What to Bring to Your Physical (and What to Do the Week Before)

Reviewed by the Evolve Health clinical team · 2026-10-17 · 7 min read

Three questions reach our front desk about physicals more than any others: "Do I need to bring anything?" "Am I supposed to fast?" and "I haven't seen a doctor in years — I don't have any records. Is that a problem?" The honest answers are: a few things, only sometimes, and not at all. A physical is a measurement of your everyday health, so the goal of preparing is not to perform for the test — it is to show up as yourself, with the paperwork that lets us measure accurately and bill correctly. Here is how to do that, in the order you will actually do it.

The bring list: seven things, in order of importance

• Photo ID and insurance card. This pair does double duty. It checks you in, and it powers our free coverage verification: from your insurance card, photo ID, and date of birth, we confirm before your visit what your physical will cost — often $0 with acceptable insurance. No card? Come anyway; the self-pay option below is straightforward.
• Medication bottles — or clear photos of the labels. Bottles beat lists, because lists go stale. Doses change, a drug gets swapped, a supplement gets added, and a list written last year quietly becomes wrong. The bottle label has the exact drug, dose, and directions in one glance. Include everything you actually take: prescriptions, over-the-counter medicines, vitamins, and supplements.
• Prior records and your most recent labs. If you have them, bring them — last year's lab results turn a single reading into a trend, and a trend is far more useful. If you don't have them, we can request them from your previous doctor with a short signed release. No records at all is not a problem; it just means this physical becomes your baseline.
• Your vaccine record, if you have one. Bring it as information. We review it and note it in your chart so your record is complete and nothing gets duplicated or missed in your history. If you don't know where it is, that is common — tell us, and we will work with what you remember.
• Your glasses or contact prescription. If you wear correction, bring your glasses or your current prescription. A vision check done with the wrong lenses — or without the ones you drive in — measures the glasses, not your eyes.
• A written list of your questions and concerns. Everyone forgets one thing in the exam room; it is usually the thing that prompted the visit. Write down symptoms, changes, family history updates, and anything you have been meaning to ask, and hand us the list. That is not rude — it is the fastest way to make sure nothing gets skipped.
• Any form your visit is for. A physical done for work, school, sports, or a DOT license runs on a form, and the right form saves a second trip. Not sure which physical you need? Our guide to physicals in Denton walks through every type and what each one requires.

The week before: keep your numbers honest

The most common preparation mistake is trying to be healthier the week before a physical than you are the other fifty-one weeks. Your clinician is not grading you — they are looking for your real numbers, because treatment decisions get built on them. A few things genuinely do distort readings, and they are worth knowing:

• Take your medicines exactly as usual. Do not skip your blood pressure or diabetes medicine to see "what it really is" — the reading we need is your normal, treated, everyday number. If a medicine ever has to be held before a test, we will tell you when you book.
• Sleep like you normally sleep. One bad night can push a morning blood pressure reading up, and a week of short sleep pushes it further. You do not need perfect sleep — just your ordinary week, so the number reflects your ordinary life.
• Go easy on caffeine and smoking right before the visit. Both can temporarily raise blood pressure and heart rate. You do not need to quit for your physical — just avoid an extra-large coffee in the parking lot before we take your vitals, and if you smoke, try to leave a gap before your appointment.
• Fast only if your labs require it. Some blood work is most accurate after fasting and some is not. When you book, we confirm whether fasting applies to your visit and for how long. If fasting was not mentioned, eat normally — showing up starving for labs that did not need it helps nothing. Water is always fine.
• Be straight about alcohol. Regular drinking shows up in liver numbers, and that is not a trap — it is information your clinician uses. A honest answer about how much you drink does more for your liver results making sense than a dry week designed to hide them.
• Exercise is fine — one exception. Normal workouts do not distort a physical. A truly punishing workout the day before labs can temporarily nudge certain muscle-related enzyme numbers, so schedule your hardest session after the blood draw, not before it.

The day of your visit: how it flows at Evolve Health

Check in with your ID and insurance card — if we verified your coverage ahead of time, your cost is already confirmed. We take your vitals (blood pressure, pulse, temperature, height, and weight), then your clinician reviews your history and your list of questions, and performs the exam. Labs are drawn at the same visit, so there is no separate trip to a lab across town. If anything in your exam or history points to an additional test, we tell you the price before it is run — never after. When results come back, we follow up with what they mean and what, if anything, happens next. If a number needs a recheck or a referral, you hear it from us plainly.

