What I've learned in: 30 years on earth, 18 years of working out and 10 years of coaching

Last week I turned 30 years old.  I'm not the type of person that considers a birthday a "milestone reached" but I do enjoy using it as a day to reflect on the past, present, and future.  So in this post I will talk about what I've learned in 10 years of coaching, 18 years of working out, and 30 years on earth.  I promise to try to keep it fitness/health related but some points will most definitely touch on broader topics.  Hopefully, it helps you with some battles in your own life!

What Ive learned in:

10 years of coaching and training:

• earning trust from clients is the most important part of being an effective coach.  If my clients trust me, sky's the limit in the progress we can make as a team
• coach the whole person, not just a body.  Thoughts, feelings, and emotions are powerful things that can affect how well we move.
• celebrate small victories! 
• give people a mix of what they want, what they think they need, and what they actually need
• adapt your coaching style based on client needs physically, emotionally, and mentally -- however do not waiver from your core beliefs on safe effective training methods just to post cool stuff on the Internet
• genetics determine the height of the building.  Hard work & consistency determine what floor you're on
• peoples attitudes on any given day may or may not have anything to do with the training session or the coach
• our lack of movement on a regular basis, leading to declining health in our population is a societal issue that I, as one person, cannot fix alone
• my client and I are a team and I hate being the one who isn't pulling their own weight
• EVERYONE CAN BENEFIT FROM: more raw veggies, more protein, less processed food, more sleep, less electronics, and more varied movement more often.  IT IS THAT SIMPLE TO LIVE A HEALTHY LIFESTYLE!
• generally, people don't realize how hard you have to work in the gym to achieve ANY goal

18 years of working out: 

• there are no quick fixes 
• supplements are TYPICALLY a waste of money
• the "popular culture" fitness industry is filled with lies and false advertisements
• set goals and track your progress -- train with purpose
• rest and recovery can be more important to making progress than working out
• workout for yourself-- no one else
•  you cant be the best at everything the human body is capable of doing, but you can be pretty damn good at everything
• treat the gym as a classroom and learn something about yourself everyday
• aesthetic changes are 90% nutrition - that's why most of us are fatter than we would like
• coordination and grace are highly overlooked in the fitness community
• although a base level of cardiovascular exercise and "heart health" is important, most people do way too much of this and not enough strength training.  On the other hand, the people that strength train usually do way too much of that and enough cardiovascular training or mobility training.  These should be organized in focused 8-16 week cycles for maximum effectiveness
• science backed programming is important but not absolute.  EVERYONE IS DIFFERENT! 
• yes, working out should be fun! BUT we could all prob stand to do more things you hate and you suck at.  It should be hard hence the name "working out"

30 years on earth:

• cherish EACH AND EVERY person, thing, and moment in your life.  It can all be gone in a second
• hard work increases your chances of getting lucky.... and boy have I gotten lucky before
• Genuineness is an extremely important character trait.  People either connect with you or they don't and that's ok!  Don't change who you are to fit in.
• change although difficult and scary in the moment, is generally a great thing
• anything worth doing requires time, sacrifice, dedication, consistency, & structure.
• psychological health is just as important and tricky to navigate as physical health.  Some things that help: pray, meditate, read, write, and a great therapist
• if you're too focused on the end goal, you're missing out on the excitement of the journey
• what I'm working on in various aspects of my life: balance, moderation, self love, self forgiveness, focusing on what is important to me & taking control of my own destiny
• there is never enough time
• there is always more to learn- and making mistakes is necessary to learn

God, I can go on forever but I'll stop there until my 40th birthday!
Questions and comments are highly valued!

Thanks for reading,
Steve Cornely
Triad Wellness Philly
973-886-4034
steve@triadwellnessphilly.com