Client intake for personal trainers: what to ask before the first session

The client intake is your first structured conversation with a new client. It tells you where to start, what to avoid and when to refer out to another professional. Skipping this step — or doing it from memory while chatting in the first session — is the fastest way to program badly.

Here are the question blocks you can't skip, and how to use each answer.

1. Basic details

• Name, age, contact details and emergency contact;
• Weight and height (or leave these for the fitness assessment);
• Job and work routine (sitting, standing, shifts).

A client's work routine tells you a lot about posture, fatigue levels and which times they can actually train.

2. Goals

Ask open questions first, then ask the client to get specific:

• What do you want to achieve with training?
• How soon do you expect to see results?
• Have you tried before? What worked and what didn't?

"Lose weight" is a start. "Run 5K again without knee pain before March" is a goal you can build a phased plan around.

3. Health history and red flags

This is the most important part. Ask, for example:

• Has a doctor ever told you that you have a heart condition or high blood pressure?
• Do you feel chest pain, unusual shortness of breath or dizziness during exertion?
• Do you have a chronic condition, are you under treatment or taking ongoing medication?
• Do you have, or have you had, injuries, surgeries or joint pain?
• (For female clients) Are you pregnant or have you given birth recently?

Physical activity readiness questionnaires such as the PAR-Q are a good foundation for this step. If any answer points to risk, the right move is to ask for medical clearance before starting — and keep a record of it.

4. Training history

• Have you done strength training, running or another sport before? For how long?
• How many times a week do you train now?
• Which exercises do you enjoy, and which do you hate?

Preferences matter: a client who hates their program doesn't stick around.

5. Lifestyle and habits

• How many days and which times do you really have available?
• How are your sleep and stress levels?
• Do you do any other activity (soccer, cycling, classes) during the week?

This defines a realistic volume. A 5-day plan for someone who can only make it 3 times is a plan that will fail.

How to turn the intake into a program

With the answers in hand, you can decide:

1. Whether they can start or need medical clearance first;
2. The starting point — volume and intensity for the first phase;
3. What to adapt for injuries, pain or limitations;
4. The first measurable goal, which you'll track in the fitness assessment.

Keep it all in one place

Paper intake forms get lost. And the moment you need one is exactly when the client comes back from an injury six months later. Keep the intake together with each client's fitness assessment and training history.

In Trainer Fácil you request an assessment from the app and the client fills in personal details, measurements, photos and health history in a few minutes — it's all saved to their profile, ready to compare with the next assessment.

This content is for information only and does not replace a medical evaluation. If you see any sign of risk, refer the client to a doctor before they start training.