Told to exercise for a chronic condition, and worried you will make it worse.

Not always. If you are paying privately or claiming on private health extras, you can book straight in with no referral at all. If you want Medicare to cover part of it, you do need your GP to write you a Chronic Disease Management care plan and refer you. The Strength for Life class needs a doctor's referral. If you are not sure which of those you are, ring us and we will work it out in a couple of minutes.

They do different jobs and plenty of people see both. A physiotherapist treats the problem in front of you now, usually hands-on, usually in the weeks after something has happened. An Exercise Physiologist writes and supervises exercise as an ongoing treatment, for a condition you are managing or a body you are rebuilding after the acute stage has passed. A lot of our clients arrive on a physiotherapist's recommendation, and we are happy to talk to yours.

The other difference is the qualification. An Accredited Exercise Physiologist holds a university degree in exercise science with clinical practice hours behind it, which is why Medicare, NDIS and private health funds recognise the profession. A personal trainer, however good, is not recognised for those pathways.

Most people pay a gap after a Medicare, NDIS or private health rebate rather than a full fee, and some pay privately in full. What that gap is depends on your situation, so we work it out with you before you commit to anything. Tell us where you stand through the form below or on the phone and we will tell you what you would be out of pocket, rather than post a number that is wrong for most people.

One figure we can publish: Strength for Life, our supervised 50+ group class, has an initial assessment of $90, or $54 if you are a member, then $15 a session, or $12 with a concession card. It needs a doctor's referral.

Medicare: if you have a chronic condition, your GP can write you a Chronic Disease Management care plan, sometimes still called an EPC, and refer you on to allied health. Exercise Physiology is on that list. A set number of sessions per calendar year is covered, and there may still be a gap to pay, which we will tell you about before you book.

NDIS: exercise support frequently sits under capacity building in a plan. Bring the plan in, or just the line item you cannot make sense of, and we will read it with you. Self-managed and plan-managed are straightforward. If you are agency-managed, ask us first, because the answer depends on how the plan is set up.

DVA and WorkCover: ask us and we will confirm where you stand before anything is booked.

• Medicare care plans
• NDIS
• Private health extras
• Self-funded

Then you are in the majority of people who book here, and nothing about that is a problem. The first session is an assessment, not a test. We start with what your body can do today and build from there. If a movement is not safe for you yet, it does not go in your program. You will not be pushed past what is safe, and you will not be left to work something out on your own.

If a gym or a general trainer has not worked out for you before, that is usually because the program was written for a body that was not yours.

No. You book one initial assessment. At the end of it you will know what we would recommend, roughly how often, and what it would cost you. Then you decide. We would rather you understood what you were saying yes to.

Bring anything official you are holding: a GP care plan, a referral letter, an NDIS plan, a specialist's report, a scan result, or a list of your medications. If you have none of those, bring yourself. Wear clothes you can move in and shoes you can walk in.

We are open Monday to Thursday 6:30am to 8:00pm, Friday 6:30am to 7:00pm, and Saturday 7:00am to 12:00pm. We are closed Sunday. The early starts and the Saturday morning are there for people who work, and there are around 100 free parking bays at the door.