PAR-Q

Physical Activity Readiness Questionnaire

The questionnaire is suitable for those aged between 15 and 69. If you are over 69 years of age,
and you are not used to being very active, check with your doctor. Common sense is your best
guide in answering these questions. Read the questions carefully and answer each one honestly.

Yes No

Has your doctor ever said that you have a heart condition and that you should

only do physical activity recommended by a doctor?

Do you feel pain in your chest when you do physical activity?

In the past month, have you had chest pain when you were not doing physical

activity?

Do you lose your balance because of dizziness or do you ever lose

consciousness?

Do you have a bone or joint problem that could be made worse by a change in

your physical activity?

Is your doctor currently prescribing drugs (for example, water pills) for your

blood pressure or heart condition?

Do you know of any other reason why you should not do physical activity?
 Waist to Hip Ratio (WHR)
 Aim: the purpose of this test to determine the ratio of waist circumference to the hip
circumference, as this has been shown to be related to the risk of coronary heart disease.

 equipment required: tape measure

 Procedure: A simple calculation of the measurements of the waist girth divided by the hip girth.
Waist to Hip Ratio (WHR) = Gw / Gh, where Gw = waist girth, Gh = hip girth. It does not matter
which units of measurement you use, as long as it is the same for each measure.

 Scoring: The table below gives general guidelines for acceptable levels for hip to waist ratio.
Acceptable values are excellent and good. You can use any units for the measurements (e.g. cm
or inches), as it is only the ratio that is important.

male female

extreme > 1.00 > 0.90

high 0.95 - 1.00 0.85 - 0.90

average 0.90 - 0.95 0.80 - 0.85

good 0.85 - 0.90 0.75 - 0.80

excellent < 0.85 < 0.75

 Target population: This measure is often used to determine the coronary artery disease risk
factor associated with obesity.

 Advantages: the WHR is a simple measure that can be taken at home by anyone to monitor
their own body composition levels.

 Other comments: The basis of this measure as a coronary disease risk factor is the assumption
is that fat stored around the waist poses a greater risk to health than fat stored elsewhere in the
body.
 Body Mass Index (BMI)

BMI stands for Body Mass Index. It is a measure of body composition. BMI is calculated by
taking a person's weight and dividing by their height squared. For instance, if your height is 1.82
meters, the divisor of the calculation will be (1.82 * 1.82) = 3.3124. If your weight is 70.5
kilograms, then your BMI is 21.3 (70.5 / 3.3124) (see calculator links below).\

Test Details

 Equipment required: scales and stadiometer as for weight and height.

 Procedure: BMI is calculated from body mass (M) and height (H). BMI = M / (H x H), where M
= body mass in kilograms and H = height in meters. The higher the score usually indicating
higher levels of body fat.

 Scoring: Use the table below to determine your BMI rating. The table shows the World Health
Organization BMI classification system. The rating scale is the same for males and females. You
can also use the reverse lookup BMI table for determining your ideal weight based on height.

 Target population: BMI is often used as a general population measure to determine the level
of health risk associated with obesity.

 Advantages: only simple calculations are required from standard height and weight
measurements.

 Disadvantages: in certain populations BMI can be inaccurate as a measure of body fatness, for
example large and muscular though lean athletes may score a high BMI level which incorrectly
rates them as obese.

 Other comments: Other simple measures of body composition, such as skinfolds measures,
would be preferable if available.
 classification BMI (kg/m2) sub-classification BMI (kg/m2)

underweight < 18.50 Severe thinness < 16.00

Moderate thinness 16.00 - 16.99

Mild thinness 17.00 - 18.49

normal range 18.5 - 24.99 normal 18.5 - 24.99

overweight ≥ 25.00 pre-obese 25.00 - 29.99

Obese obese class I 30.00 - 34.99

(≥ 30.00)

obese class II 35.00 - 39.99

obese class II ≥ 40.00

source: World Health Organization