But I want it now.

So much noise in the fitness landscape.

Being a coach is incredibly rewarding. You get to lead people through growth, help them face their fears and overcome challenges. In the fitness world, coaching is simplified in that progress is so easy to measure. There are a ton of metrics by which fitness can be measured, fat loss, lean mass gain and performance increases. At the same time, there are so many variables that contribute to a person’s fitness or, conversely, their illness, sleep, nutrition, stress management. Any of those variables can make it hard to see what is causing or obstructing change.

One of the frustrating aspects of being a fitness coach is coming up against all the pervasive myths that occupy popular culture’s perception of what it takes to become fit and more importantly, what it takes to stay fit. One commonly held view of fitness is that you can obtain it in 6-8 weeks and then keep it for a lifetime. It seems like there is no end to the barrage of messages that state you can have “6-pack abs in 8 weeks” or “lose 20lbs in 6 weeks”. While both of these are entirely possible achievements (depending on your starting point), the unasked, unevaluated questions are “Can you keep your 6-pack abs or keep that 20lbs off for 8 weeks, 6 months, 6 years or for the rest of your life?”

Fitness requires daily work, week after week, year round.

In general, I see most people resisting change. Even as they stand in front of me saying they’ve got 20# to lose or they want to complete a half marathon, they’ll find any and every reason to put off making the actual change. “Its so expensive” and “Your schedule doesn’t work for me”.

Following the flinching hesitation, I find that it’s generally easy for people to make a change, even if its a big one. The initial enthusiasm for a new routine and the possibility for growth can motivate just about anyone for a few weeks or a couple months. After that enthusiasm wears off, even if they’ve had some success and lost some weight or gotten a little stronger the burden of maintaining a regular training schedule, the burden of forming a real habit starts to grow and this is where those pervasive messages in popular culture start to do a real disservice to to the fitness industry and even our obese nation as a whole. “I thought I’d have lost more weight by now” “Its already been a month and I don’t see any change”

There are so many quotes that come to mind here “Fitness is a journey to a goal on a distant horizon that I’ll never reach” that portray the dedication to actually become and stay fit. The reality is that if you want fitness, it won’t be something that you do today, tomorrow or for the next 6 weeks. Its something you will do every week for the rest of your life or...until you decide you want to stop being fit.

To be continued...