I'm Not Trying to Intimidate You

You know a friend of a friend who attends or you did a Google search or maybe you saw my Facebook promotion of three free sessions and you wanted to see what this Sweat Camp thing is all about.  You checked out my website and called and talked to me on the phone and I sounded friendly enough, so you decided to give it a try.  You showed up at Morse Park, ready as you would ever be to work out at 5 o'clock in the morning.  I greeted you pleasantly, but even though there was a smile on my face, you couldn't help your first thought at seeing me in person:  "Ugh!  She's a skinny bitch in yoga pants."

When I clapped my hands and said, "Let's get movin' and groovin'!  Two laps on the blue line, one easy, one hustling," you were game to give it a try, but really?  Running?  "Sure, running's easy for her," you thought.  As I demonstrated the warm-up exercises, making them look easy and effortless even though they were anything but, you wondered if you could sneak back out to your car unnoticed.

Then I spent the entire hour picking on you:

"Spread your feet a little wider and don't come up on your toes."

"You can get lower than that."

"Try to land your feet quietly."

"Of course you can do burpees!!"

Oh, sure, there were lots of smiles and great jobs thrown in there, too, but mostly it felt like being under a microscope.  The other campers were awesome, friendly and welcoming, but as far as you could tell, I was just...intimidating.

Wait...what??  ME???  No way!

Let's rewind and look at this story from a different angle.

When you called me on the phone to talk about trying Sweat Camp, I was excited and nervous.  Sweat Camp is my baby, and I want other people to love it and look forward to coming, even though it's a pretty tough sell with such an early start time and being outdoors and all.  While we were chatting, I was sweating like a pig.  Meeting new people is so not my thing.  I love getting to know people and sharing my love of fitness with them, but that first conversation?  I'm always glad when it's done.  So if I sounded a little manic, it was all nerves, believe me.

When you met me in person, of course you were seeing the girl I am now - fit and strong and confident and oh, sooooooo comfortable in yoga pants.  I could live in those things!  In fact, I pretty much do.  I tell people it's because of my job, but I wear them on my days off, too.  I have about ten pairs.  But I digress.  As for the way I stand up straight and move through the exercises with ease?  There are a couple of reasons for that:

1. I've been doing this for years.  I didn't just up and decide to start exercising yesterday or last month.  I've been honing these skills for a very long time and I can tell you with certainty that if you work at it consistently for as long as I have, you will make everything look easy, too.
2. This is my job and I'm in control of the details.  I'm not going to ask you to do exercises I can't demonstrate!  I can pretty much guarantee that if I were to come and visit you at your job, our roles (and confidence levels) would be reversed.  You would be on top of your game, handling whatever it is that you handle, and I would feel like a fish out of water.  Please don't make me visit you at your job!

Now as far as picking on you is concerned, yeah.  I did.  I picked.  I was watching your movements with a critical eye, definitely, but I promise that I was NOT judging you!  Unless I saw you in Walmart wearing pajamas.  Because I would totally judge you for that.

When I'm watching you exercise, I'm paying attention to dozens of little details that are going to become second nature to you when you've been exercising regularly for awhile, but that I'm hyper-aware of during your first session with me.  Here's what I look/sound like versus what's going on in my head:

• I'm NOT thinking, "Wow, awkward much?" when I'm standing next to you and quietly observing your movements.  I'm actually listening to you, making sure that you're breathing hard without gasping or wheezing.  I'm looking at your face, checking your sweat rate and watching to make sure you don't seem nauseous.
• When you stop to catch your breath or get some water, I am NOT about to tell you to get your butt in gear.  In fact, 99% of the time, I wish you were moving a little slower, because I don't want you to injure yourself or do so much today that you can't get out of bed tomorrow.  I know you're working hard and I am NOT comparing you to anybody else at Camp.  This is your first time and the other campers have been with me for weeks or months or years.  I'm watching you so that I can be familiar with your particular strengths and taking mental notes so I can point out your progress to you in a few weeks.
• I'm NOT staring at your butt and thinking about its size or shape.  I am, however, staring at your butt to make sure you're using the muscles I want you to be using.  We do lots of exercises that can be tough on your lower back if you're not activating your glutes.  I'm always thinking about your form because I want you to be safe and get the most out of what we're doing.
• When you complain/stall/pretend to be joking when you say you "hate" to do a certain exercise, I am NOT making you do it just to be mean.  I know you're scared or feel awkward or have bad flashbacks to 8th grade PE when I ask you to do burpees, but I also know that you can do them.  I'm NOT listening to the voice in your head that says you can't do it, because that voice is a liar.  You can do anything.  And if it's too difficult or puts stress on your joints, then I will absolutely modify it for you!

And you know what else I'm thinking, all the time, when you come to Sweat Camp?  I'm thinking you're a freaking ROCK STAR!  I know that given your druthers, you'd be sleeping in, but here you are, giving it all you've got.  That's awesome, and if I forgot to say it out loud

I'M REALLY PROUD OF YOU!