At the beginning of 2017, I was determined to be a personal trainer. Now that the new year is underway away from being over, I can say my fitness/health/career goals have changed a bit since then.
- I failed my NASM certification test
- I quit a commercial gym, joined a powerlifting/kettlebell gym
- I pretty much stopped making cardio a priority and started sitting less at work
- Registered, competed and placed in my first powerlifting competition
- I stopped updating my fitness Instagram and YouTube channel with fitness related content
This all happened within 6-8 months. I put my certification on the back burner because there isn’t a job waiting for me and, to be honest, the motivation isn’t there otherwise. I still have all the material, and when I feel the time is right, I can retake the test just to have it. The other side of that plan is promoting myself as a personal trainer, gaining clients, making money, etc. That was the intended purpose of my fitness Instagram until this summer…
After quitting the gym I had to find other ways to stay active and it really allowed me to enjoy life more instead of worrying about working out the first thing in the morning. Overall, I realized that sharing my fitness journey and making everything public wasn’t as appealing as it used to be.
Discouragement
In the growing age of social media, the information era, the internet is used for a variety of things. I use social media as a tool, especially for work. As for my fitness account, I used it for accountability purposes and sharing my tips/experiences with other people going through the same situations. For example, when I injured my back deadlifting, I explained how it happened and asked my followers for advice. Many recommended a chiropractor, alas, I saw a chiropractor and recovered from the injury.
I decided to delete my account solely due to oversaturation and a perspective change.
- I was sharing so much of my daily life (pictures of food, videos of exercising, etc.) and didn’t see the point in it anymore.
- In order to make money, you have to be consistent with the account posting and gaining sponsorships. I don’t have the time or commitment for that, and if I wasn’t going to make money, then I didn’t want to devote time to it.
- I already had two other Instagram accounts (photography and personal), and I didn’t want to keep up with a third.
A big part of sharing your fitness journey with others is being transparent. For example, if I post photos in only gym clothes every day (slimming, good fitting, etc.) then my progress isn’t properly being shared. After a while, I got nervous that I was being sexualized and being seen as portraying something I wasn’t intending to. I didn’t want anyone to get the wrong idea, especially when it comes to physique updates.
A Trend
At first, I thought it would be easier to have two separate Instagram accounts. Now, I think it’s ridiculous. I am who I am, through and through. Maybe my intention, at first, was to become a personal trainer and promote that via Instagram. At that point, I could perhaps use the tool to make money. Nowadays everyone is a clothing or supplement brand ambassador or they host a podcast. I see it as “look at me, look at me!” I’m not any different than the next girl flexing in the mirror. It becomes oversaturated at a certain point.
Even now that I’m powerlifting, I don’t feel like I should share videos of my lifts unless it’s a personal record. I should feel like I can share any progress videos. But, it gets in your head that you need to keep pushing to be better and better and get the appropriate attention for that success. Social media is a strange beast.
I don’t regret posting photos of my fitness journey because I’m a big believer that experiences help you learn about life and to be a better person.
For now, I’ll continue to lift heavy, eat a balanced diet and stay active.
**If you’re looking for a good blogger/foodie/fitness person to follow who has a lot of knowledge visit Mind On Nutrition and follow her informational Instagram stories**