For those that don’t know, I’m on the verge of making a meteoric shift in my career path. I’m going to drop personal training as a full-time career in favor of spending more time facing the computer working in the digital media space. I’m ditching something that I’ve spent my entire life pursuing in favor of a new fling.
The past seven years as a personal trainer have provided some of the most rewarding moments of my entire life. Seeing a client’s eyes glow with pride when they accomplish something unreal has to rank as one of the top feelings in the world. Over the past few years, I’ve been fortunate to work with some of the best clients in the world. I’ve witnessed some unbelievable transformations and would like to say that I’ve had a positive impact on numerous lives.
When I transitioned from working within the recreational sports world in an academic setting to the commercial gym environment, I wasn’t sure that I would enjoy the change. The academic setting is largely based on education. The commercial side is dominated by sales, numbers, and trailing averages. There was a very, very steep learning curve.
Over the past eight months at Life Time Fitness, I’ve learned an incredible amount about managing my own business. I’ve also been fortunate to learn from some of the best trainers in the industry. For someone that bases their training on science, it was refreshing to work at a large organization that still finds time to research the best methods for weight-loss and stay on the forefront of cutting-edge techniques.
Digital Media Has Caught My Eye
I started writing almost exactly a year ago. My first published piece went up on the Personal Training Development Center discussing things that I wished I had known heading into a career in the fitness industry. Since that time, I’ve become more and more intrigued by the digital space.
Like fitness and personal training, the internet is constantly changing and evolving. Over the past few months, I’ve become more interested in technology, blogging, writing, and digital design, swapping my usual fitness reads out for the latest tech news popping up on Fast Company. I’ve frequented more websites of web designers like Brian Gardner, Rafal Tomal, and Jason Santa Maria than I have those of strength coaches that used to dominate my RSS reader.
I’ve been drawn deeper into the technology rabbit hole. So, where do we go from here?
I’m swapping out the gym environment for computers and venturing into the world of publishing. I’ll be joining the team over at Lijit (owned by Federated Media) in the Publisher Development role networking with bloggers and writers to promote their content, generate traffic, and help them to ultimately profit from their writing and ideas. It’ll be a huge transition as I know relatively little about the digital space compared to my background in fitness.
I’m sure I’ll have regrets about leaving the fitness industry full-time. I’ll still train on the side, but nothing to the level that I’m at now. I’ve become accustomed to working in a client facing industry where I interact with individuals for most hours of the day. It’ll be hard for a computer to keep up with my energy, enthusiasm, and high-fives especially after my morning cup (or cups) of coffee.
I’ll admit – it’ll be extremely strange walking into work and not being surrounded by sweaty individuals, the clank of machines, and the hum of cardio equipment. For the first time in my life, I’ll have to pay for a gym membership (likely only for a few weeks until I find someone that’s willing to let me train part-time). There will be a transition period. I’ll continue to maintain all of my personal training certifications. I’ll continue to write articles and posts for fitness sites.
It’s not goodbye forever to fitness. It’ll always be a part of who I am. The fitness industry is one of the most personally rewarding jobs on the planet. I’ll be sad to say goodbye for a little while, but I’m looking forward to the adventures that lay ahead.
- Photo credit: Mashable.com