How do you become a coach who sees what others miss? It starts with what many skip, consistent and thoughtful evaluation. In the third week of The OPEX Method Mentorship, strength coach Dr. David Skolnik shares lessons from week two that sharpen how we observe, interpret, and act on what clients show us. Whether you’re coaching people in person or remotely, this will help you build confidence, clarity and better training plans.
The quote that changes the way you train
One line from Carl, one of the mentors, resonated throughout the week: to be good at assessments requires a lot of experience in assessment. You learn to trust your eyes and systems by practicing them over and over again. Not to a few customers, to dozens. Consider 50 to 100 repetitions of the same assessment sequence before your confidence is reached.
This volume builds your mental library. You’re starting to know what a solid squat looks like on a range of bodies. Learn the difference between a hinge limited by the hamstrings and one limited by a lack of design. You may spot a board that looks fine on the second five, but crumbles on the second twenty. Even a simple assault bike test becomes a rich source of data when you have enough repetitions to compare.
The test gives you data, but experience sharpens interpretation. Over time you go from guessing to reality evaluating.
Each customer is an N of One
There is a second point that goes perfectly with the first. Each customer is an N of one. Even if you’ve coached 300 clients, the person in front of you brings a unique combination of physical history, training background, lifestyle limitations, and state of mind. They are similar to others in some ways and different in key ways that matter.
That’s why principles and contexts matter, but they’re not the whole story. You need a strong frame to guide your lens, then you need judgment to adjust it. The more reviews you do, the faster you can identify what matches your past experience and what’s new with this customer. This balance makes you a better coach.
The Three Basic Objectives of Evaluation
Clear language helps coaches think clearly. The guidance anchored the assessment around three goals that work for you and your client.
Create awareness
Provide the context
Create transparency
These sound simple, but shape every step of your process. Here’s how to apply them.
Objective 1: Create awareness
Ratings make the invisible visible. As a coach, you become aware of the client’s current abilities and limitations. The customer becomes aware when you share what you see in plain language.
Notice the right knee caves in the background in the squat.
You see a breathing pattern that remains in the chest under pressure.
You confirm that the aerobic capacity is good, but the repeatability breaks down on set three.
Your job is to reflect it without judging it. You don’t hunt for flaws, you map reality. When customers see the map, they stop guessing and buy a plan. This shared awareness also improves self-training. People move better in sessions and make smarter choices between sessions when they know what matters.
Objective 2: Provide context
Where are we now and how far are we from the goal? This is the context. It includes timelines, checkpoints and the exact first steps. It also covers limitations such as sleep, work stress, equipment or injury history.
The helpful framework goes like this: based on your hinge pattern and current back-to-leg strength ratio, we’ll spend four weeks tempo RDL and split squat. Your goal of painless deadlifts from the floor is realistic in 8 to 12 weeks if you do three sessions a week and sleep 7 hours a night.
The framework sets honest expectations. It highlights the variables your client can control, such as diet, recovery, daily steps or extra breathing work. You set the direction and pace together.
Objective 3: Create transparency
Transparency turns ratings into trust. When you have objective data, it becomes simpler to know if the plan is working. You can point to changes in movement quality, strength numbers, pace, or repeatability and say, this is better, this is the same, or this has gotten worse.
Customers who understand the why behind their plan stay engaged. They see a clear path from the starting point to the desired outcome. Dr. Skolnik noted that many clients stay longer when they can see the schedule, not just the day’s workout. They know they are not pushed too hard or pushed too hard. They see how each choice relates to the goals they named and the tests you did.
What the practice looks like in the real world
If you want to achieve these three goals regularly, you need repetitions. Not just to new customers. If there is a new part of your evaluation process, apply it to your current roster. Run the same shoulder screen on your ten longest customers. Add a simple bike repeatability test to the mix next month. Re-watch squat videos on your client list and compare notes.
