A blog from Army&You’s autumn edition by Emma Jones, @emmajonesfitness
At the start of lockdown, I couldn’t help feeling I was in familiar territory. Uncertainty is a factor of military life.
Not seeing friends and family, feeling far away from your core support network, having plans cancelled, putting on a brave face, fumbling through to find your new normal, and figuring out how on earth you can cope with it all.
I took a leap of faith, like so many, overcoming hurdles and all sorts of emotions, by completely changing my business to adapt to lockdown. I’m new to fitness as a career but things were going well. I was running three classes a week, studying for my next PT qualification, and was asked to run a families’ bootcamp at our local military base. I was due to start new classes for pre-and post-natal fitness. Busy and exciting times.
But overnight it all ground to a halt. I felt robbed, annoyed and didn’t know how I could continue, or if I even should. How could I compete with celebrities and Instagram influencers? What would my business model look like? Did I have the energy to turn it on its head? What I did know is that I wanted to continue with what I’ve worked so hard for; I also felt a responsibility for my class members. The sessions bring a sense of community, of being in it together and I know only too well what a difference that can make. I didn’t want to let anyone down. Going online was the only way; a big learning curve was ahead.
A friend introduced me to Zoom so I could see my ladies in real time, coach them and get that class feel. I have a great rapport with them and wanted this to continue. I hosted my first class on 20 March and haven’t looked back. I doubted if I was cut out for this style of teaching, but I put my big girl pants on and
went for it!
It’s not perfect nor easy. Lego and iPads keep my children entertained and my dog often joins in. I have the fear that I’ll be interrupted like that BBC interview when the mum has to commando crawl to retrieve her toddler! Before the class, I rearrange my lounge, do a sound check, get timers, music and kit
in place, knowing I’ve got to reset everything before getting stuck into home-schooling.
Nothing replaces one-to-one contact and I pray that one day I’ll be teaching in person again, but I’m glad I took that leap of faith.