I knew something was up as soon as I entered FTX yesterday. There were different people behind the reception desk and there were too many "good afternoon"s going around. Notably from the guys whom I suspected worked there but acted like they didn’t.

I deposited my stuff in the locker then went to the gym. The receptionist followed me, then signaled to Dennis, one of the instructors, to look after me. Something was definitely amiss.

Since he was talking to someone else and I didn’t want to interrupt, I told them I didn’t need an instructor and just needed the folder with details of the different circuits. Dennis came over anyway and pointed me to a pin board on the wall where – lo and behold – there they were: laminated workout cards.

At first I wasn’t sure if Dennis had told FTX about my idea (since I had discussed it with him before) or if the FTX powers-that-be had read my blog.

“So you don’t like Justin Bieber,” Dennis teased.

They read the blog.

But Dennis thanked me for the constructive criticism and for helping them improve. My pleasure. “Except that you guys forgot to print the warm-up behind each card,” I told him. “The idea is to wean the clients off their dependence on you.”

Still, it was a step in the right direction.

I did Gladiator’s Zone again.

But instead of doing three sets, I did two other circuits, choosing the ones that didn’t involve any kettlebells. I did Tita Cora’s Circuit for my second set, but increased the reps to 20.

For my third set, I did Chairman’s Express.

I’m glad FTX is open to suggestions on how they can improve.

They could definitely still work on their instructors’ orientation skills. For instance, I noticed that one of the boxing instructors who also helps out at the gym, didn’t properly brief a newbie-client. He didn’t show him the board or explain the different circuits. He just announced, “We’re doing ‘Lose Big Now’”. The client looked irritated since he couldn’t understand what the trainer was trying to say.

I just hope that Chelu starts using his voucher while I still have some sessions left (- I have four more to go, Chelu!) so that I can give him a proper briefing and he’ll feel confident using the equipment around the gym when he goes on his own.