A Year Ago I Thought I'd Be A Spin Instructor By Now

A year ago today, I received my Spin Instructor certification and was on cloud 9.

It was one of the scariest "out of my comfort zone" challenges I had taken on at the time. It was amazing to be in a room with folks of all ages, sizes and backgrounds - there for the same reason. Plus, I can vividly picture how scared I was driving up to Manchester, NH for the orientation and knowing I overcame it is something I can't put a price tag on.

I physically took the day-long orientation on March 9th and the online test on March 10th.

If you want to know more about the day-long orientation, feel free to check my post out here.

I was anxious to get in front of a class and share what I learned. I reached out to Spin Instructor friends in the area to find out how they got their gigs. They clued me in on the audition process at most gyms/studios, knowing studio owners, being in the right place at the right time, etc.

I took my time reaching out to local gyms asking about availability and it kept being "No. No. No". I took it tough.

But at the same time, I was training for my 3rd marathon - the Boston Marathon - and took a step back from looking to focus on training.

I tried to network, but it wasn't going anywhere.

Now I sit here a year to the day ... and I am no closer to being a Spin Instructor.

Am I a failure for not becoming a part-time Instructor? Not at all.

Do I feel like I wasted the $333 it cost to attend the Spinning certification? Absolutely.

Would I have passed up the experience to become an Instructor? Definitely not.

I think that day has made me a stronger rider and more helpful to my Spinning friends and classmates.

I may not be in front of the room, but I still try to motivate my friends and classmates as best I can.

So am I truly okay with not closing the door on the dream?

Sort of.

I regret not doing more. I should've walked into studios, talked to owners, petitioned Craigslist to find classes to substitute Instruct in and just been more proactive.

But, maybe that was my subconscious taking the reigns of the situation.

I realized over the last year that I wanted to stay in the saddle as a student.

I cannot live in a world of shoulda, coulda, wouldas! I need to learn from the experience and move on.

So what is the next dream I will chase? I'm not sure ... but at least I keep trying!