I was talking to a close friend today, she went to a gym and met with a trainer. He had her do some exercises to figure out her baseline. In my opinion none were a good choice in deciding a baseline.
Flat Bench with 45lb bar-she did 27 Stability Ball crunches-she did 50 Leg Press (she wasn't sure the weight)-she did 71 Pulldowns 75lb-she did 20 bench dips with feet on floor-she did 16
My baseline test would have been
Half bodyweight Dead lifts pull ups (assisted if needed) Push ups Box jumps (establish her max height first than see her max at 24") 500 meter row time no weight squats (see if capable of doing pistol squats) overhead press (start with 30lb establish max, 60% of max for reps) I would also do a few test of her mobility.
I feel this give a very good indication of what a person is and isn't capable of not just a baseline. I want to see their strength, explosiveness, endurance, and mental toughness. That way I know what they are capable of physically, I can see their strengths and weakness, and I know how hard I can push them mentally. The mental aspect of training is what separates good from great. So anyways after talking to her about it all we laughed and she said lets try your test. So we shall see.
