Avaliação inicial: as perguntas que mudam o plano de aula

A well-conducted initial assessment can end with a completed assessment form. What matters is that it doesn’t end there.

Most assessment forms end up being filed away. The problem is not having a form, but collecting information that is never actually used to guide the classes.

Asking about pain, medical conditions, history, and goals is essential. But this information needs to be complemented by observing the client during movement.

A useful assessment helps answer practical questions: Where should I start? What should I work on? What should I adapt? What should I avoid? And which exercises make sense for this particular client?

What to ask before you begin

Before getting the client moving, it is important to understand who is in front of you.

Some questions can completely change how you plan the classes:

• Does the client experience any pain? Where does it occur, when does it appear, and what makes the symptoms better or worse?

• Is there any relevant medical condition or health concern?

• Have they had any injuries, surgeries, or other situations that need to be taken into consideration?

• What are the client’s goals with Pilates?

• Have they practiced Pilates or any other form of physical activity before?

• What is the client’s daily routine like? Do they spend many hours sitting, standing, driving, or carrying weight?

• Is there any movement or exercise they dislike or have tried and stopped doing?

These answers help build the context needed for the first class and for the decisions that follow.

Observe the client during movement

Once you understand the main information about the client, the assessment can continue during a class that explores different movements.

There is no need to turn the first session into a battery of tests.

A well-conducted class that moves through different positions, movements, and muscle groups already allows you to observe many important characteristics for planning.

During the class, observe:

• Range of motion: are there any noticeable limitations or differences?

• Mobility: how does the client move through different joints?

• Strength: how do they respond to exercises for different muscle groups?

• Motor control: can they perform the movements with control, or do they show compensations?

• Balance and coordination: how do they respond to changes in support and position?

• Response to exercises: which movements seem easy, difficult, uncomfortable, or in need of adaptation?

The goal is not to turn these observations into a diagnosis. It is to understand how that client moves and how this information can guide the planning of their Pilates sessions.

The first class can also be an opportunity for assessment

The initial assessment does not have to happen separately from the class.

After gathering information about pain, medical conditions, history, and goals, you can conduct a first session that explores different movements and allows you to observe how the client responds to them.

During this class, you can include exercises involving:

• spinal mobility;

• hip and lower-limb movements;

• shoulder and upper-limb movements;

• trunk stabilization and control;

• different positions, such as lying down, sitting, kneeling, and standing;

• exercises that allow you to observe strength, balance, and coordination.

As the client performs the exercises, you can observe characteristics that would be difficult to identify through a questionnaire alone.

One movement may reveal a limitation in range of motion. Another may show difficulty with motor control. A particular exercise may be performed with ease, while another may require a regression or adaptation.

The assessment happens as you get to know how that client moves.

What to record on the assessment form

The assessment form can be where this information is recorded.

It does not need to consist of dozens of tests. It can bring together the main information collected during the conversation and the observations made during the class.

Useful information to record may include:

• client goals;

• complaints and presence of pain;

• reported medical conditions, injuries, or surgeries;

• observed range of motion;

• mobility limitations;

• observed strength across different muscle groups;

• balance and coordination;

• motor control;

• movements that cause discomfort;

• exercises that required adaptation;

• strengths and difficulties observed during the class.

This way, the assessment form stops being simply a document completed on the first day and becomes a record that helps guide class planning.

Turn the assessment into repertoire decisions

After talking to and observing the client, the information needs to make its way into your planning.

This is where the assessment truly begins to make a difference.

By the end of the first session, you may have clearer decisions about:

• which goals should be prioritized;

• what exercise level seems appropriate to start with;

• which movements need to be adapted;

• which exercises should be avoided at that point;

• which muscle groups need more attention;

• which physical abilities can be developed in the following sessions.

Instead of finishing the assessment with only a completed form, you finish with a starting point for planning.

Think of the first few classes as a sequence

The initial assessment does not need to determine everything that will be done over the next few months.

It serves as a starting point.

Based on the answers and observations from the first class, you can define the main goals for the first few sessions and adjust your planning as the client progresses.

Perhaps, initially, it makes sense to work on mobility, trunk control, and lower-limb strength. After a few classes, new needs may emerge — and the plan can change.

Assessing, planning, observing again, and adjusting are all part of the process.

Where repertoire comes in

Even with a good assessment, there is still a challenge: having enough exercises to turn this information into actual class possibilities.

If you identify a mobility limitation, a strength deficit, or the need to work on a particular muscle group, you need exercise options that make sense for that goal and for the client’s level.

This is where having a broad repertoire makes a difference.

Instead of relying only on the exercises you already know, you can look for new possibilities based on what you observed during the assessment.

In Pilatlas, the Atlas currently brings together 621 exercises, with new exercises being added every week, organized by different characteristics such as apparatus, goal, level, muscle group, accessories, and methodology.

This way, the assessment stops being simply a collection of information and begins to guide a more precise search through the available repertoire.

You observe the client and think:

“What does this client need?”

Then you look for:

“Which exercises can help me work on that?”

The criteria are still yours. What changes is that your available repertoire becomes larger.

The assessment needs to remain useful after the first class

A good assessment is not only useful for recording information on the first day.

The observations can continue to be reviewed and updated as the client progresses.

Recording what was observed, which exercises were selected, how the client responded, and what could be adjusted in the next session helps maintain the connection between assessment and planning.

This way, the assessment form stops being just a document that gets filed away and becomes part of the client’s ongoing progress tracking.

Conclusion

An initial Pilates assessment goes far beyond filling out a questionnaire.

Asking questions is important. Observing movement is too. And recording this information helps turn the assessment into concrete decisions for class planning.

You do not need to discover everything about the client in a single session.

You need to start by understanding who they are, how they move, what they need, and which paths make sense to begin with.

From there, the greater your access to different exercises and possibilities, the greater your ability to build personalized classes and track each client’s progress.

The assessment shows the way. Repertoire expands the possibilities.

Secondary keywords

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