Sports podiatry assessments and the race calendar

Offer the sports assessment as its own service, longer than a routine appointment, with evening and weekend slots for athletes who train around work. Ask in the booking note for the sport, the weekly volume and the next target event, so you can check there's enough time before it. Encourage athletes to come well before a race, not in the final days, and use screening days with several places when a club wants to send its members.

A sports assessment looks at how the athlete moves, not only at their feet at rest: walking and running, sometimes on a treadmill or filmed, a look at their shoes and wear patterns, and a discussion of their training and injuries. It takes longer than a routine appointment, and it's worth saying so in the description so athletes block enough time.

An athlete who books three days before a marathon rarely has time to adapt to anything new. Say in the description that the assessment is best done several weeks before a target event, so any change, insoles, shoes or training, can be tested in training first. Ask for the date of the next event in the booking note; you receive an email for each new booking with the note, so you can call if the timing is too tight and suggest what makes sense now.

The booking form asks for first name, last name, email and phone, plus an optional note. Put this list in the description so athletes come ready. A short list of recent race times or distances helps you understand their level.

Amateur athletes train before or after work, and their weekends can hold races and long sessions. Open sports assessment slots in the early evening on a few weekdays, and on Saturday mornings outside your busiest race weekends. A slot created once can be repeated on the weekdays you choose until an end date, so a weekly evening pattern takes minutes to set up. Keep your daytime slots for routine patients.

Endurance sports have seasons: preparation blocks for spring and autumn races, a quieter period in winter, school and club calendars for team sports. The weeks before a preparation block starts are a natural moment for assessments. Look at the main races in your area and open more sports slots in the months before them, fewer during race weekends themselves.

Share your booking link where athletes look: club newsletters, local running shops, race registration pages when organisers allow it. Say in the description which sports you work with, so a trail runner and a footballer both know the assessment is for them.

Running clubs, triathlon clubs and team sports clubs sometimes want their members screened at the start of a season. Agree a day with the club, create a dedicated service with short slots and one place each, and send the link to the club so members book their own time. Each member books one slot and gives their details; the day fills without a list to manage by hand. If the club prefers a group presentation first, open one slot with several places for it.

After an assessment, a follow-up checks how the athlete has adapted: to new insoles, new shoes, or a change in training. Book it yourself at the end of the assessment, a few weeks later, and choose a date that doesn't fall on race week. If the athlete's plans change, reschedule it from your bookings list and tell them yourself, since Book doesn't email them when a booking changes.

Book costs €5/month, everything included: unlimited bookings and services, no commission and no contract. It doesn't take payments or store patient records.