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Why I left a Commercial (High Street) Gym
I am passionate about what I do.
Having played a wide variety of sports throughout my life, working in the fitness industry seemed far more appealing than sitting behind a desk all day.
The way I have always thought about fitness is fairly simple.
I believe that people should move around more than sit around, be physically challenged more often than not and have some sort of goal to work towards, no matter how small it may be.
It’s an ideology has always worked for my clients.
As I progressed deeper into the fitness industry I realised that I was fighting a daily battle to stay true to these simple ideals. There is so much rubbish in this industry that it becomes very tiresome to “fight the good fight” and continue down your chosen path.
Where does the rubbish come from?
Social media is full of it
Don’t get me wrong, the platform is an incredible resource for connecting, learning and building businesses, but for the average gym user who is looking for guidance it is a potential minefield.
The majority of personal trainers are also full of sh1t
If they aren’t trying to sell you something they are on their phones or tablets, distracted and disengaged. Most probably haven’t done a course for a couple of years and are waiting for the session to be over so they can grab your cash and move on to the next person. A harsh evaluation perhaps, but I spent 7 years surrounded by these people trying to coach and manage bad habits out of them.
Have you ever thought about why your PT is making you train in a certain way?
Is it because they love Olympic Lifting and think you should be doing it, or do they actually have your goal in mind?
Have they suggested a juice diet detox to help you shed some excess body fat and cop out of coaching you or have they actually spent the time to sit you down and guide you through better eating habits in an effort to improve health and reduce body fat for the long term?
Of course there are exceptions to the rule and some great personal trainers out there in commercial gyms, but they are rare.
If you have one, hold onto them.
The time I spent working in this environment lead me to the belief that the ‘fitness industry’ is not set up to help people, it is set up to make money.
Selling bottles of Lucozade and sugary snacks in gyms is not helping members; it is making their excess body fat worse. But it is an easy way to make money. You are tired and hungry and weak. Naturally you reach for sugar, that’s £££s for the gym and extra body fat for you.
You should be surrounded by people who will help you every step of the way, especially when you are in their building!
Once you step outside, you are left to your own devices to a certain extent, but during your time inside the gym you should not be surrounded by anything that will distract you from your goal.
Fed up of this, I took a giant leap. I left a place and a company where I was very well known and relatively successful to start all over again, bottom of the food chain.
The main reason was simple. Environment.
Every time you walk into W10 you are in a place where you will be challenged and working towards a goal. The only options for post workout drinks are high grade protein shakes with fruit or coconut water, not a bottle of Lucozade or a muffin in sight.
The coaches are not full of sh1t, and are not trying to sell you anything or force you into Olympic Lifting.
They are working with you to make you stronger, fitter and more mobile.
Most importantly they have your best interests at heart, there is no ulterior motive, they are all about results.
As a passionate Personal Trainer or “Coach”, there is no better place to work.
What’s more, we only have 200 members in each site, so you are known to us all, a rare thing in this industry.
You are not simply a number on an ever-growing spreadsheet!
You are always greeted by name and always coached with your specific needs in mind.
This creates an environment that is friendly and engaging, which is above all the most important part of any gym or training facility.
And if you feel comfortable in your surroundings, you will want to work harder and if you want to work harder you will get better results. Simple.
Our mission is to help people live their best lives outside of the gym by providing the best possible standards of small group personal training in the gym.
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