Two things happen when you do this:
Your eye becomes sharper because you see the same pattern on many bodies.
Your communication improves, because you explain the same finding in multiple ways.
This is how self-confidence grows. Not by reading about assessment, but by doing it, reflecting and doing it again.
A simple evaluation framework that you can use
No need to reinvent the wheel. Start with a simple flow, then refine it with experience.
Recruitment and goals: record training history, limitations and clear definitions of success.
Movement screen: squat, knuckle, push, push, pull, carry, plus breath and brace.
Capacity checks: single cycle test, strength balance, repeatability under low fatigue.
Brief description: share findings in plain English, agree on priorities and define first 1 to 3 steps.
Reassess the pace: choose checkpoints at week 4, 8 and 12, based on the goal.
Keep it boring and consistent. The magic isn’t in fancy tests, it’s in consistent testing, clean data and honest interpretation.
Turning Data into Decisions
Assessments are only useful if they shape training. Here’s how to go from data to action.
Find the limiter: is it mobility, strength, capacity, aerobic base or recovery behavior?
Match the tool with the limiter: pace work for control, intensity for capacity, intervals for pacing, breath work for stress.
Dose it right: meet the customer where they are, then take small, visible steps.
Share why: restate what the test showed and why this next step fits.
The client should be able to explain their design with a proposal. If they can’t, simplify it.
The Long Game: Trust Your Eyes, After Verifying
As you collect ratings, your eye will predict the data before the numbers land. That’s good, but keep verifying. Your bias will creep in if you don’t stick to objective measures. When the data doesn’t match your first reading, update your view and tell the client what changed. This is transparency in action.
You can also develop your toolbox through structured training. If you want a guided journey through assessment, program design and business systems, explore the OPEX Method coaching training. For plug-and-play tools, check out our free OPEX coaching guides. If you want software to create plans and track assessments, start with me Free Trial of CoachRx. If you prefer daily micro-lessons, try LearnRx for bite-sized training.
An example of a workout you can customize
Here is a simple scenario that reflects what many coaches see. A remote client wants to get stronger and improve weekend sports preparation. Your rating shows:
Squat depth is good, but knees give out slowly under load.
The hinge pattern is steady on the beat, but the speed breaks the support.
The repeatability of the bike drops hard after set two.
Sleep is 6 hours on work nights.
Your plan for the first month:
Strength: tempo front squats with moderate load, split squat for control and RDL in pause.
Preparation: the short cycle is repeated at a pace the client can match for four sets, not two.
Behavior: 30 minutes earlier bedtime on weekdays, with a simple wake-up routine.
Your message to the customer: testing showed strong potential, with control and repeatability as key gaps. This design first creates the control and then sets speed and volume levels. We will test repeatability again in four weeks and adjust.
That’s awareness, context and transparency in one simple bow.
Tips for sharper reviews this week
Film the basics: record squats, hinges and planks from two angles.
Standardize language: use the same cues and rating scales across clients.
Share visuals: show side-by-side clips from day one and week six.
Time frame tests: keep repeatability tests short so the client finishes strong.
Write your pitch: write down your main conversation points before starting a call.
Small tweaks happen quickly when you apply them to each client.
Keep practicing, Especially with Veterans
It’s easy to test new customers and acquire long-term ones. Turn it over. The best chance to improve your eyesight is with people you already know. Add a new review to their next block. Compare the results with their training history. Update priorities, even if it’s a small change.
This habit keeps your process fresh and your customers engaged. It also creates the repetition you need to trust what you see.
Final Thoughts
Great training starts with great assessment. Do enough and you’ll stop guessing. You create common consciousness with the customer, set honest context, and create transparency that keeps people showing up. Pick one part of your evaluation process to sharpen this week, apply it to your roster, and see what changes.
If you want help creating a complete system, study with the OPEX Method program, get our free evaluation and program planning resources, or organize your work in CoachRx. What will you try next?
