Well, I guess to get technical, I’m not really a “Coach”, I’m actually a Level 1 Trainer (CF-L1).
If you would’ve asked me where I thought I would be today, I don’t think that this is how I envisioned it. To be frank, I don’t really think I envisioned anything.. Maybe that’s good because it’s gotten me where I am today, but maybe that’s not so good because we have to have goals, right? I’m Coach Trina, and this is my life as a coach.
I started my fitness journey when I was twenty, my relationship with fitness as a sport was reaaaaaal rocky. I cherry picked WODs. I would reserve for class and then not show up. I ate and drank whatever I wanted, a really great start is what I was off too. I think honestly out of the first year when I was “doing fitness” I really only did about three months worth of it.
I have played sports for most of my life. I started when I was young and I think just like most little girls at the time, I started with ballet, The Cordettes – Mr. Sandman will forever remind me of my first dance recital, gymnastics was the next sport (also a very short lived career), and then finally soccer. While playing soccer over the span of 11 years, I also ran track and played flag football. With all of that being said, I’ve had a great deal of coaches throughout my athletic endeavor. Some good, some okay, some really great ones, but the coaches that made me who I am today, coached me in more than just a specific sport. They also coached me in life.
I didn’t realize it then, but I can only hope to be that kind of coach. I never really knew what I “wanted to be when I grew up” but I can tell you this, I knew I didn’t want to do the same thing everyday, and I knew I wanted to help people.
I think I could argue that when you choose to become a coach, in any setting, you don’t fully know what you’re getting yourself into. There becomes a different sense of pride you start to carry yourself with, maybe even a new standard you start to hold yourself to. It’s absolutely crazy, I’ve been coaching for almost two years now, and I’m finally starting to see that I have the ability to be that coach, that person. I can help change peoples lives, I teach them more than how to move a barbell, or kip on a pull up bar.
I’m not just a part of people’s everyday lives, but I GET to be a part of people’s everyday lives. Being a coach might not seem like much on the surface, but even just this little bit I’m sharing with you guys today, just barely scratches it.
Among the things my athletes and I talk about, I often preach that you NEED 8 hours of sleep for recovery, and yes, I know I should practice what I preach, but I’m not the athlete anymore, I’m the coach. I’m used to running on 5-6 hours of sleep (on a good night), slamming a heavy mixture of caffeine, protein shakes, and water, trying to visually count my calories, constantly looking at calendar and making changes to it, training clients, coaching classes, and trying to find a couple hours to turn my brain off and lift some heavy, pardon my french, shit. You would totally think as a coach I’d have more of my life together but for now I’m just going to use the excuse that I’m still young *insert wink emoji here*.
My days have made a pretty significant change. I’m no longer feeling like I’m constantly on the go, I’m not throwing a bunch of leftover food in a tupperware container and hoping it tastes just as good from the night before, I’m actually using plates! I’m not constantly looking at my phone to check my calendar but now checking my phone to make sure I haven’t missed a text or call from a member, I know they still need us, maybe more now than ever. I’ve turned off my three alarms that blare at me at 4:05am, 4:10am, and 4:15am every morning.
I’m adapting to a new schedule and a new way of coaching. Figuring out a new way to be present and influence people. I’m going to keep changing lives, and maybe at this point in my life as a coach it’s through a screen. But soon enough, the box will be open again, the music will be blasting, the garage door will be wide open, my athletes are going to be knee deep in a WOD, and I’ll look around and just for a second, find myself at peace because I know that it’s where I belong. With these random walks of life that have all found their way into a box because they all know that deep down, it’s more than just working out.
Until next time,
Coach Trina
