I Thought I Was Ready to Coach. I Wasn’t.

Since COVID, more people have started to take their health seriously. But it’s not just about self improvement anymore. It’s about connection.

The gyms I coach in have become social spaces. People don’t just show up to train, they come to see friends, be part of something, spend time together. CrossFit isn’t seen as extreme like it once was, and run clubs aren’t just for marathon runners. Training has become one of the healthiest ways to socialise.

With that shift has come real career opportunity. Five years ago, being a full time coach felt niche. It often meant long hours just to make ends meet. Now, I’m seeing more and more full time coaches, and honestly, it’s exciting. I feel lucky that this is what I get to do every day, so it makes sense that others want to follow the same path.

The problem is, most people think that finishing their PT qualification or a CrossFit Level 1 is enough to get started. Those courses are important, but they don’t teach you how to coach in the real world. I learned that the hard way.

I still remember my first class. I’d prepared, I understood the session, I felt ready. Within minutes, it unravelled. My energy dropped, my confidence went with it, and I could see people losing interest. The warm up didn’t land, and as the session went on, I struggled more and more. Eventually, my mentor had to step in.

Looking back, I’m glad they did.

At the time, I was on an internship. I wasn’t left to figure it out alone. I had people watching, giving feedback, helping me understand the parts of coaching no course had covered. How to actually change the way someone moves. How to read a room. How to manage energy. How to communicate clearly. How to lead, not just instruct.

That’s where things started to click. My confidence grew, but more importantly, so did my competence. I learned how to turn knowledge into something real. Something people could feel and trust.

That experience is why developing new coaches matters so much to me now.

The challenge today is that more people want to coach, and the industry is catching up. That means you need to be more prepared. When you go for a job, you’ll likely be asked to run a trial class. And this is where a lot of coaches get exposed, not because they don’t know enough, but because they haven’t had the chance to practice.

Fewer gyms offer internships now, so the question becomes, where do you get that experience?

That’s exactly why Coaches Ed exists.

It’s built to give you the kind of support, feedback and real coaching reps that most people never get early on. So you can step onto the gym floor feeling ready, not hoping for the best.

Coaches need coaches too.

Join our courses to build the experience that turns knowledge into real coaching ability.