Fitness assessment form.
Record where a client starts, so progress is provable instead of assumed. Tick the sections that fit the client, add your business name, then print the assessment sheet or save it as a PDF. Free, no sign-up, and built to be filled in the same way again at retest.
build your assessment
sections to include
The five that are on record a baseline for any client and set the retest date. Add a strength or cardio baseline when it serves the goal, not by default - a first session that feels like an exam is how clients disappear.
Client details and goals
Primary goal, in the client's own words · Why now - what prompted starting · Training history (years, current sessions per week) · Injuries, conditions or areas to work around
Resting measures
Resting heart rate (bpm, taken seated after 5 minutes) · Blood pressure, if a reading is available · Height · Weight (same scale, same time of day at retest)
Body measurements
Waist (at the navel, relaxed) · Hips (widest point) · Chest · Upper arm (left / right) · Thigh (left / right)
Movement screen
Bodyweight squat - depth, heels down, knees tracking · Overhead reach - arms to ears without the back arching · Single-leg balance - 30 seconds per side · Push-up - full range with a straight line ear to ankle
Strength baseline
Push-ups to form failure · Plank hold (seconds) · Goblet squat or leg press - working weight for 8 reps · Row or pulldown - working weight for 8 reps
Cardio baseline
12-minute distance (Cooper test), or · 1-mile brisk walk - time and finishing heart rate · Perceived effort out of 10
Retest and notes
Retest date (8 to 12 weeks out) · The two or three numbers to compare next time · Coach notes
your assessment
after the print
If a document like this goes out to every client, the rebuilding is the part worth retiring: in Coachway, forms, programs and meal plans live in the client app - sent, filled in and stored per client, no printer involved.
see inside Coachwaythe short answer
A fitness assessment form records a client's starting point before programming begins: goals and history, resting measures, body measurements, a short movement screen, and - where it serves the goal - a strength or cardio baseline. It is completed at session one and repeated at a set retest date, so change is measured against a recorded baseline rather than memory. It comes after the readiness screen and before the first program. Build yours above and print it, or save it as a PDF.
A baseline, not an exam.
The assessment fails when it is treated as a test the client can do badly on. These three rules keep it doing its actual job.
first: screen before you assess
The readiness screen decides whether it is safe to start; the assessment records where the start is. Running them in that order, as two short documents, beats one long intimidating one.
second: only measure what you will retest
Every number on the form is a promise to measure it again. If you would not compare it at week ten, do not collect it at week one - that is what the section toggles are for.
third: same way, every time
A baseline is only useful if the retest matches it: same tape positions, same scale, same time of day, same walking route. Write the conditions in the notes so future you can repeat them.
The numbers plug straight into the free calculators: the navy body fat calculator turns the tape measurements into a body fat estimate, the VO2 max calculator converts a 12-minute distance into cardio capacity, and the strength standards calculator puts the baseline lifts in context for the client's bodyweight.
Where the assessment sits.
A new client fills in the intake form, is screened with the PAR-Q, and then assessed with this sheet - after which the first program is written from what it found, and the weekly check-in tracks the weeks between retests. For the thinking behind the sheet, fitness assessments for new clients covers what to include and why, and how to run one online covers the remote version.
Frequently asked questions.
What should a fitness assessment form include?
Four things for every client: the goal and training history, resting measures (resting heart rate, height, weight), body measurements, and a short movement screen. Add a strength or cardio baseline only when it serves the goal - a fat-loss client does not need a Cooper test in week one. Finish with a retest date and the two or three numbers you will compare against it. The point of the form is not to collect everything; it is to make the starting point visible so progress is provable later.
Is a fitness assessment the same as a PAR-Q?
No, and they run in a fixed order. The PAR-Q is a screening questionnaire that decides whether it is safe for the client to start training at all; the assessment records where they are starting from once that is settled. Screen first, assess second, program third. The PAR-Q exists on this site as a fill-in generator too, so the two prints together make a complete first-session pack.
How often should you re-assess a client?
Every 8 to 12 weeks is the working range. Sooner than that and the numbers have not had time to move, which demoralises more than it informs; longer and you lose the feedback loop programming depends on. Weekly numbers like bodyweight and adherence belong in the weekly check-in instead - the assessment is for the slower measures: girths, strength baselines, cardio capacity and how the movement screen looks.
Can you run a fitness assessment online?
Yes, with two adjustments. The client takes their own measurements - send the form ahead so they know what is coming and measure the same way each time - and the movement screen happens on video, either live on a call or recorded and sent over. Resting heart rate, weight and girths lose nothing remotely. What you give up is hands-on precision; what you keep is the part that matters, which is a consistent baseline recorded the same way at every retest.
What equipment does a fitness assessment need?
For the core form: a tape measure, a timer and a scale. That covers goals, resting measures, girths and the movement screen. The strength baseline uses whatever the client will actually train with - the number is a reference point, not a lab value - and the cardio baseline needs only a measured route or a treadmill. Consistency matters more than precision: the same tools, the same way, at every retest.
See what Coachway can do for your coaching business
Coachway was built on knowledge from working with 150 online coaches over 6+ years, who all hit the same wall - slow platforms, clunky workflows, wasted hours. Start your 14-day free trial and see what we fixed - the whole platform, no charge today, cancel anytime under Billing.
