Is your coach educating you?

Does it matter if your coach is educating you or not?

Have you ever done something because you were told it was the best thing to do and never questioned it for yourself? Who are we kidding, of course you have, we all have. We eat the foods the adverts say are healthy for us (nudge - Caesar SALADS often have more calories than a pizza!!), we read the articles our friends are talking about so we can sounds educated in a conversation, and we just get our head down in the gym and turn off our minds because our coach is next to us. Well, news flash, we don’t believe that you can fully outsource your fitness and if you expect your coach to get the results just by you being physically present you are going to be disappointed. You need to question everything, collaborate with your coach, and achieve progression together.?

Before I fall into a rabbit hole let’s step back slightly and look at the scientific method. It is fundamentally the tool that moves humans forward, advancing inch by inch as we learn more, especially in athletics. At its core it is a cycle of dis-proving. We know more today than yesterday so we amend our thinking. In the world of S&C this is a good thing. As an athlete you are always progressing and as coaches we are (or should be) always learning and crafting our skill sets. Result, the best athlete : coach relationships compound over time for exponential results. ?

Image shows an exert from our Tier 3 Leadership course and one of the Modules specifically focusing on evaluating scientific method in your coaching environment.

Financial models agree on compound value, so does education, and even the 40 year married couple who live next door. But for some reason in the world of fitness we expect results yesterday and we burn through excuses for why it is someone else’s fault that we haven’t made progress.?

The answer in our opinion is to take more time to meet, question, and source the best coach (es) to work with not because they have bigger arms or the best rates, but because you know they have something to teach you and you want to absorb every bit of their knowledge accepting that it will naturally evolve over time as you achieve results.?

I recently met a potential new BLACK Tier member who wanted to work 1-2-1 with me, yes please. Damp squid from the beginning was that his first question was, “what makes you confident you will know what I need since you have never had surgery on your spine?”. Not wanting to blow my own trumpet but I have never been in the Olympics or World Cup final either but we have been involved in specific preparation for this level of athlete. A difference between this private consultation and professional athletes is the understanding that as a partnership, a couple, we need to communicate closely, assess progress quantitatively, and educate each other. I have never been a 25 year old woman preparing for a 10k, or a 50 year old man rehabbing from a fall, but experienced S&C coaches listen, ask questions, and prescribe according to their hypothesis of progression. Then we review it based on data, not opinion.?

So, when you are meeting a new coach for the first time and assessing if you think they will be the best for your fitness journey what should you ask for?

1. Scientific background. A degree or higher. There are no bones around this, a trainer with a weekend course in Kettlebells just does not cut the cloth against a coach who has spent years learning the foundations of science.?
2. Education and Development path. Ask them the last course they did and the last certification they gained. Throw out a two hour certificate in Zumba, my Mum has that, explore how seriously they consider self led learning and life long upgrading.
3. Would you let them baby sit your child? Odd one I know but a mentor of mine once cut through the noise of meeting a new professional by asking if I trusted this person enough in my gut to leave my kids with them for an hour. I have the absolute pleasure of working alongside the very best team of ethical, professional, and mature coaches in the industry and I would unreservedly (and often have) asked them to co parent with me for a small time. If I can trust you with my child, you’re the right person to be responsible for my biggest asset, my physical health.?

Employ the coach that passes your test and trust that they will teach you and learn alongside you. Buy into the journey and please, we beg you, start counting your own reps and stripping the bar yourself. Want a coach to clean up after you? Employ an assistant. The best coaches are educators, we want to observe and teach, not count to 10 for you.?