ACSM-EP Behavioral Coaching 5 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A previously active client stops exercising after a knee injury. This represents which behavioral concept?
- Extinction
- A lapse that may become a relapse (Correct answer)
- Negative reinforcement
- Behavioral substitution failure
Correct answer: A lapse that may become a relapse
An injury-induced cessation is a lapse; without coaching support and coping strategies it can progress into a full relapse to sedentary behavior.
Question 2: Which SMART goal criterion is missing from this statement: 'I will exercise more often next month'?
- Relevant
- Specific and Measurable (Correct answer)
- Attainable
- Time-bound
Correct answer: Specific and Measurable
'More often' lacks specificity (no frequency/type) and measurability (no quantifiable target), making the goal difficult to track or evaluate.
Question 3: An exercise physiologist notices a client consistently uses negative self-talk after a difficult workout. The most appropriate behavioral response is to:
- Reduce workout difficulty to prevent future frustration
- Teach cognitive reframing to challenge and replace negative thoughts (Correct answer)
- Encourage the client to avoid thinking about difficult workouts
- Prescribe rest days whenever negative self-talk occurs
Correct answer: Teach cognitive reframing to challenge and replace negative thoughts
Cognitive reframing is the evidence-based technique for helping clients replace counterproductive self-talk with constructive interpretations.
Question 4: The 'pros and cons' exercise used in decisional balancing is most useful for clients in which TTM stage?
- Maintenance
- Action
- Precontemplation or Contemplation (Correct answer)
- Termination
Correct answer: Precontemplation or Contemplation
Decisional balancing is most effective early in the change process when clients have not yet committed, helping them weigh benefits against costs.
Question 5: A client sets a process goal of 'attending three exercise classes per week' rather than 'losing 10 pounds.' What is the primary advantage of process goals?
- They eliminate the need for outcome monitoring
- They focus on controllable behaviors rather than unpredictable outcomes (Correct answer)
- They automatically increase intrinsic motivation
- They reduce the risk of overtraining
Correct answer: They focus on controllable behaviors rather than unpredictable outcomes
Process goals target behaviors within the client's direct control, which supports consistent action regardless of slower-moving outcome changes.
Question 6: Which interviewing skill involves repeating back a slightly extended version of what a client said to deepen understanding?
- Open-ended questioning
- Affirmation
- Complex reflection (Correct answer)
- Summarizing
Correct answer: Complex reflection
Complex reflections add meaning or feeling beyond what the client explicitly said, demonstrating deeper empathic understanding and often eliciting further disclosure.
Question 7: A client has maintained a 5-day-per-week exercise habit for 14 months. According to the Transtheoretical Model, the most important coaching priority is:
- Introducing more challenging fitness goals to maintain interest
- Relapse prevention and identity consolidation as an exerciser (Correct answer)
- Revisiting initial motivations to sustain early-stage enthusiasm
- Transitioning the client to unsupervised self-directed exercise
Correct answer: Relapse prevention and identity consolidation as an exerciser
Clients in the Maintenance stage benefit most from strategies that prevent relapse and reinforce an internalized identity as a regular exerciser.
ACSM-EP Behavioral Coaching 5
A previously active client stops exercising after a knee injury.
This represents which behavioral concept?