Will:  

Our decisions can be impacted by things that are outside our control, the inability to go to work or the being forced to work from home, homeschooling your kids in a way that you didn't expect to be doing. What that means is that it's even more important to be aware of the conditions and responses we make to things that are within our control. And we exercise power and agency over that. And make choices and decisions that protect and improve our well being and positively contribute to the well being of those around us. So in the times that you do have the opportunity to make your own decisions, choose to do things that make you happy, choose to do productive things, choose to move away from things like Doom scrolling, that you know you are doing because you feel sad and isolated, but are not improving your mental well being. 

Will:  

Hey, I'm Will Brereton, founder of SH1FT Fitness. And this is Group Fitness Real Talk, a show about how to survive and even thrive in group fitness in 2021 and beyond. Hey, it's Will here. This week on the podcast, I'm going to address an issue that I'm hearing more and more from instructors in the Northern Hemisphere. And that is that while they've persevered for a long time during the pandemic, maintaining a positive attitude, being open to virtual creating community doing everything they can to bring their classes joy and exercise and respect during lockdowns, numbers in virtual classes are falling. It's harder to get people in. And it's more of a struggle than ever for instructors to keep on trucking. So I'm here to tell you this week, that as far as I can tell, and I have a network of 1000s of instructors that we communicate with every week, everyone who is still in lockdown. So that's much of the USA, the UK and Europe is feeling the same way. So guys, if you are starting to really struggle, I want you to understand that what you are feeling is valid, the fatigue is real. You and your classes have pandemic burnout. And it's a completely normal thing to feel at this stage of the crisis. So we're almost a year into the pandemic. And the end is sort of inside as vaccines are slowly beginning to roll out worldwide. You should feel relieved, but what you might be feeling is something more akin to burnout. Now I'm going to refer to an article that I read recently on the website well and good, which I'm going to link to in the show notes. It's a great read. And I'm going to paraphrase from this a lot with a fitness industry spin. So what people are facing right now can only be described as hitting the pandemic wall. The burnout from working nonstop, no break from bad news, childcare and homeschooling plus isolation is just really hard. If we add to that the stress about job security, when and whether fitness we'll come back and constant news about gym closures, and you have a recipe for extreme anxiety all the time. The American Psychological Association defines burnout as physical, emotional or mental exhaustion, accompanied by decreased motivation, lowered performance and negative attitudes towards oneself and others. It's essentially what happens when you go through a long prolonged period of performance at a higher level of stress and tension. And there comes a point when it begins to break our spirits. Even though our bodies might keep going, it just becomes such a struggle. Now burnout manifests in any number of ways. People often first notice changes in their physiological states. They report feeling physically unwell, tense, chronic fatigue, just generally feeling a bit blur, they can become more irritable, detached, less motivated. Finally, those experiencing burnout may just feel less interested in things that typically appeal to them. They may feel less hopeful, less optimistic and less fulfilled by the stuff that was making them happy before. So if you're wondering why it's suddenly so much harder to get people into your classes right now, then look no further than what we've just described. We have all gone through all the fields this year. We started with fear when the pandemic first hit, followed by resilience and solidarity true community. If you're in the Northern Hemisphere, there was a little glimpse of hope during the summer, which was then followed by an unexpectedly and especially difficult slide into Christmas. And for the USA and UK this year. 2021 has also started with political unrest and fresh Brexit uncertainty.

Will:  

