The Most Revealing Fitness Test
By Coach Dan MIller
At Burg Fitness we are constantly testing you. There are workouts to test our overall strength, our aerobic capacity, our flexibility and our technical skills. But as a coach and athlete, there is one test in particular that I hold in the highest regard. This test is given nearly every day we walk in the gym – it reveals mindset and character. The test is simple…
What does an Member do when their workout is over?
Scenario 1 – The Individual Mindset
This behavior is generally executed in the following way:
- The Member finishes their workout and may roll on the floor for a few minutes.
- Upon collecting themselves, the Member may go check their text messages, social media alerts or email.
- The Member then proceeds to clean up their equipment – navigating in and out of fellow Member’s spaces who may still be working.
- Sometimes this mindset manifests itself in Members pooling together in groups sitting on the floor and talking about how tough the workout was and discussing their day.
Scenario 2 – The Group Mindset Result
This behavior is generally executed the following way:
- The Member finishes their workout and may roll on the floor for a few minutes.
- Upon collecting themselves, that Member gravitates towards other members that are still in progress of the workout. The Member cheers them on (whether they know them or not).
- The finished Member may clap, give words of encouragement, and move between groups of Members who are still working.
- Upon other Members’ completion of the work, high fives and pats on the back are exchanged.
- Workout equipment is put away together as a group.
Your Workout is Done When Everyone is Finished
Why did you join Burg Fitness? Is accountability, group sessions, friends or community part of your answer? If so, then consider this…the workout is not done when you finish.
The workout is done when everyone is finished. As a fitness coach, facilitating a sense of community is part of my job. I played soccer, a team sport, so this comes naturally to me. But it can be scary for others to reach out to someone they don’t know well and encourage them. Often people think “who am I to cheer them on? To tell them they can do it?”
If you came to Burg Fitness to be part of a community or for the “push of others” to keep your intensity high when working out, then consider this – you owe it to give back to that community. Consider it part of your social contract with our gym. You can keep your end of the deal by supporting every last member of your class to the finish line of each workout.
A Coach’s Challenge to You
At the start of every class, look around. Every single person who came to that class is now part of your tribe. You should take personal satisfaction in seeing to it that each individual is supported and no one “finishes alone”. It doesn’t matter whether you’re a founding member or this is class #1; it doesn't matter if you're a competitive athlete, a new mom getting back into the swing of things, or a middle-ager ready to tack control over your body. For that hour, we are one group with a common goal – self improvement through shared suffering. Make sure no one suffers alone.