"Your weight loss doesn't make you a personal trainer or coach."

 

Just recently I had a friend post a status on facebook that said, "Your weight loss doesn't make you a personal trainer or coach." I liked the status, but as he is also a fitness guru himself, I wondered how others would respond to his post. 16 comments later, I saw a good majority of his facebook family agreeing with his statement. However, the one comment that caught my eye was the one that said, "True, not everyone can teach and coach, it's a calling from God".

I thought about that statement a lot as this week. My schedule changes a lot from season to season depending on what my clients have going on. As a trainer, I do my absolute very best to be the most flexible and understanding with rescheduling and scheduling clients so everyone is getting their workouts in. Now that school has begun, another change and more craziness of figuring out when everyone can train. (It's like a level 5 puzzle)

However, this last week beat me up as a trainer/coach/friend. I spend hours and hours on end with clients not only exercising, but texting to check up on them, emailing, helping to send out family friendly recipe ideas, family meal planning tips... and have gotten to know client's husbands, wives, children, and coworkers. In an hour of working out, clients will cover a multitude of things that's on their heart. Clients face family issues, work issues, money issues, personal self issues, death, stress, anxiety, guilt, or numerous other things. And besides the fact that I'm there to tell them the exercises that they are to do and how many, for how long, make sure they're safe, and mainly listen to them. I hear what's on their heart. I listen to what's going on in their lives, and sometimes I'm the voice or reason, or alternative perspective.

However my clients may view me, I'm not sure. Yes, I have my degree and my certifications. But I also have established RELATIONSHIPS. For example, the other day I had a woman come up to me just to thank me for always being encouraging, always smiling, and always challenging her. She informed me that the hour with me is the best time of her week. WHEW! I was HUMBLED. There are days when I FEEL like not smiling, and I FEEL like telling people to stop making excuses, and I DON'T FEEL like getting up at 4 am, and I don't FEEL like teaching another class, and I don't FEEL like talking, I'm reminded that God has allowed me to go through what I have not for my personal glory, but to glorify Him. That my struggles and triumphs are to help others so they may love and appreciate themselves. And I'm humbled because I KNOW that I couldn't do the crazy day to day hours with out his strength. So to everyone who asks me how do I do the early mornings, evenings, split days, my own personal workouts, and teach class... I DON'T DO it, God does.

BeBlessed
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