In situations like this, you cannot blame someone for staying in bed a little longer, or choosing to open that bottle of red wine instead of joining your zoom class, and you shouldn't feel bad if you are struggling too. Okay, so why are we collectively feeling this right now? Why is it such a struggle at this point in time? And why are we all feeling it? I'm personally a big believer in the idea that understanding why you feel a certain way, is the best first step towards changing it. So let's talk a little bit about why everyone is feeling like they are. Here's the facts, we are in a better position than we were six months ago, there is an exit strategy, and all signs are pointing towards life resuming at pretty much close to normal from the Autumn in many places. That said, it actually makes a lot of sense that many of us are reaching breaking point right about now. One thing that typically helps us cope with a stressful experience is knowing that it's temporary, and it will end at some point. And what's made this pandemic particularly stressful is that there is no specified in date. Most of us still don't have a clue when the vaccine will be available to us personally, or when the safety of herd immunity will be reached. In other words, we don't feel like there's a clear endpoint, which we just need to get to, and that is weakening our stamina. Here's the deal, we are entering or have just entered the dreaded third quarter. Now this is something I read about in relation to the first lockdown, which in hindsight, wasn't anywhere near as bad as things are now. I'm going to link to that article in the show notes too. But the gist of it is that the third quarter is the worst part of any ordeal. And here's why. So this is a phenomenon that was first described in the early 1980s. In studies that set out to determine how long people could survive in space. What those studies found was that spaceflight radiation, zero gravity, all these things were arguably less of a problem than the interpersonal conflict and anxiety caused by isolation. So the studies found that typically, mood and morale reached their lowest point somewhere between one half and two thirds of the mission. There are three broad stages of reaction to prolonged isolation in space. There's a first stage of heightened anxiety, sort of panic and fear of not knowing what's coming, a second stage of settling down to routine which is sometimes marked by a bit of depression, and then a third stage of anticipation marked by emotional outbursts, aggressiveness, or rowdy behavior. And it's not just space. In 2000, there was a study of people stationed at an Antarctic Research Station, and they supported significant increases in interpersonal tension during the third phase of the expedition due to loneliness and clunkiness. Other researchers found the decrease in mood occurring around the midpoint and third phase of the stay in Antarctica. The key finding of this study was that this third stage depends on the relative passing of time, in a six month mission, it could happen around the four month mark, in a one year posting, it might happen at the eight month point. So it's not specifically the third quarter when it comes to time. What matters is the proportion of the mission that had elapsed and how much is still to go. So looking at these two examples of where people have been studied by sociologists trying to figure out why it's so hard, how can we relate this to what we're going through right now with COVID. In most countries, because of the vaccine rollout, and very tough lockdowns that you are probably currently undergoing, it really does look like we might be past the worst effects of the virus. But and I know you're already thinking about it. We've all been through this before. Last summer, I felt like it was getting better. And so every single one of you listening to this probably has a little bit of post 2020 traumatic stress disorder, which means it's harder for us to internalize the fact that things are looking positive. We are scared to hope we're scared to get it wrong again. And you can see this and the way that politicians are approaching this lockdown, the slow easing of restrictions, and the overall negative reporting in the media. The uncertain duration of COVID restrictions, because we don't know when they're going to finish could stretch this dreaded third quarter, over a number of months, rather than a set amount of time. It is a constant state of anticipation for good news. Guys, this is where we are. This is where we find ourselves now. And at this point, the effectiveness of coping mechanisms are probably wearing off too. 

Will:  

