01
Establish the baseline
Athletes complete an agreed testing battery at the start of the season, creating objective benchmarks for the qualities that matter in climbing.
Team testing & coach support
Add sport science to your team—without replacing the coach.
Coach Ben integrates climbing-specific testing, athlete monitoring, and physiology support into the system your team already trusts. Your coaches keep ownership of the program; better data gives them more useful options.
The operating model
Coach-led. Data-supported.
In an interdisciplinary support model, each specialist contributes a perspective and the team coach makes the final call. Ben’s role is to explain the physiology, surface options, and help your staff use the data—not dictate how your group operates.
Simple starting point
Test → interpret → train → retest
How integration works
A repeatable loop for better decisions
The first cycle is intentionally clear and practical. As coaches become comfortable with the reports and workflow, support can expand into deeper planning and education.
02
Turn results into context
Ben reviews the reports with your coaches, explains the data, and helps identify each athlete’s most relevant strengths and limiters.
03
Coaches build the plan
Your coaches combine the testing insight with what they see on the wall and make the final programming decisions for their athletes.
04
Retest and learn
Repeat testing at useful points in the season to check adaptation, refine the plan, and learn which methods work best for each athlete.
Support around the testing
More than a spreadsheet of scores
A report only creates value when coaches know what it means and can connect it to practice. Early support focuses on smooth onboarding and useful interpretation; later conversations can become a sounding board for programming and athlete development.
- Selecting practical testing batteries for your roster and season goals
- Interpreting athlete reports and translating results into coaching priorities
- TeamBuildr onboarding, workflow support, and athlete tracking where appropriate
- Reviewing training ideas, loading progressions, and season organization
- Building coach knowledge in physiology and climbing-specific performance
- Communicating useful context to athletes and parents without overwhelming them
Across the season
Support at the moments that matter
The exact schedule is built around your calendar. Support time can be front-loaded during onboarding or concentrated around testing blocks and major planning decisions.
1Start of season
Baseline testing
Profile the roster, establish shared language, and identify initial priorities.
2Early season
Coach integration
Review reports, establish tracking workflows, and support program development.
3Mid-season
Progress check
Retest selected qualities and adjust priorities around athlete response and competition demands.
4End of season
Review and learn
Measure change, capture what worked, and improve the next season’s approach.
Meet your physiology partner
Ben McKellar, MSc
Exercise Physiologist at the Canadian Sport Institute Ontario, with an MSc from the University of Guelph and experience applying testing, training, and coach support in high-performance sport.
Climbing-specific experience
High-performance systems, translated for climbing
Ben has published research on World Cup bouldering time-management strategies and blood-flow-restriction training in climbers. He previously coached at Boulder Parc and Up The Bloc and has contributed to projects for Climbing Escalade Canada.
Applied physiology
Testing and training support in Canadian high-performance sport
Published research
Climbing-specific work completed during his MSc
Team perspective
Experience coaching youth and supporting coaches, athletes, and parents
Build the right model for your team
Start with your roster, calendar, and coaching goals.
Team testing is customized to the athletes you support and the decisions your coaches need to make. Get in touch to discuss testing scope, timing, education, and ongoing support.