By: Dawn Swinney

When I transitioned from long-time member to evening coach at Midtown last year, I had one of the biggest realizations of my time at Double Edge yet. I found myself asking, “who’s that?” with multiple members. Now, this would be ok if these were new members that I was meeting for the first time… but a lot of the time it was people who had been there for years. I just hadn’t met them or didn’t know their name. It was a huge eye-opener for me and since then, I try really hard to learn and remember people’s names at the gym. I don’t do this just because I work here, but also because I know how nice it is when someone remembers who you are by name. I know how nice it feels when I’m suffering through the last few minutes in a workout and I can hear people cheering for me…by name. Yes, we all have times when maybe we’re not having the best day and we just want to keep to ourselves during our hour class time; however, one of the coolest things about Welded is the community it builds. I challenge you to seek out those folks who are either new in your classes or even people you’ve worked out alongside for awhile…and learn their names. Cheer for them or greet them by name the next opportunity you have. If you’re too embarrassed to ask them their name (because it’s been THAT long that you’ve been in class with them), ask a coach! Getting to know the people in your classes helps build, maintain, and strengthen our community…which is what our fitness is based on here at Double Edge. I’m just as guilty for being in a class and not really interacting with others so if you see me doing this, call me out…by name of course.