If you were experiencing burnout, in a normal time, you could reach out to friends, you could go and do something that makes makes you happy, you could lean in on your social life. But that is not an easy option under these circumstances. In fact, not only is it hard, but it's actually against the rules and a lot of places to visit friends. It's hard to get a change of scenery. It's cold, it's dark, it's depressing. But, and this is a big, wonderful bots, it's going to end. Despite how bummed you might be feeling, there's a lot of reason to be extremely positive about the future. Winter is grim, I know. But the case numbers while horrifically high are going down. If you listen to any commentators from the scientific community, you will hear categorically that we, as a global society, have hit a home run on the vaccine front. In May of 2020, the best case scenario for vaccines was sitting at around 18 months. So that's the beginning to be rolled out in September of this year, September 2021. And that itself was considered optimistic. But we've done it so much faster. The speed and efficacy of these vaccines are and continue to be better than almost any other vaccine ever created by men. And even the new variants that continue to pop up, the vaccine still works. I know that it doesn't sound like it in the media sometimes, but it does. We are not out of the woods, things could still go wrong, but there's so much reason to be hopeful. We're going to have to continue some temporary limits to our behavior. But we will make it out of this. In the UK, which certainly hasn't had the best pandemic 10 million people have received at least one dose of the vaccine. And the large majority of NHS frontline staff care home residents and workers and those over 80 have been vaccinated people over 70 and the clinically vulnerable and now being vaccinated and this should be done by the end of the month in some regions of the UK are now inviting the over 60s already. Other countries are starting to build up steam, and the long term prognosis is good. The management consultancy firm McKinsey released a report this week where they stated that if we continue on this trajectory, the USA will also be out of the woods by late summer or autumn. So I know it's dark right now, both figuratively and literally. But just remember that old statement about the darkest moment being right before dawn. So we've delved into why it's so hard right now and why you should totally own those feelings of struggle. And we're talking about why your class members might be having an all time flatline low on their own motivation. And hopefully, you're starting to realize that just like winter will come to an end. So we'll this extremely difficult period of our lives. Here's the bad news, there are no quick fixes to burnout. I don't have the magic formula to dissolve the uncertainty that you and your class members are dealing with. But there are some strategies to ease your anxiety and slowly but surely bring your classes back to life again. So we're going to go through them now. First strategy is take a moment to appreciate the people that are still turning up and be proud of the impact you as an instructor have had on those people's well being during the pandemic. I know that turning up to a real live class that's emptier than expected is tough. And it's even harder digitally. But to a degree, it's all about how you frame it in your mind. If you focus on the people who aren't turning up, then you are honoring the absent instead of those that are there. Now Trust me, I know this is easy to say. But the first step is to reframe your own thoughts. Every person who does turn up to your class is a person who you are helping to navigate, probably the biggest crisis of our shared lifetime. So on the fact that they are there, and honor your own contribution. Number two, and this is a really good strategy for just figuring stuff out for yourself. Make a list of all the things you've done during this crisis that worked well. This could be things that got you more engagement on social, it could be things that got you more engagement during class, things that brought more people in, or just stuff that made you have a little bit more fun that made you enjoy yourself more, write them down. It could be specific actions, or it could be just general approaches or mindset. Ask yourself, honestly, am I still doing these things? If you've stopped because let's be honest, you're suffering burnout too, so you probably have stopped some of them, then try them again. If you need to refresh your strategies, you can check out Episode Four of the podcast for how to turn things around and make the most of opportunity. Episode Seven with Sacha for a really good guide to mindset and how to reframe your thinking. Or episode nine with body attack legend Bevan James Eyles For a step by step guide on how to build community. And then outside of class, make a list of all the things that you've done for yourself or that your family has done during the pandemic that have made you happy. Now, this is completely unrelated to instructing. Make that list and then go and do some of them. Chances are pandemic fatigue and pandemic burnout has also caused you to forget or neglect a lot of the things that made you happy. So take stock and take responsibility for doing some fun stuff for yourself. Number three, and this one's really important. If something really isn't serving, you stop doing it. Now, this doesn't have to be forever, but be kind to yourself. If there's a particular class on your digital timetable, that's really hard going take a break from it. If live streaming is becoming a drag, then pre record some content in a batch and take a week off. accept the fact that you too, are a person living through a pandemic, and maybe you need a bit of rest. For the next month or two, three classes per week might be enough instead of five. Number four, share your feelings with your community. One of the first things I was taught when I went through instructor Academy was that you shouldn't bring your bad day into class. So if you have had a shitty day, when you put the hit mic on, you put on your happy face, and you are there for your class. And I still think that's true. But if you're still teaching, and you're listening to this podcast, then you know full well that being an instructor is not just about delivering a class, it's not just about your welcome through to the interview stretch. You are a community leader. And you need to be communicating with your members outside class. And we've talked about how you go about doing this in previous episodes of the podcast. So in your Facebook group, or however you choose to communicate with your chosen community, don't be afraid to let them know you struggle to acknowledgement of burnout is helpful in heaps of ways. Most importantly, it can help break the cycle of isolation that often accompanies burnout. So talking to compassionate and empathetic others about how you feel opens the door to having your own experiences validated and it helps us feel less alone. Part of the purpose that I'm doing this podcast today is to let you understand that we are all suffering from the same issues. You are not alone in your pandemic burnout, you are not alone in hitting the wall right about now. So acknowledging that and telling your community that you that you are experiencing, it can be the first step to ending the cycle and allowing them to own it to you may feel trapped, that you are not trapped alone. Share it with your tribe, engage them and making a plan for how you all move past the pandemic wall, engage them do a survey, ask them what they need, ask them what different stuff you could be doing to help them get through this extremely hard. Third, part number five, make some plans for after the pandemic. Now we might not know exactly when the pandemic will be over. But trust me, it will be over at some point. Now I'm actually making this podcast from New Zealand. And so when I'm saying a lot of this stuff to you, I feel bad because stuff is back to normal here. But that means that I can assure you that things will get back to normal people are still doing all the things that you love and all the things you enjoy, and you will be joining us at some point. I mean, truth is I come back to the UK very soon. So I'll actually be joining you before we all join what they're doing in New Zealand in Australia, but it's coming. Make some plans for after the pandemic book a fully refundable trip for 2020 to make a plan to learn a new skill or to climb a mountain, and then extend that same approach to your teaching career. Now, so much of what we've talked about on this podcast relates to how the industry has rapidly changed. So now that you've got a little bit of downtime, take a moment to put some plans down on paper about what you're going to do with your career when all of this is over. What learnings Are you going to put in place, they're going to take you through the next 10 years of your group fitness instructing career, do some goal setting. Be audacious spend a bit of time thinking about the future and what it could be not just the present or the past, and what steps you might need to think about taking soon to help you get there. The last one, number six is just to take control where you can. Now I've lifted this one straight out of that well and good article. health and well being are impacted by the daily decisions that we make moment to moment. And these cumulative decisions collectively work together to yield an overall result. So that means it's important to slow down and reflect on all the little choices we're making, in order to increase the awareness of how these choices are impacting our well being. Now more than ever, our decisions can be impacted by things that are outside our control, the inability to go to work or the being forced to work from home, homeschooling your kids in a way that you didn't expect to be doing. What that means is that it's even more important to be aware of the conditions and responses we make to things that are within our control. And that we exercise power and agency over that and make choices and decisions that protect and improve our well being and positively contribute to the well being of those around us. So in the times that you do have the opportunity to make your own decisions, choose to do things that make you happy, choose to do productive things choose to move away from things like doom scrolling, that you know you are doing because you feel sad and isolated but are not improving your mental well being. 

Will:  

So that's it. My little Group Fitness Real Talk pep talk for instructors who are currently living on struggle street. You are not alone. There are lots of people there with you, but trust that we will get through this and that there will be a brighter day, both literally and figuratively. As the weather starts to change, take more time to get outside. take more time to appreciate the positive impact that you have in people's lives and start to think about all the great things you're going to do when this difficult time is over. Because it will be over. So thank you for listening. If you're enjoying the show, don't forget to subscribe for all the latest episodes wherever you get your podcasts. And while you're there, please drop us a review. You can also get in touch with me at will@sh1ftfitness.com. I'm Will Brereton and you've been listening to Group Fitness Real Talk.