Vocal Chords

Here's one to make you smile.....

Last week, while training one of my clients, we'll call her "M", rather energetically I might add, the following story actually is:
1) True
2) NOT exaggerated
and
3) totally blowing my mind every time I re-enact it

Here's the scene:

I'm in an 8,000 sq foot training room full of a million dollars worth of cybex equipment (none that is used by either myself or my clientele), and get this, a Smith Machine. Seriously, when was the last time you saw that being used for anything but a TRX mount or someone learning how to balance on a stability ball and using the bar for a safety net? But I digress.

Inside of this room, there are 4 people. Yes, 4. Myself, my client, an elderly man on a recumbent bike, and a "not-so-elderly-but-getting-there" woman on an eliptical. It's 1:30pm and I'm having my client work on her squat pattern/mobility (coming off of partial knee replacement, soon to have the other one done yet for our work together) by having her pick up SandBells from the floor, sit down onto a box, immediately stand up from the box and toss the SB over the cable crossover unit and onto an adjacent box. In plain English, she's standing up and playing horseshoes with something heavier and softer than an actual horseshoe, and she's doing it over and over and over again.

Being my normal self, a coach, is encouraging M to do her best as she struggles to simply get off the box. I'm somewhat loud with my positive words of affirmation, something I don't realize I do and don't think is out of place for the setting we're in.

As we finish, I escort M over to the designated "Cardio Area" as if cardiovascular training is not permitted with anything but a $10,000 treadmill or some sort of new seated elliptical machine that must have cost a fortune (strangely enough, I was having a tough time convincing the manager to purchase 4 Superbands for under $100). The "not-so" woman on the elliptical nearby waves me over with an "Excuse me sir". I oblige and the following conversation ensues......

Me: Yes ma'am can I help you?

Not So: (with an awfully disturbing look on her face) Do you have to be so VOCAL?

Me: Excuse me?

Not So: (pointing back to where we played horseshoes) Over there! You were being so vocal, is that completely necessary?

Me: (keeping my calm) Oh, I'm sorry, I was simply motivating my client to do her best.

Not So: Yes, but it's extremely rude and is breaking my focus from what I'm doing and I'd like you to stop it.

Me: (looooooooong pause) Duely noted, thank you for your feedback.

Moral of the story: Not even 24 hours later, I took a friend's advice that owns his own training studio and put it into action. "Don't wait until you think you're "ready" to open your own place, opening it when you're officially "not ready yet" will only make you work harder for it". (Thanks Jude)

Alas, steps have been taken to make Meyer Athletic Development (MAD) a reality. And yes, music will be played there and loud coaching and grunting will take place on a hourly basis. Feel free to join in.


Finish With Action,
Bill

ps - if you love a little bit of house music, enjoy CVS's "Vocal Chords"