What Does A Day of Virtual Coaching Actually Look Like?

Most Sundays for me aren’t in-person. They haven’t been since December of 2012. Starting January of 2013 I increasingly moved my approach toward targeted sit-down strategy sessions, distance coaching calls, and virtual appointments via webX, FaceTime, Zoom. With international clients, I almost exclusively do Skype or FaceTime.

It could be like this any day, mind you, not just Sunday. But today was 6 virtual appointments out of 10 total. I’ve had 8 out of 12, and vice versa. It allows for the time and focus to address fundamental change, behavioral alterations, sleep/stress management tactics, nutritional efforts, clarity on programming and supplementation, goal setting, and more.

Today, some virtual sessions were solely movement specifics and workouts. Surprisingly, the dynamic for workouts was BETTER than in-person training. I could cue technique. I could demonstrate form. I can coach activation. I can prompt bracing. The clients can do incredibly challenging and effective workouts with little or no equipment with just a video feed.

And what occurred to me today was how the tunnel vision on these calls sharpens the view, sharpens my focus and theirs, hones attention to detail, and eliminates distractions on the periphery. Literally. I’ve been coaching for 16 year, doing these virtual appointment for over 7 years, and it never really resonated as much as today.

​I encourage my peers in the fitness industry to embrace the changes coming from recent panic and planning around the pandemic. You may actually get some new skills and insights. It doesn’t need to be scary. You just need to challenge yourself to grow, to imagine bigger, to think differently, to create anew. I’m open to it even for local clients; and I own my own private studio where each person can have her own mat, her own station, her own dumbbells, which each get precisely and individually cleaned and disinfected before and after.