5 Lessons From 5 Years Of Training

Last month marked 5 years that I’ve been a coach. The average personal training career lasts 6 months. And while I, more than anyone, am aware of how much I still have to learn, here are my 5 biggest lessons from 5 years of coaching.

1. More isn’t always better. Better is better.

In a space where people are always pushing to do more workouts with more intensity to lose more weight, it goes against the grain to say “that’s enough.” Pursue excellence, not perfection.

2. Novelty is the enemy of success.

Changing programs & doing different workouts everyday is holding a lot of people back. The only proven way to get stronger & leaner is to slowly & consistency improve on the same exercises. Embrace boring.

3. Everybody is different, but the principles are the same.

With 10 people doing the same exercise, you might see 10 different variations. Two people of the same height & weight might need different calories to maintain or lose weight. It’s not better or worse; it’s just different.

4. The hardest part is finding the balance between intensity & sustainability.

It needs to be hard enough to force change, but not so hard that you can’t stick with it. But err on the side of sustainability. Consistency trumps intensity every time.

5. What gets you in the door isn’t always what keeps you coming back.

Embrace whatever motivation you have to get started, but know that it won’t be enough to keep you going forever. The key is finding joy in the process.

Five years is the same amount of time I was a teacher.

In some ways, it feels like I haven’t been doing it for that long, but, in other ways, I don’t really remember what it was like to teach. I’d wanted to be a teacher since middle school. I was going to be like Mr. Feeny from Boy Meets World and teach for my whole career. But I realized a couple years in that it wasn’t the exact right fit for me. I wasn’t Mr. Feeny. I loved teaching. I loved coaching. I loved my students and my colleagues. But something wasn’t quite right.

I’d been training some friends for fun when, one day, it finally clicked: this was teaching. This was coaching. This might be it. I started actually training people and immediately knew it was right. It was everything I loved about teaching & coaching and I got to help people get healthier & more confident. Plus, while I think math is cool, I actually liked what I was teaching and my clients wanted to learn (much different than math). I decided to take a leap and left teaching. That fall was the first time I didn’t have a first day of school since I was 4 years old. I felt like I was playing hooky. I’ve missed the last 5 first days of school and, honestly, it still feels like I’m playing hooky. I can’t believe I get to do this with my life.

So I want to thank all of you. Whether you’ve ever been a client or not, thank you for allowing me to do this.

Thank you for following me.

Thank you for watching my stories & laughing at the ridiculous things my kids do.

Thank you for liking, commenting, & sharing my posts so I can reach more people.

Thank you for asking questions.

Thank you for trusting me.

Thank you for letting me be your coach.

It’s a privilege & responsibility that I don’t take lightly and I will continue to put out valuable content to help you reach your health & fitness goals. If there’s ever anything I can do for you specifically, always feel free to reach out.

I recorded an entire podcast episode where I dive deeper into these 5 lessons.