Teddy

Client check-in questions for coaches and trainers

By Alex Grant

Alex Grant is the founder of Teddy and of FindYoga, Australia's directory of yoga studios, classes and events.

Updated

You can find a long list of check-in questions in about a minute. Most are written for a form in an app, and most treat every client the same. This list is grouped by what your client is working on, it covers pain more carefully than a single “any aches?” box, it includes questions for clients in their 70s and 80s, and it says which questions work when you ask them out loud.

HubFit’s list of 30 questions (updated 9 Oct 2026, checked 27 Oct 2026) is a good example of the usual shape. It is built for forms in an app, it does not address older clients, and it does not cover asking the questions on a phone call. That is the gap this page fills.

Keep it short and keep it the same

A check-in that takes more than about five minutes stops getting answered. Pick a small set and ask it every time. My PT Hub makes the same point: choosing your check-in questions and sticking to them “creates a routine your clients can rely on, making it easier to compare progress over time” (checked 27 Oct 2026).

So treat the 30 questions below as a menu, not a form. Take the five core questions for everyone, add three to five from the group that matches the client’s goal, and leave the rest.

The core five, for every client

  1. How many of your planned sessions did you get to this week?
  2. How did it feel overall, from 1 to 5?
  3. How have you been sleeping?
  4. Any aches or pains? Where?
  5. What got in the way?

Question 4 is the one to take seriously. If the answer is anything other than “no”, follow up with the pain questions below.

Strength and fitness

  1. Which exercise felt best this week, and which felt worst?
  2. Did you add weight or reps anywhere?
  3. How was your energy before and after sessions?
  4. How has your strength been?
  5. What should we change in next week’s plan?

Weight and food

  1. How closely did you stick to your eating plan, from 1 to 5?
  2. Which meal was hardest to stick to, and why?
  3. How much water do you drink on a typical day?
  4. How has your digestion been?
  5. Did anything about eating leave you feeling worse or stressed?

Pain

Ask these whenever the answer to question 4 is yes.

  1. Where is it today, and has it moved since last week?
  2. Is it better, the same or worse than last week?
  3. Did a particular movement bring it on? Which one?
  4. Does it wake you at night?
  5. Is it stopping you doing everyday things?
  6. Have you seen a doctor or therapist about it since we last spoke?

If a client reports new, sharp or worsening pain, ask them to see a doctor or physiotherapist before the next session. If they describe chest pain or trouble breathing, the right step is medical help, not a coaching conversation.

Older adults and mobility

For clients in their 60s, 70s and beyond, and for anyone returning after a break. Keep the tone plain and unhurried.

  1. How are you getting around?
  2. Did you feel steady on your feet this week?
  3. Did anything feel frightening, like getting up from a chair or going up stairs?
  4. Did you need more rest than usual between movements?
  5. Is there anything on your routine page you could not read, hear or reach?

Stress and wellbeing

  1. How are you feeling in yourself?
  2. How stressful has life outside training been?
  3. What did you do this week just for you?
  4. When did you feel most like yourself?

Which questions work out loud, and which work by text

Ask these out loud, on a call or in person. They are short, they have a one-sentence answer, and the tone of voice tells you more than the words: 3, 4, 9, 14, 22, 23, 27 and the whole pain group. People will say “it’s a bit sore” aloud and type “fine”.

Ask these by text or form. They are counts, lists or things a client wants to look up: 1, 7, 11, 13, 28 and 29. They also suit a quiet moment, such as a Sunday evening.

Either way works for the rest. Two rules help on a call. Ask one question at a time and wait. If a score drops by two points or more from last time, say so and ask about it before moving on.

Where Teddy fits

If you would rather not make every one of these calls yourself, Teddy can do some of them. On a call, Teddy asks about the topics you switch on for each client: sleep, digestion, pain, strength, mobility and mood, one short question each, in its own wording. It scores each answer from 1 to 5, where 5 is best (5 means no pain), and keeps the client’s own words. These are six fixed subjects. Teddy does not ask custom questions, so the other 24 questions on this page are for you.

If a client says something hurt, it is flagged first on your dashboard, and you can choose to get a text about it. Miss two days in a row and the client is flagged too. Text clients reply DONE when they have finished or HURT if anything hurts, so they can answer without opening an app. Read Teddy’s client check-ins by phone or text, or start with the setup guide.

Teddy is a helper you set up. It does not replace your judgment about whether a pain needs a doctor. That part stays with you.

Questions coaches ask

How many check-in questions should I ask a client?
Five to eight is enough for most clients, and about five minutes is the limit. Use the same core questions every time so you can compare weeks, and add a few from the group that matches their goal.
What should I ask a personal training client in a check-in?
Start with sessions done, how they felt, sleep, any aches and pains, and what got in the way. Then add questions for their goal: strength, food, pain, mobility or stress.
How do I check in with an older client?
Use a phone call if they like it, keep the questions short, and ask one at a time. Ask about steadiness, getting up from a chair, stairs, rest between movements and anything on the routine page they cannot read or reach. Questions 22 to 26 are a start.
What if a client does not answer their check-in?
One missed answer is normal. Two in a row is a reason to reach out kindly, and ask if the questions are too long or the timing is wrong. Keep it short and warm, and offer a call instead of a form.

Sources

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