In the ACE Personal Trainer Preparation Course, one of the modules you will go through is conducting fitness tests for clients. What better way than to experience these various tests for yourself?
And so just this past Sunday morning, 14th Nov 2010, Keen, Lim, Tinisha, Khal, Zaim, Suben, Daniel, Rain and Suffian gathered at the MPSJ Stadium, Subang Jaya at 7am for their fitness testing class with Simran.
Simran took them for their 15 mins warm up session by running a lap (400meters) around the stadium. This was followed by push ups and forward lunges. Warm up is very important before the start of any workout session to gradually increase your heart rate.
Push up early in the morning? Yeah, why not?
First up was the Vertical Jump. Participant will mark the highest point for which they can touch while standing and jumping. Keen was the first to test him. Never mind tall or short, it is not judge by who can reach the highest point but instead its judge by the distance between Standing Reach and jump height and it has to be tested 3 times.
Standing Reach Vertical Jump Reach
The next test was the Standing Long Jump which is basically a measurement of explosive leg power. To be honest I was surprised by the distance of the jump done by those guys! It’s pretty amazing how explosive they can be. They must land on both feet without falling otherwise the test must be repeated.
Get set… JUMP!!!
Subsequently, they were split into two groups. One group proceeded with the Pro Agility test first, whilst another group did the T-Test. Wanna test how quick you are? Yeah, you can try Pro-Agility test, three marker cones are placed along a line five yards apart. The runner starts off in a 3 point stance and middle cone, then runs to the right (or left, whichever they prefer) making sure they passed the cones, and then run over to the left, before running back to the starting point. They are required to touch the line at each turn. The time to complete the test in seconds to the nearest two decimals is recorded. The score is the best time of three trials. This test is useful for basketball, hockey, rugby and soccer.
How good is your agility? Try out this and you’ll know.
In the T-test, the participants will have to run, shuffle (without crossing their feet) and run backwards to the starting point. Getting the techniques correct is the foundation of any exercise before even thinking of progression. Most of them were forced to repeat this test as they failed to do it right! Pity those guys as it can be tiring during such intense test.
Shuffle side to side (no feet crossing), look forward and touch the base of the cones. Look easy but it’s not!
Up next was the 40 Yard Dash (37 meters). Sprint all the way you can! These guys just gotta run as fast they can. Some of them were fast but some were not. The fastest of the group was Carl at 5:12 seconds. WOW!!!
Just run…but make sure fast!
Their final test was either to walk the Rockport test (1.6km) or Run the 2.4km test.
By that time it was getting hot and the sun was bright, half chose to run and the other half to walk. Few of them done really well with the running under the sun (its not easy though). Each were recorded with their timing and pulse were check
aim, Rain and Daniel chose to walk, where as the rest of the group decided to run. Walkers had to complete 4 laps and Runners had to complete 6 laps. Keen did very well at 10:39 in the 2.4km Run test. For both walkers and the runners, after completing their laps, we had to immediately take their pulse rate as they were not wearing a heart rate monitor. We counted the beats for 15 seconds then multiplied it by 4 to obtain the one minute heart rate.
At the end of the 3 hour tests, everyone had a clear idea of what tests are best administered for which clients in accordance to their specific goals and ability. Always have in mind to have the best programme for your clients even a fitness testing. The sequence and arrangement have to be the best one. Example, why we start off with Vertical Jump Test and not 40 yards dash?
You guys should know better, am I right?
Related Course Information
Personal Trainer Development Programme (PTDP)
This is the perfect blend of all that are essential to make you a competent personal trainer. Leave this 54-hour course feeling confident and ready to bring the best out of your client(s)
Upcoming: Price:
