Coaching
When it comes to health and wellness, through the years I have pursued a slew of certifications, trainings, and opportunities. I’m an ACE Certified Trainer, Stott Pilates Instructor, and an IIN Nutrition coach just to name a few. I love learning more and keep adding information to my tool box. You could say it’s something I am passionate about.
With that being said you might think I wouldn’t need a coach to help with my fitness. After all I know how to coach other people so I could just apply that information to myself, right? Well you would be wrong! Just as a therapist may go to another therapist themselves or a hairstylist will have someone else do their hair, I value that outside perspective as well. I believe we all benefit from an unbiased mentor or coach looking at our goals and giving us realistic advice or plans to achieve them. Some times that may mean having a real talk about how realistic our goal or timeline is. In other cases it is someone to push us more than we would push ourselves. I would say in all cases its accountability. Knowing someone is going to ask how it is going, if you did your work or if you cut it short can be the motivation we need to push ourselves outside our comfort zone.
One of my goals for this year is to get back into good running shape and compete in some local races. This Fall I had been trying to be more consistent with my runs and trying to add some distance. The key word there was ‘trying’. I would not say I was succeeding as much as I would have like! This month I was offered the opportunity to work with a coach. I’m a few weeks in and I am amazed with how much more I am capable of when I am listening to my coach and doing the prescribed workouts. My mileage has gone up and I am feeling stronger. I needed that push! I needed someone who believed in me more than I believed in myself!
It’s the same with Pilates. I’m always looking for inspiration and ideas. I can and do workout regularly but I love challenging myself and my students with variations and new movements. It is for this reason that I take classes when I travel. I love being a student and absorbing the cueing and sequencing another instructor uses.
I believe one of the reasons home exercise equipment often becomes a place to store clothes and other items instead of a what it was intended for is the lack of a coach and accountability. This is why I believe making a commitment to a studio and working with a Pilates Instructor as your coach will get you to your goals quicker than trying to do it on your own. We all benefit from having someone in our court who believes in us at times more than we believe in ourselves! How many times in a class do you want to stop at six repetitions but you make it to ten because the Instructor encourages you? That is the beauty of a coach - getting you to be our best!