Client
onboarding.
A better start.

1. Learn what the person wants from coaching.

Begin with the client’s own words. “I want to feel confident in the gym” gives you a different starting point from “I want a plan I can follow around shift work.” Write that context down before converting it into a programme or a tracking target.

Ask what they have tried, what they liked and what made a previous approach difficult to maintain. The aim is a usable brief. You do not need a long form if you cannot explain how an answer will help your coaching.

A useful question: “What would make our first month together feel worthwhile?” Keep the answer beside the practical information you collect next.

2. Build around the week they actually have.

Record the days they can protect, how long a session can last, where they will train and which equipment is available. A plan that depends on a machine they cannot access creates a problem before the first session starts.

Ask about predictable constraints: rotating shifts, travel, school pickup or a shared car. Agree on what to do when a session needs to move. The coach should know whether to rewrite the week or simply help the client choose a different day.

Use your appropriate pre-exercise screening process separately before programming. The downloadable checklist is a planning and handover aid; it is not a medical screening instrument.

3. Agree on how coaching will work.

Make the everyday details explicit. Where does the plan live? Where should the client ask a question? When do you normally respond? What happens at the weekly review?

Put these details in one short welcome message. If the coaching package includes particular services, describe those precisely. Agree on fees and payment terms separately, so an onboarding checklist is not doing the work of a service agreement.

4. Choose a useful starting record.

Agree on what you will track and why. That might include completed sessions, exercise loads, a personal goal or optional photos and bodyweight entries. Explain which items are optional and how the records will be used.

Keep a coaching photo separate from permission to publish a transformation. Tell the client who can access their record. Avoid putting private client information in a shared template that other clients can see.

If you plan to use photos, agree on the views and frequency at onboarding. The progress tracking walkthrough shows how a dated record can support a review.

5. Test the handover from the client’s side.

Before considering onboarding complete, have the client open the first session. Check that they understand the exercise names, sets, rep targets, rest instructions and load fields. A coach’s shorthand may not be obvious to a new client.

• Can they find their next session?
• Do they know where the demonstration or coaching note is?
• Do they understand what to record after training?
• Do they know how to ask for help if something is unclear?
• Do they know the first check-in date?

For a new app, also check that the invite worked on the client’s device. The Alurefit Workout walkthrough shows the session and logging structure in our iOS development build.

6. Review the process after the first week.

The first review is a chance to fix friction. Ask what was easy to follow, what was unclear and whether the planned schedule was realistic. Record one agreed change and leave the parts that worked alone.

The weekly check-in template gives that conversation a repeatable format. Start with it, then remove questions that do not help you decide what happens next.