In the Fall of 2011 after doing spin classes on and off for the last year I decided to take my Winter training and my Seasonal Stress Disorder to a new level and apply for a job at the gym as an instructor of cycle classes. This has been a great decision for me not only to fight the disorder but to give me an outlet for working out during the depressing season. This experience has been a blessing in a myriad of ways. I have met great people and great athletes. I have met people at the base of there fitness level and watched them progress into much more healthy and productive human beings. Many of my elitist cycling friends will tell you the the spin sensation is just some sort of fad that does not compare to actually riding outside. I agree. You'll never get the same balance of wind blowing, car horn beeping, bug eating experience an outdoor ride provides so this entry has nothing to do with that. This is about the people that really need help. The people that have grown up in our society as our neighbors, our co-workers and even our family. These are folks that have let the time pass or have been too "busy" to worry about their health and fitness. The general public in our society has no shortage of humans caught in a rut. Some do not even realize how deep they are in said rut until they try something they have not tried before. Stepping out of their comfort zone is sometimes the hardest decision but also the MOST necessary. It may be one of my most gratifying accomplishments when I see the progress my athletes have made over the months.
Just when everything seems routine and commonplace after "working" at the gym is when things actually get interesting and I get thrown a curve ball.
Enter Ali Bazzi. Ali is a gentleman with a bit of a developmental disability. Exactly what that disability is I have yet to be informed or recognize. He is roughly in his late 20's or early 30's yet has the basic capabilities of a 6 to 7 year old child. He comes to the gym daily with his father and tries really hard to fit in to the group fitness classes. Because of his disability he gets easily distracted in classes like Abs + Core, Boot Camp and especially Yoga. Forget about ZUMBA! At times he will wander around and become a distraction to the other athletes in those types of classes. So when he tried a cycling class it enabled him to remain on the bike and be less of a distraction. Having said that the challenge was not yet beaten. His enthusiasm and willingness to "help" has him expressing from the saddle almost every command a spin instructor expresses. Keep in mind the instructor has a microphone to give commands over loud music in an atmosphere that intensifies over the time of the one hour class. Ali tries to match that vocal intensity by yelling and repeating the same commands. This can be quite a distraction to a lesser instructor. Even I had to learn to deal with this and would cringe at times when he would occasionally come in late and grab the last bike in the front row ready to work out and "help". Over time I have had several conversations with his dad and tried to get a handle on how to deal with him. I refuse to complain to management as some instructors have or try to exclude him from the hour sessions that give him such joy and happiness. The sessions also allow him to sleep through the night avoiding the regular seizures his father has made me aware of. So what he does is repeat and sometimes even pre peat the commands I give the rest of the class. Oddly enough he even gets the pre commands correct. Somehow knowing which command is coming. There are only about 6 simple commands I give so its not rocket science but still catches me off guard when he gives a command seconds before I will give the exact same one. Some of those commands are "Kick up with your toes!", "Shoulders relaxed!" or his favorite, "Revolution!". Am I too predictable? His participation is unique. It is at times more profound depending on his energy level. There are other times where the drills intensity deserves an athletes complete focus and concentration as we climb the hills I create for their imaginations. Having an outburst at those times can almost ruin the moment. Depending on the kind of day I have had it can be a bit annoying to me also to be completely honest.
This situation has had me reach out to some professionals in the field of Special Education and also to friends with family members with special needs. Their advice has been extremely helpful and I appreciate them very much. With their help I have been able to incorporate his actions into the workout in such a way that does not exclude the rest of the class. Instead of being frustrated by his outbursts or feeling uncomfortable the rest of the regulars in the class have embraced him and made him feel like a welcome member of our hour long Tuesday/Thursday family. Still with new people coming through the gyms seasonal revolving door of new members the challenge still exists. Its a bit difficult spreading my attention around the room when my assistant Ali likes to be such an active part of the session.
I have experimented with different ideas. Like the day Ali came late to the usual packed Winter class and there were no more bikes available. When I apologized and told him that all the bikes were taken his face dropped and he looked completely destroyed by his tardiness. That look of disappointment was so strong that when I asked him if he wanted to ride my bike his face lit back up like he was watching the fireworks on the 4th of July. So I did it. I got off my bike, adjusted it for him and gladly let him take the class over (sans microphone) from my bike. This allowed me the freedom to walk around and interact with the rest of the class. It also allowed me to show off my groovy dancing skills in my bike tights. Sorry no pics or video exist of that session. Occasionally I like to get out of my comfort zone of the bike saddle and shake the class up a bit. This was just that sort of instance. This worked great because it showed the rest of the class that my reaction to certain situations can take a more positive turn than just apologizing and cheating someone out of the workout they love and look forward to so much. Since that day he usually comes earlier and has since learned that riding the instructors bike was a one time experience and not to expect it every time. His participation has been huge as of late. He is a born leader often helping by encouraging different sides of the class to "Kick up with your toes!" or "Listen for the helicopter!' referring to one of our more intense climbing drills. Still he is who he is and the challenge still exists.
Recently I have had an encouraging and possibly groundbreaking realization with him. After mistakenly forgetting my most recent of spin music playlist discs at another gym I had to dig up some of my past discs which I have not used in over a year at least. It was good to get back to those roots for a while and for most of the class those play lists were new to them anyway. So what could go wrong? There was a reason I stopped using those CD's. They were beat up and some of the songs had skips or boogers on them which made for a digital cluster of defects. Usually only affecting one or two tracks but rendering them useless for a smooth running session without that disastrous distraction. When one of these discs decided to crap out on me the other night I quickly got off my bike, switched to a newer and different disc and spontaneously gave the somewhat defective disc to Ali. With that again his eyes lit up like the 4th of July. He even got off his bike, went to grab his dad and said "Look what Andrew gave me!". This made the last few minutes of the class much more focused and powerful for some reason. He was quiet and focused and made him look forward to sharing this disc with his family and friends at his vocational school. I could see in his eyes that he had a new purpose. I can see him now sharing this music and his enthusiasm with his friends and family. Hopefully they appreciate it as much as he does.
So with this new realization I have decided what to do with all these leftover music CD's that I have been hanging on to. Rather than offering him a reward such as candy or some sort of "treat" for observing a new found form of self control his reward for the lack of outbursts will be one of these discs. This is a huge break though! I am confident in his new found focus and very encouraged by this new discovery.
After every session Ali offers me a very enthusiastic high five and a thank you. After this last class with the CD in his hand he looked me straight in the eyes like he understands me completely and said "Thank you Andrew! Thank you!" and shook my hand as if to say I am his biggest fan. Of all the accomplishments in my life I can honestly say having Ali as my friend has taught me so much and he is a true blessing to have in my life. I look forward to riding with him in the future. My rewards are great! I am blessed.
Beatthetrain
