Testing & report
The same battery at the start and at the end.
The baseline assessment is 75 minutes. We run a fixed set of tests, we write the numbers on a one-page report, and we use those numbers to fill week 1 of the block. The retest is not a new invention. It is this battery again.
Battery
What we test, in this order
The order is fixed so the retest is comparable. We do not skip a test because it is inconvenient, and we do not add a favourite lift on the day. If a test is medically off-limits, it is marked “not tested” and it stays unmarked until clearance changes.
| Order | Test | What is recorded | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mass and height | kg, cm | Used for e1RM context, not as a goal. |
| 2 | Overhead squat screen | Pass / limited / fail on depth and control | Decides squat variation for week 1. |
| 3 | Hip hinge pattern | Pass / limited / fail | Decides deadlift variation. |
| 4 | Squat 5-repetition estimate | kg, RPE | Used to set e1RM. Not a 1RM test. |
| 5 | Hinge 5-repetition estimate | kg, RPE | Trap-bar or Romanian, as the screen allows. |
| 6 | Press 5-repetition estimate | kg, RPE | Bench or floor press. |
| 7 | Pull-up or seated row | reps or kg | Whichever you can do with control. |
| 8 | Grip, left and right | seconds on a 24 kg kettlebell hold, or dynamometer if used | Side-to-side gap is recorded. |
| 9 | Front plank | seconds to form break | Cap 120 s. |
| 10 | Engine piece | time or distance | 1,000 m row or 8 minutes bike. Same piece at retest. |
We do not test a one-repetition maximum on day one. Five hard, clean repetitions at a stated RPE are enough to write week 1. If you have never lifted, the “estimate” is a series of build-up sets and a conservative number. That is still a number.
Report
What you leave with
The report is one page. It lists the ten scores, the two numbers we will treat as headline (usually squat e1RM and the engine piece), the track we recommend, and the start loads for week 1. It also lists anything we did not test, and why.
You get a printed copy before you leave and a PDF by email the same working day. The block pack — calendar, A/B/C templates, stop list — follows within two working days if you take a membership. The assessment itself does not enrol you. You decide after you have the page.
We do not write paragraphs about character. We do not forecast a body-mass change. If a number is limited by a joint, the report says that in one line and points you to medical clearance before Return-to-Load.
Retest protocol
Week 12 is the same hour
The retest uses the same warm-up, the same order, the same engine piece, and the same rest rules. If you rowed 1,000 m at baseline, you row 1,000 m at retest. We do not swap to a bike because you prefer it that week.
Time of day is matched within two hours of the original slot when the diary allows it. Caffeine and footwear are noted at baseline and repeated. These are controls, not superstition. They keep a 4 kg change from being a different pair of shoes.
| Control | Rule |
|---|---|
| Order | Identical to baseline. No skipped items. |
| Warm-up | Written on the baseline sheet; reused. |
| Engine piece | Same machine, same distance or time. |
| Clock | Within two hours of original start time, if the diary allows. |
| Illness | If you are ill, we postpone. We do not test “through it”. |
Prepare
How to arrive
Wear training shoes you can squat in. Bring any clearance letter. Eat as you would before an ordinary session; do not arrive fasted unless that is your normal. If you use a strap or a belt, bring it — we will note it so the retest can match.
If you are returning from injury, we need the letter before the slot, not at the desk. Without it, we can still run the screens that are allowed and we will mark the rest “not tested”. We will not load a pattern a clinician has limited.
The hour is booked. Arrive five minutes early. The clock starts at the booked time because the battery is long enough already.
Slots
Request an assessment
Tell us where you are now. We reply with available slots within one working day. Hours are Mon–Fri 06:00–21:00, Sat 07:00–16:00, Sun 08:00–12:00. Assessments are not run in the last 90 minutes of the day.