How to start coaching climbers online

Short answer

Decide what you sell first: a one-off plan, coaching block by block, or a monthly subscription with regular check-ins. Then set up the same onboarding for every client (an intake form, a few tests, a short call) and deliver the plan somewhere they'll open before training, where their logged sessions come back to you. Start with three to five clients you already know. Blok Sessions' coach area is free for up to 5 climbers, then €10 a month or €99 a year for up to 25.

Pick what you sell

Online climbing coaching usually comes in one of three shapes.

	One-off plan	Block by block	Monthly coaching
What they get	A written plan, then they're on their own	A plan for 8 to 12 weeks, reviewed at the end	Ongoing plans, changes and check-ins
Your time	Mostly up front	Up front and at each review	Every week
Good for	Self-motivated climbers	Climbers training for a goal	Climbers who want someone watching

Most coaches end up offering two: something light to start with, and monthly coaching for the climbers who want more. Start with one and add the other once you know how long a client takes you.

Onboard every client the same way

An intake form. Injuries first, then goal, deadline, days and minutes, where they train and what they climb. What to ask a new client has the full list.
Tests. A 20 mm hang, a pull-up test and a few weeks of logged sessions.
A short call. Go through the answers together and agree how they'll report back.
The first block within a week. Momentum matters most at the start.

Adding a climber in the coach area: their name, then Add them, then their own page. — Add a client by name and write their plan before they've joined. Demo data.

Deliver the plan where they train

A PDF or a spreadsheet sits in an inbox. The plan works best in the app they open at the gym, with each session's exercises, sets and rest spelled out. In the coach area you write the plan once and it shows up in the climber's app session by session. Change a day and it changes on their phone.

Make the training come back to you

Online coaching lives or dies on what comes back. Agree on three things up front:

they log each session, with how hard it felt;
they answer a short check-in before training, so you hear about a sore finger before the session;
they test again at the end of every block.

In Blok Sessions that's built in: their logged sessions, tests and check-ins show on their page, and finger pain goes to the top of your screen. How to coach climbers online covers a weekly rhythm that works remotely.

Start small

Coach three to five climbers you already know for one block before you advertise. You'll find out how long each one takes, which questions your intake form is missing, and what to charge. The coach area is free for up to 5 climbers, with no time limit, so that first block costs nothing.

Questions

What should I charge for online climbing coaching?

Price your time and judgement, not the plan file. Work out how many hours a client takes you a month, including checking their training and replying, and charge for that. Coaches commonly sell monthly coaching or a fixed block of 8 to 12 weeks.

Do I need a qualification?

Not by law in most countries, but clients and gyms look for one, and insurance often asks. In the UK that's a Mountain Training coaching award, in the Netherlands an NKBV trainer qualification.

How many online clients can one coach handle?

It depends on how often you check in. With plans delivered and training logged in an app, most of the time goes on reading and replying, so time how long your first few clients take you each week before you take on more.

Can I take payments through Blok Sessions?

No. You agree a price with each client and take payment however you like. Blok Sessions only charges you for the coach area, by how many climbers are in it.