I've been thinking about this a lot recently, not only because yesterday I went to film and literally couldn't remember anything (a combination of not having had more than a 1.5 day weekend off since December and also pre-lady week fun) but also because I teach notably fewer classes than I did when I first started teaching fitness 15 years ago. I actually teach less than a fifth of the weekly classes I did in 2010. That's a big reduction.
Admittedly, I now train 5 times a week on top of that & I go to reformer but still, it's a lot less movement. I vividly remember being so tired and my body hurting so much that I would cry on the way to a 6am class (I never cry at life, only at films) .... and I could barely move my ankles by the end of a full day of teaching. Over the years, I've phased out classes for PT to try and save my body (& protect my income), which I'm sure it has to a degree. Still though, there are some times when teaching just feels like a physical beating, as I'm sure it does to a lot of us from time to time.
99% of the classes I teach leave me feeling more energised and more passionate than I did sat in the car beforehand... there's the occasional one that I count the minutes down until it's over but they are pretty rare now I no longer teach at gyms lol (you know exactly what I mean, don't get mad at me ;) ). BUT my body still occasionally feels battered after a high impact double, especially if I'm due on the next day.
Like most of us, my diet and sleep are ace, I have plenty of rest days because I cycle my training around my teaching schedule.... but let's be honest, we still put 1000% energy into every class we do and however much we look after ourselves, it's still going to take a toll after a few weeks with no brain/body break.
So I guess, somewhere amongst this ramble, my point is, we all find out where our limits are. My ankles are coming up toward theirs... but unfortunately they've got a few more weeks until holiday season starts lol. And whilst I am a HUGE believer in getting a grip and getting on with it, we do need to look after ourselves, because after all, our body is our money maker. So if you're reading this thinking "this is literally me" I can't tell you I've got it all figured out, because I still feel occasionally battered BUT here are my top tips....
eat well - get the veggies & the protein in, get on the creatine, drink the water, do what you tell your customers to do
get off your phone and sleep - it doesn't matter if Janet managed to book in or not, it can wait until tomorrow
resistance train - you need to, it's going to help minimise your risk of injury as you age... especially if you expect to still be leaping around in your leotard at 75
see a sports therapist or physio regularly - your body is a work of art... and you batter it for the dollar dollar bills. It needs some TLC. Keep on top of any niggles with regular appointments
learn when to say no - at some point your brain and your body is worth more than a few extra quid. Especially when you don't even want the job you've been offered anyway. And believe me, I know what it's like to say yes to something because you feel like you should, and then spend the next 8 weeks wanting to cry on the way there because it's way more effort than you're getting paid for.
take time off - set up a pot in your banking app (I use Mettle, it's free for small businesses and self-employed people) and save a small %age of your money for holiday pay. This means you can take time off and still pay yourself. If you have memberships, write a certain amount of holiday into the contract. I have 7 weeks written into mine - that's 2-3 over Christmas which is enforced because the venue is closed and the site manager doesn't want to work (fair play) and then that leaves me 4 weeks across the year... which I either use having time off OR I use for back up incase I need to take a class or two off for my back.
In summary, look after yourself. You bring other people joy, health & fitness for a job. It's amazing and we are so lucky to be in this industry... but it also comes with it's own negatives, and the battering we take physically is one of them. So give your body some love... you can't pour from an empty cup and all that. Let's keep ourselves teaching for as long as possible and learn where our limits are.... both overall limits and temporary ones (like me yesterday when I gave up filming because my choreo recall was so bad it was a waste of time, so I went for a walk in the sun instead).
Sending big love to all my instructor buddies, what a bloody cracking job we have Anna
xx
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