Knowing Your Role as a CrossFit Coach
November 2, 2022 | Words by Amanda Pickard
If you’re a coach that regularly takes class, this post is for you. If you’re a coach that typically has a coach attend your class, this is also for you.
Let me introduce myself. I am Amanda Pickard, a coach at my gym in Texas and one of the newer members to join the NCFIT Collective Team. Before I stepped into the CrossFit/functional fitness arena, I taught math at a junior high for 12 years. I have held various coaching and leadership positions throughout the years and two things I’ve been told my entire life are 1) I have a lot of words, and 2) I say them at a rather high volume.
In 2013, some of my colleagues convinced me to join them for a workout at a local CrossFit gym. I went, worked out, and survived. And I kept going. Fast forward four years and I was officially an assistant coach at CrossFit 1420.
I was ready to go! Or at least I thought I was.
The transition from member to coach proved to be harder than I expected, especially when it came to taking class as an active coach. They say teachers make the worst students — and I fit right into this stereotype! In fact, I still struggle with just being in class and NOT being a coach. I want to help, I want to answer questions, and I want to be social. However, there’s a time and a place for that, which happens to be at 5:00 am a couple of mornings each week.
If I could go back and tell myself WHAT NOT TO DO as a coach taking class, I would. Full disclosure: I struggle with every single one of these weekly. It takes a lot of self-discipline to follow my own advice. Refer back to the two things I have been told my entire life: I am loud and talk a lot — a deadly combo in a more structured but social setting.
Here’s what I’ve learned the hard way:
It’s time for the coach to brief the workout. What should you do? Lock it up! Seems like common sense, but you would be shocked at how many times I’ve found myself engaged in a conversation with someone about the workout. Why? Because, usually, I have already coached it that day and they want to know all the deets and strategies that I told my class. Don’t be like me. Do not engage. What I do now is remove myself from the group. I’ll go to the bathroom or just stand behind everyone else. Most importantly, I apologize to the coach every single time I violate this rule.
If members ask you for an adjustment or replacement movement, defer to the coach on the floor. Make it a habit to say, “Oh, you need to ask (insert coach’s name). I’m not sure what he/she would want you to do.” You’re not coaching or assistant coaching, so you may have no idea what adjustments the coach has in their back pocket. Timeline, space, equipment, and number of people in attendance all play a role in how a coach plans out THEIR class. THEIR plan is most likely different from yours.
If you don’t like the music, keep it to yourself. And definitely don’t go over and change it!
You’re in class and the coach goes slightly off-script for the warm-up. Don’t do what I did and make it a big deal. Members can read the board and they will see that the coach has changed something, usually for a solid reason. The best thing to do is to keep your comments to yourself and set an example. We all know there will be one member to pipe up, it just doesn’t need to be you.
IT IS NOT YOUR CLASS, BRO!!!
Yes, I have made every single one of these mistakes on multiple occasions. Not my finest moments for sure, but I learned something from each of them, #5 being the most valuable!
When you’re actively taking class (which I hope you do), just be a member. Leave your coaching hat at the door, in your locker, in your car, or wherever you can to just let yourself be. Understand that I’m not saying to not be yourself, just reign it in when necessary. Don’t add obstacles to the already controlled chaos that is a fitness class.
If you’re a coach that has had to deal with situations like this, I truly hope you have created a relationship with your coaching staff to be able to have conversations with them. I’m lucky enough to have that with my gym owners. No matter how minor the infraction is, have the conversation. And if you’re the coach that’s on the receiving end of this conversation, put your ego aside and LISTEN! The conversation is being had only to make you better.
