Exercising vs. Training
By Coach Taylor Poulin
CrossFit Affiliates have taken it upon themselves to spread the word of fitness by opening gyms, training athletes, and helping people get fit. It seems that in recent years, CrossFit has become more of a household name since the airing of the CrossFit Games and then eventually through word-of-mouth marketing. Hopefully your member base has increased which, in turn, creates more of a variety among the types of athletes you have the ability to see on a daily basis. The best way to coach this varied member base is to first determine: are they here to train, or are they here to exercise?
If you think these two things are the same, you’re not wrong; they are effectively the same concept. However, the difference between the two lies in the degree to which your athletes take their fitness seriously. Understanding this difference will help you turn your “exercisers” into “trainers” with long-term goals!
My CrossFit gym is located inside a 24,000 square foot fitness facility, so I have the opportunity to meet CrossFit athletes, stay-at-home moms, Zumba extraordinaires, and average gym-goers. Something that I’ve realized along the way is that everyone benefits from a plan, and I use CrossFit to implement those plans. However, I also understand that my clients don’t look at training in the same way that I do. I understand that work I put in today will help tomorrow, and I understand that this is a constant process. However, some athletes view going to the gym as a check in the box, or as a milestone. This allows them to act in a way they normally would not have. Here are a few examples of what I am talking about.
CrossFit Athlete #1
- 2 Years in CrossFit
- Has most benchmark workouts under their belt and can rattle off scores by memory
- Wants to start a squat program to help increase their squat 30 pounds in six months.
CrossFit Athlete #2
- Gym Goer for 15 years
- Has done weights and cardio all their life
- Does not want to come to Deadlift day and likes to attend the “Cardio” Classes in our template
- Goal is to get ready for summer
These are generalizations of the highest degree, but let’s use these two athletes for some content and discussion. Athlete 1 is our ideal member, because if we tell them to do something, they understand that success takes work and the goal is not to be the best today, but they instead understand that consistency over a period of time to reach goals; hence the squat program. Athlete 2 is not the ideal athlete in this sense, but nevertheless they make up about 80 percent of the clientele that walks through your door. This athlete may be skeptical to your coaching because it is far different from what they are used to.
Understanding who is who when it comes to your clients will allow you to better coach every kind of athlete. Even using different words such as “training”, “mental toughness”, “mobility verses exercise”, versus words like “cardio”, “sweat”, and “have fun” is key to their success (and ultimately, their success is your success). Understanding who your athlete is and where they come from is paramount to helping them. It is our job for us to break through to Athlete 2 and teach them to buy into the program: this way, they will see success not only for the Summer, but for a lifetime!
Example #2
Athlete #1
- Former collegiate Athlete
- CrossFit for 6 months
- Wants to compete in CrossFit local Competitions and eventually take down Mat Fraser
Athlete #2
- Body builder for 4-5 years
- Does strength movements with friends and only form of conditioning is taking the stairs up to the water cooler
- Stays away from running because he doesn’t want to lose his gains
We all hope and dream for Athlete #1 because we do not have to instill discipline. They come fully prepared. The biggest hurdle with this athlete would be coming to the realization that Fraser is unbeatable. Athlete 2 is what we see a lot of as well. They often ask themselves, “How can I cherry pick this week so I don’t look bad?” Although the body builder has a concept of training, it is often misconstrued. They don’t yet understand that training doesn’t involve texting and chatting with friends, but rather measuring rest intervals and calculating percentages.
To think that these “exercisers” cannot be turned into “trainers” is absolutely dismissive, and ultimately damaging to your success. This is what we live for: to have exercisers buy into the program and find that through persistence, dedication, and consistency, they achieve their results and more.This success will turn them into trainers, but it is ultimately up to the coach. The coach must lead the transformation.
