Are we there yet?

A client of mine has recently reached a pretty big squatting milestone - 200 lbs. Most of my clients don't lift that kind of weight, not necessarily because they're physically unable to or just don't train hard enough, but mostly because their goals don't require lifting heavy weights. Also, most of them train at home and don't have access to such weights. The interesting thing is that even those who do end up handling loads like that, started in most cases with literally zero pounds and never even dreamed about being able to really lift, let alone squat several high-rep sets with a scary looking barbell on their shoulders. 

I like to say that I was a fitness trainer for a good number of years before I became a fitness coach. The difference would probably sound like semantics to most people, but at some point in my career I realized that simply naming my business Coach Guy did not turn me into a "real" fitness and nutrition coach - gaining a deeper understanding of what my job was really about, did. The ability to set aside the textbooks and prescriptive approach and figure out what my clients ACTUALLY needed from me took many years and a good amount of trial and error too, but there really were no shortcuts to take. 

Back to my client and his milestone. Interestingly, I learned that he appreciates not only the personal achievement, but also the time it took him to get there and the path he'd been on for the past few years. In my experience, and somewhat ironically, I find that focusing on the path and appreciating it will always lead to better results - even if it takes a little longer to get there. 

My conclusion? Well, generally speaking I'd say that there are two kinds of people in this world - the ones who are capable of truly enjoying the road, as long as they know the general direction, and the ones who just keep asking "are we there yet?"...  

My client's goals are still somewhat similar to what they were when he first started, simply because he's all about long-term health benefits, but that hasn't stopped him from finding new ways to enjoy the progress he's made. 200 lbs has a nice ring to it and I know it makes him feel good. 

Truth is, it makes me feel pretty good too. 

Yeah, coaching definitely has its moments.