I Hate Social Media
After a conversation last week, I decided that I’m going to change my relationship with social media. I had been telling myself that I need to be on social media often since I am building a brand, a business, an empire. Whatever you want to call it, I believe that having social media for a brand/business/empire is a must today in the strength and conditioning industry. I’d rather build that online presence now then regret it in a few years when online fitness blows up more than it already has.
That being said, I don’t have to post everyday. To be honest, I thought that was a way to get more exposure and make the algorithm work in my favor.
But, my results clearly show otherwise. Plus, I would post just to post often and not be satisfied with my content. I am going to step back and post less quantity, but higher quality. Who knows, maybe science Tuesday will come back!?
Furthermore, I have been making the most progress in building my empire by connecting in-person with people in my community. Shoutout to Mercer County in Central NJ (yes, we exist).
Last year, I went off social media for a week, and you can read about that experience here: social media break. As I write this, I decided to take a break from social media yesterday (Wednesday 11/16/2022) with no rules or date in mind as far as how long this break will be (my brain does not do well without rules, and part of the reason I write is cathartic. So, here we are).
Fast forward a few days, it is now Monday, November 21, 2022. I am about to go back on social media, but first, here are the my notes on stages of my experience:
Day 1: Wednesday November 16 (happy birthday Olyvia and Rebecca Z.) - felt myself reach for my phone a buttload of times to check social media, stopped myself and asked what is something more productive I can do right now? Good day. In the back of my head, I kept quieting an urge to check to see if my “social media break” post got any likes or comments.
Day 2: Thursday November 17 - accidentally clicked on a link that opened IG for like a second. I feel restless. I want to check social media. I should add that my body needs a rest from the gym today (so we are taking it) and I feel an urge to walk around and pace. I usually lift when I feel like that, so it is uncomfortable. Trying to make rules and deals in my head about when I can check it again. Probably staying off until Monday. Sat down to write this blog.
Day 3: Friday November 18 - no notes taken. I remember feeling restless and very much fighting the urge to check the ‘gram.
Day 4: Saturday November 19 - went to a client’s soccer game, but IG will never know. Felt lonely, wanted to check instagram a bunch. Not really fomo, just bored. Also realizing the benefits like this small creativity explosion. Starting to make rules in my head for how I am going to use it differently when I go back on Monday.
Day 5: Sunday November 20 - I want to delete it for good, but I believe there is value in keeping it for the future of the TBC brand/business/empire. Going to use IG when I post, and once per day other than that for marketing and/or a brief mindless break. My brain typically likes things black or white, on or off, but am trying to find a middle ground for the empire I am building.
I am a strength and conditioning coach aka youth sports performance coach, and I also teach health and wellness at an independent school in Central NJ. One of the topics we cover is social media. When we cover this topic, I challenge my students to go off of social media for a day, or do another thing that spoke to them from NPR’s Bored and Brilliant Series from 2015.
This past trimester, I asked the students if anyone had ever done anything like a social media break before and one student shared that she had. She shared that it didn’t work for her because when she was off of it, she felt FOMO and was anxious. She felt relieved when she was on it. When an alcoholic stops drinking, sometimes they can not stop thinking about alcohol and drugs for months. This is called an obsession, and is a sign of addiction.
I understand that there are benefits of social media other than growing a business. For instance, it helps people stay connected, and there are good accounts out there that educate and spread positivity. Social media is not going anywhere, in fact, it is only growing. But I think it is important we start to be more mindful with our relationship to social media. Especially youth athletes whose brains are not fully developed. Science shows that the messages, the colors, the likes, and other things about social media really does affect our brain chemistry. I encourage you to try a social media break. Join me on my weekly Sunday breaks.
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