SISFFIT042 — Instruct personalised exercise sessions

Elements & performance criteria

Performance evidence

• instruct six personalised exercise sessions which have been developed as part of overall exercise programs
• each with a minimum duration of 45 minutes
• collectively instruct: a female adult client, a male adult client, a client for whom medical guidance has been received
• across the above six sessions collectively, instruct indoor and outdoor sessions and the following types of exercises: cardiovascular, resistance, flexibility, low and high impact, exercises that target: health related components of fitness, skill related components of fitness, exercises with and without equipment
• for each of the above six sessions: prepare environment and equipment, pre-screen client for current condition, use the following instructional and communication techniques: clear and correct verbal, visual and tactile instructions, correct and safe exercise technique demonstration, feedback and positive reinforcement, motivational communication, complete accurate session records which include client progress notes, client feedback and evaluation of own performance
• according to actual client interactions or case studies: identify two situations from pre-session screenings that indicate exercise precautions and modify planned exercises in response
• respond to two clients showing signs of over exertion or difficulty, and modify their activities
• evaluate the effectiveness of one client program, modify program and future session content and document details of the evaluation and changes made

Knowledge evidence

• procedures for maintaining client records, session evaluation and program updates
• scope of practice for a personal trainer in instructing personalised exercise sessions: responsibilities and limitations, professional boundaries
• environmental factors that may impact session delivery and how to respond: noise, indoor venue climate control and ventilation, exposure to uncomfortable and extreme weather conditions in the outdoors
• safety and serviceability checks for equipment used with cardiovascular, resistance and flexibility exercises
• types of observations and verbal screening questions that can be used to assess and determine current condition of clients and exercise precautions
• common medical conditions and injuries, contraindications and precautions for exercises, and how exercises, intensity and loads can be modified to allow safe client participation
• established phases of exercise sessions and their underpinning rationale: warm up, main workout, cool down and stretches
• different types of exercises, types of equipment that can be used and safe techniques for their completion: cardiovascular exercises: continuous, interval; resistance exercises using: free weights, gym equipment including weight machines, body weight; flexibility exercises: dynamic, static, proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation
• common exercise related injuries, and how to prevent these in exercise instruction
• instructional techniques used with individual clients and how they impact effectiveness of instruction and client execution of exercises: providing clear information about exercises and instructions about technique, combining explanation and demonstration of correct exercise technique, cueing, and how to adapt instruction to suit different learning styles: verbal, visual, tactile, kinaesthetic
• communication techniques used for the following and how these may vary depending on individual client characteristics: establishing and maintaining individual rapport, motivating individuals for optimum performance, including techniques for intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, providing constructive feedback and positive reinforcement
• measures that may be used to assess client performance against session objectives: speed or timing, loads, endurance, range of movement
• methods for monitoring client comfort and safety during personalised exercise sessions: how to use monitoring techniques: heart rate response, talk test, rated perceived exertion (RPE) scale; how to recognise and respond to common indicators of over exertion and discomfort and when exercise should be modified or stopped
• factors to consider in session evaluation: structure and timing, suitability of exercises and equipment for session objectives, client feedback, client performance and progress, trainer communication and instruction
• methods used to evaluate effectiveness of personalised exercise programs: ongoing informal discussions with client and targeted questions to elicit opinion about achievement of goals, and improvements in skill, fitness and general health; ongoing observation and measurement of client performance and health and skill improvements; staged formal fitness assessments and comparison measurements

Foundation skills

• Reading skills: interpret familiar exercise program and session details involving health and exercise terminology.
• Writing skills: use fundamental sentence structure to complete records that require factual and subjective information.
• Oral communication skills: ask open and closed probe questions and actively listen to elicit information from clients and to determine client understanding of information provided.
• Numeracy skills: follow and adjust session timings to meet requirements of session duration; take and record accurate measurements involving speed, weight and time.
• Initiative and enterprise skills: critically evaluate successes and failures of sessions and programs to initiate improvements.

Unit content sourced from training.gov.au — © Commonwealth of Australia, licensed under CC BY 4.0. Auditori is not affiliated with the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations.

Questions about assessing SISFFIT042