It’s a new world these days and it’s good to process the lessons we are learning. Here’s our #1:
You don’t need a gym. You need a coach.
We don’t know much, but we do know this: COVID-19 is going to change the face of “normal” for quite awhile. In some places, re-opening for businesses like gyms and training facilities still seems like a long way off. In the US and other parts of the world, the process is beginning tentatively and with things still not “normal.” But what if the gym in your hometown still has weeks or months to go? What if they do reopen but you don’t feel comfortable going back?
Should your pursuit of health be put on pause?
At a time when gaining or maintaining health is vitally important both personally and communally, is it the time to be demotivated or discouraged because you can’t get into a building or have access to fancy equipment? Or is a time when we should be willing to do absolutely anything to get and stay well?
Let’s be clear on one vital point:
A gym is a building.
A gym cannot know your goals, serve you, encourage you, or hold you accountable. A gym doesn’t know when you show up or skip out. A gym doesn’t know when your kid is sick or your knees hurt.
When you want to take control of your life and improve your health, you don’t need a gym.
You need a coach.
A coach is a person who listens to your goals. Who helps you make an action plan. Who shifts and rewrites that plan as you experience the ebbs and flows of life. A coach calls when you’ve gone radio silent and assesses what you really need to be working on.
That last point is key, because health is about more than just exercise. You need to sleep, move, eat, and have thoughts that all drive you toward true wellness. A coach assesses each of those factors and helps you make plans for the most relevant ones to your journey.
A health journey is a lifelong one, not a train best hopped on and off as you see the results you think you want or feel like you need to drop a few pounds, and a building can’t help you see where you are on that journey or what areas you will benefit from focusing on.
Fancy equipment can’t help you change your approach to a workout because the kids didn’t sleep last night or guide you in managing your time better. Even those other classmates, they aren’t really there to sit you down when you are losing sight of your “why” (they are pursuing their own goals, after all).
A coach is there for all of those things – wherever you are.
That’s the other beauty of a lesson we’re learning:
The coach you choose to guide you does not have to be someone who is physically close to you.
Mainly, it should be someone who asks great questions and listens to your responses, helps you form actionable steps toward your goals, and develops a timeline for how often and how you’ll “meet,” check-in, or strategize.
The last few months have shown us that all of that work (and even the workouts) can be done through a camera and a device, and the connection can still be quite authentic.
So while the gyms may be closed,
the coaches are very much at work
showing up for the people in their care. We are even ready to take on more if it means people taking control of their health and wellness now, instead of putting it off for an uncertain future.
So next time you think, “I need to hit the gym,” take a pause and ask yourself instead, “Who can coach me toward good health?” We’ll see you then.