What it costs, stated plainly

With acceptable insurance, an annual physical is often $0. Without insurance — or if you simply prefer a known price — a self-pay annual physical is $150, and it includes a full lab panel: CBC, cholesterol, blood sugar (A1C), thyroid, liver, kidney, and urine testing. There is no separate facility fee and no lab bill surprise from us; if an additional lab is ever recommended, its price is told to you before it is run. And the check itself costs nothing: send us your insurance card, photo ID, and date of birth and we verify your coverage free before your visit, so the number is settled before you are seen. We verify coverage only — we are a clinic, not insurance agents, and we do not enroll patients in plans or recommend one.

Variations: DOT, sports, and Medicare visits

DOT physicals. Bring everything above, plus records for any condition you are treated for — sleep apnea, diabetes, heart conditions, and the like. Blood pressure is the number that decides many DOT exams, so the week-before habits above matter doubly; our DOT blood pressure rules guide explains the federal thresholds and what happens at each reading. The DOT exam itself is $99 with code EVOLVE, in person only, with the certificate issued the same day if you qualify.

Sports and school physicals. Bring the school or league form — that form is the visit. Add your glasses if you wear them, and tell us about any history of fainting, asthma, or heart conditions in the family; those answers shape the exam. (A note on price: sports physical pricing depends on the form and requirements, so ask when you book rather than assuming the annual-physical rate.)

Medicare Annual Wellness Visits. The wellness visit is a planning visit rather than a hands-on physical, and it runs on history. Bring your medication list (bottles are still best), your health history, and the names of your other doctors. Our wellness visit vs. physical guide explains the difference so you book the right one.

Frequently asked questions

What should I bring to my physical?

Bring your photo ID and insurance card, your medication bottles (or clear photos of the labels), any prior records or recent lab results you have, your glasses or contact prescription if you wear them, a written list of your questions, and any form your visit is for — a school sports form, an employer form, or DOT paperwork. The photo ID and insurance card matter most: with those plus your date of birth, we verify your coverage free before your visit.

Do I need to fast before my physical?

Only if your labs require it. Some blood work is most accurate after fasting and some is not, so when you book, we confirm whether fasting applies to your visit and for how long. If fasting was not mentioned, eat normally. Either way, water is fine, and take your regular medicines unless we told you otherwise.

Should I take my regular medicines before my physical?

Yes — take your normal medicines on your normal schedule unless we specifically tell you otherwise. Your blood pressure, blood sugar, and lab results are most useful when they reflect your real, medicated, everyday state. If a medicine ever needs to be held for a test, we will say so when you book, not leave you to guess.

How much does a physical cost at Evolve Health without insurance?

A self-pay annual physical is $150, and it includes a full lab panel: CBC, cholesterol, blood sugar (A1C), thyroid, liver, kidney, and urine testing. With acceptable insurance, an annual physical is often $0. Send us your insurance card, photo ID, and date of birth and we will verify your coverage free before your visit, so you know your cost before you are seen.

What if my physical is for a job, school sports, or a DOT license?

Bring the form. School and sports physicals use the school or league form, employer physicals use your employer's form, and DOT physicals follow the federal exam — for DOT, also bring your medication list, your glasses if you wear them, and records for any condition you are treated for. If you are not sure which form you need, call (940) 257-2002 and we will point you to the right one.

Can Evolve Health get my records from my previous doctor?

Yes. If you have a previous doctor, we can request your records — usually a short signed release is all it takes, and offices transfer records directly to us. Bring whatever you already have (recent labs, a visit summary, your vaccine record) so your first physical is not starting from zero, and we will handle requesting the rest.

Sources

• MedlinePlus — Health checkup (what a routine physical covers and how to prepare)
• MedlinePlus — Fasting for a blood test (which tests require fasting and how to prepare)
• American Heart Association — Understanding blood pressure readings (accurate measurement, including caffeine and rest before a reading)

General education only — not medical advice: This article explains how patients generally prepare for a physical. Instructions given to you when you book — including fasting and medication directions for your specific labs — always come first. Call us at (940) 257-2002 if anything here conflicts with what you were told.