In Support of the Coach

I was listening to a recent episode of Power Athlete Radio (the premier podcast in strength and conditioning -ing -ing) with James Fitzgerald, CEO of OPEX training, and the topic of coach value was brought up.  James feels we’re in a pivotal time in the fitness industry with the recent lockdown possibly, maybe even inevitably, changing how “fitness†is delivered moving forward.  The trend of devaluing expertise, connection and sound physiological principles has accelerated and is being replaced with trendy, “killer†workouts that can scale.  He is not excited about the path we’re traveling down and I’m right there with him. 

The concept of fitness has always been something that ebbs and flows with time.  We’ve passed through eras where any discipline from calisthenics to bodybuilding to aerobics reigned supreme. Some scored higher on the fad scale than others but all at one point had their heyday.  The challenge for logical, time tested, successful programs has always been this unfortunate conundrum: they’re boring. 

Listen I get it true strength and conditioning programs that legitimately produce results are not boring to everybody…but they are to most people.  They require the ability to be disciplined, to hold a long term view approach and (wait for it) a coach.  To think you Joe accountant should have the time, bandwidth, desire etc to research, create and implement a well-rounded program may be a bit much in our current non-stop world.  It’s why I believe you should enlist the knowledge and/or expertise of a true fitness coach and sorry Rebecca your Pelaton instructor does not count (no disrespect to Rebecca’s out there). 

James argues we’re continuing to devalue the true fitness coach by providing more avenues for “fitness†at increasing lower rates, the ol “race to the bottom†model.  Tell somebody you pay a few hundred dollars a month for a fitness coach and people look at you cockeyed but we don’t hesitate to pay our accountants thousands of dollars to do our taxes.  It’s almost as if their expertise is worth the money.  Here’s the weird part, the most important thing in life (and there is no argument here) is your health yet we continue to treat it as a commodity, happy we found an easier, cheaper way to workout.

Here’s my advice: take your health seriously.  Like anything is this world you take seriously commit to putting in the work necessary to improve it.  When your knowledge, desire or time has reached its limit find a coach who can help.  The job of any coach is to take their athlete/client to places they cannot take themselves.  The benefits far outweigh the costs associated and if we’re being honest can you really even put a cost on your health?  Remember your health is not an expense it’s an investment in your future. We’re here when you’re ready.