Coaches are the heart of O2’s fitness family, which is why Team O2 felt celebrating Coach Appreciation Week in the run-up to Valentine’s Day made perfect sense.
The goal: give people a way to personally thank their coaches, show O2’s appreciation with some thoughtful gifts ... and organize a big surprise for five lucky O2 Coach Ambassadors.
The effort was a huge success. More than 1,500 coaches across the U.S. received a personalized thank-you note from their trainees and colleagues along with a free 4-pack of O2+. Team O2 felt the love, and was inspired by the campaign’s ripple effect of positivity in the O2 fitness community.
“Coaches are some of the most hard-working, most deserving people in our communities and on the front lines, and celebrating Coach Appreciation Week is the least we can do,” said Brittany Garrett, O2 Community & Athlete Program Director.
Coach Appreciation Week also gave O2 the opportunity to shine a light on its Coach Ambassador Program - an effort to partner with coaches and create a network of fitness professionals who are passionate about helping people stay healthy.
O2 featured five Coach Ambassadors throughout the week, and invited the wider community to get to know them better with a Q&A that opened a window into their best workout tips, favorite cheat-day treats, and what they love most about coaching.
Erika Varriale, head coach and general manager for CrossFit Reignited in North Carolina, shared her #1 tip for keeping those New Year’s fitness resolutions.
“Keep it simple,” Varriale advises. “Spend at least three days to a week making your first mini-goal just part of your natural flow, then add on from there, piece by piece.”
It was impossible for Varriale and her four fellow Coach Ambassadors to know a big surprise was coming: Nicole Carroll at CrossFit Training had heard about O2’s Coach Appreciation Week project and offered to level up the coaches’ next CrossFit certifications for free.
Dave Colina, O2 founder and CEO, surprised the coaches with the news via Zoom:
Team O2 loves coaches, and so from the bottom of our hearts: thank you so much for everything you do to support health, wellness, and community in our fitness family!
