Free PAR-Q Form Template for Personal Trainers (2026)
Every trainer needs a PAR-Q on file for every client before the first session — your insurer expects it, and it is the simplest way to catch a health risk before it becomes an incident on the gym floor. Here is a complete, ready-to-use template: copy it, print it, or send it to clients digitally.
What a PAR-Q form covers
A PAR-Q (Physical Activity Readiness Questionnaire) is a short pre-exercise health screen. It asks a new client about heart conditions, chest pain, dizziness, joint problems and relevant medication — the handful of red flags where "just start training" is the wrong answer. Any yes answer means one thing: recommend the client checks in with their GP before you load them up.
If you want the background on each question — what it screens for and what a yes actually means — read What is a PAR-Q? Every question explained. This page is the template itself.
The PAR-Q template
Nine questions: seven yes/no screens, a details field, and a consent confirmation (the consent line matters — health answers are special-category data under UK GDPR, so collect explicit consent when you collect the answers). Read it below, or grab the print-ready A4 PDF with the download button.
- 1
Has a doctor ever told you that you have a heart condition, or that you should only exercise under medical supervision?
Yes / No - 2
Do you feel pain or pressure in your chest when you are physically active?
Yes / No - 3
In the past month, have you had chest pain while at rest (not exercising)?
Yes / No - 4
Do you ever feel dizzy, lose your balance, or lose consciousness?
Yes / No - 5
Do you have a bone, joint or muscle problem (for example back, knee or hip) that could be made worse by exercise?
Yes / No - 6
Are you currently taking prescribed medication for blood pressure or a heart condition?
Yes / No - 7
Do you know of any other reason (including pregnancy) why you should not take part in physical activity?
Yes / No - 8
If you answered yes to any of the questions above, please give details.
Open answer - 9
I confirm my answers are accurate, and I consent to my trainer securely storing this health information to plan safe and appropriate training.
Yes / No
The wording is our own — the official PAR-Q+ is copyrighted and may only be reproduced unaltered. How the two compare: PAR-Q vs PAR-Q+.
How to use it
- 1Before the first session, not during. Send the form with your welcome message. A red flag is much easier to handle three days before a session than three minutes into one.
- 2Any yes → GP before load. You are not diagnosing anything. The client answers yes, you recommend a quick GP conversation, and you train around the flag (or wait for clearance) — that is the entire protocol.
- 3Get it signed and dated. An unsigned screening form protects nobody. Signature (or a recorded digital confirmation) plus a date is what makes it evidence.
- 4Store it for the long haul. Keep the completed form for the length of the client relationship and roughly six years after it ends — that is the UK limitation window for a claim. Details in Do personal trainers need a PAR-Q?
- 5Re-screen when things change. Annually is a sensible default, and always after an injury, diagnosis, surgery or pregnancy.
Paper vs digital
- Filled in on the gym floor
- Lost, unreadable or unsigned
- Lives in a folder at the studio
- GDPR is manual discipline
- Completed before session one
- Yes answers flagged to you
- Stored on the client profile
- Consent recorded automatically
The digital version is the exact form above, moved into your client onboarding. We compare the two properly in Digital PAR-Q forms: the complete guide.
Add the Pre-Exercise Health Screening (PAR-Q) template to your client onboarding in one click — clients complete it before their first session, and every answer lands on their profile.
Start freeFrequently asked questions
Is this PAR-Q template free to use?
Yes. Download the PDF, print it, or adapt it for your own client screening — no attribution and no email address needed.
Can I edit the questions?
Yes, it is your form. Keep the seven core health screens intact and add whatever your client base needs — many trainers add injury history and lifestyle questions on top. In Scraler, every template question is editable after you insert it.
Is a PAR-Q legally required in the UK?
No statute names the PAR-Q, but your insurance and your duty of care effectively require documented pre-exercise screening — which is exactly what a PAR-Q is. See our full guide on the legal side.
How long should I keep completed forms?
For the length of the client relationship plus around six years after it ends, matching the UK limitation period for personal injury and contract claims.
