Tips for success:

• Keep it simple: If you can, stick to simple tests that can help you gather baseline data (push-up test, 3-minute walk test, etc.).

• Stay away from assessments that require a spotter: Unless the client has a good spotter, consider refraining from any tests that might need one.

• Understand the intensity, energy systems, and movements needed for the athlete's performance: Once you have this information, it becomes easier to understand how to evaluate your client and determine how you can safely and effectively administer tests to capture the info you need.

• Same tips as the assessments above: Just like the previous assessments, lighting, attire, and live sessions and recorded documentation for performance or strength-based assessments are ideal.

Are You Passionate About Personal Training?

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