As I am finishing my third week as an intern at The Spot, I feel like it is time to reflect over a few key "take home" points that I have begun to realize are crucial to any person aspiring to be a coach or an intern:
1. LISTEN
When you are working with coaches and people who really know what they are talking about, you better be a good listener. Every time you are in the gym whether it is to shadow or to train, you need to be focused on your surroundings and closely pay attention to everything being said. There will always be things that you don't know. The best coaches are the ones who were able to listen to everything in the gym when they were just starting out, absorb that knowledge, and apply it later when they have their own clients. It is imperative that you're not day-dreaming and zoning out while in the gym. Ask questions, write down notes, and do whatever you need to do to make sure that you're fully taking advantage of the time you have because when you're on you're own, you won't have the luxury of asking what to do.
2. LEARN
Everyday should be looked at as an opportunity. Not only to better yourself physically (because anybody who is coaching how to lift should look like they themselves lift) but also to better yourself mentally. You should be reading articles (EliteFTS is a great place to start), studying variations of exercises/stretches, and practicing how to perform these movements also. There is only so much you can get out of sitting in a classroom and learning about anatomy or physiology. The true learning happens when you are forced to apply that knowledge. It's cool that you know what latissmus dorsi is, but do you know what exercises are best for strengthening the muscle? Or how about stretches that will effectively improve their mobility? These are the things that any coach should be able to do. Coaching is all about "read and react." You have to read the situation (assess the athlete) and react appropriately (design a program to meet their goals.) The only way you can do this is by taking the time to really learn.
3. FORGET YOUR EGO
I like to think of myself as a pretty experienced lifter. But when I got to The Spot and started training and shadowing with the coaches there, it became obvious pretty fast that I was pretty clueless when it came to being a coach. If you're the type of person that thinks you're always right because you learned how to squat in Men's Fitness and have been doing it that way all your life, I've got some bad news for you. The first day of training I was told I bench, squat, and deadlift wrong. I've been doing these exercises for years...the wrong way. You have to adapt to your surroundings. I'm a bodybuilder, so naturally I train like one. However, some of the things I was doing were also leading to nagging injuries. So, I am working on changing my bad habits lifting-wise. It is always better to do the exercise RIGHT than to go heavy with crappy form.
I am nowhere near where I want to be. I still need to be better about listening, learn more, and stop letting my ego prevail. But, everyday I can say that I am getting closer.
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