This Isn’t Just About Fitness
You’ve made it this far.
You’ve seen the signs, spotted the red flags, and started listening to your radar for the kind of guidance that actually makes you better.
But before we wrap this series, I want to talk about something deeper than just bad training advice.
Because this isn’t just about reps and macros and mobility drills.
It’s about how we choose who to trust.
How we decide who gets to lead us.
And what happens when we fall for charisma instead of character — certainty instead of curiosity.
Let’s bring it home.
You Deserve Better Than a Guru
Here’s the hard truth that gurus don’t want you to know:
You are not broken.
You do not need saving.
And there is no magical person, system, supplement, or secret program that will make your life perfect.
What you do need — what we all need — is someone who walks beside us as we figure it out. Someone who teaches, listens, adapts, and learns right alongside us. Someone who doesn’t pretend they have all the answers, but helps us ask better questions.
The best coaches don’t promise to change your life in 90 days.
They help you build a life you don’t need to escape from.
They help you reconnect to your body.
They challenge you without shaming you.
They meet you where you are, not where they wish you were.
And most of all, they keep growing. Because they know you are too, and that’s not something to fear.
A Coaching Relationship Should Leave You Stronger
When we trust someone with our health, our movement, our food, and our confidence, we’re offering them a powerful form of permission.
The wrong person will exploit that.
But the right coach — the coach who sees you, really sees you — will hand that power back to you, over and over again. They’ll show you how to own your decisions, understand your body, and advocate for your own needs.
And eventually, you’ll stop asking, “What would my coach say?” and start asking, “What do I think is best right now?”
That’s when you’ll know the relationship worked.
That’s when you’ll know it was real.
The Real Antidote to Guru Culture Is Curiosity
Curiosity is hard. It’s slower than certainty. It makes fewer promises.
But it builds something stronger than a brand: it builds trust.
We don’t need more people shouting into cameras, telling us what to do. We need more people who are willing to say:
- “That’s a good question.”
- “Let me look into that.”
- “I’ve changed my mind since then.”
- “I don’t know — but I’ll help you figure it out.”
Those aren’t signs of weakness.
They’re signs of integrity.
And in a world that’s addicted to hot takes, quick fixes, and loud voices, choosing curiosity might be the most radical thing we can do.
Guru Thinking in The WIDER WORLD
Now. Let’s step even further back.
Because the same dynamics we’ve talked about in the fitness world — the dangers of false certainty, the worship of personalities over process, the weaponization of oversimplification — exist everywhere.
We are currently burdened with too many “leaders” who claim to have all the answers.
Who can’t tolerate criticism.
Who label dissent as betrayal.
Who sell themselves as the singular voice of truth — and cast everyone else as lost, weak, or corrupt.
That’s not leadership. That’s guru behavior dressed up in a suit, or a uniform, or a social media campaign.
And just like in fitness, it can feel good to follow someone like that at first. It feels safe. You don’t have to think as hard. You don’t have to carry the burden of uncertainty or nuance.
But the cost is high.
We stop learning.
We stop questioning.
And eventually, we stop growing.
Real Leaders, Like Real Coaches, Stay Teachable
Whether they’re running a country or running a gym, the people we trust should be held to the same standard:
Are they growing?
Are they learning?
Can they admit mistakes?
Do they invite questions?
Do they build community — or a cult?
And most importantly: Do they make the people around them smarter, stronger, and more resilient?
Because if they don’t, they’re not leaders.
They’re just another guru, standing on a hill, shouting at the crowd.
You Deserve Better — In the Gym, and Everywhere Else
This series started as a rant about fitness influencers. It became a reflection on coaching, leadership, and what it really means to build trust.
The deeper I go into this world — as a coach, as a gym owner, as a human trying to do better — the more I realize that we’re not just teaching squats and deadlifts. We’re teaching people how to listen to themselves again. How to navigate uncertainty. How to tell the difference between a shortcut and a compass.
That’s powerful work.
And it deserves to be protected from people who would cheapen it into a sales funnel.
So here’s the final takeaway:
Look for the learners.
The question-askers.
The ones who share power instead of hoarding it.
Because those are the people who won’t just help you lift more weight or eat more protein —
They’ll help you become someone who can trust yourself again.
Thanks for Reading — Let’s Keep the Conversation Going
If you’ve made it to the end of this series, thank you.
I hope it sparked something. Maybe a little fire. Maybe a little clarity.
Now I’d love to hear from you.
- Have you ever trusted someone who turned out to be a guru?
- What helped you find a better coach, mentor, or leader?
- How do you filter who you listen to now?
Drop a comment. Share this with someone who needs to hear it. And if you’re looking for a place where learning is always on the menu — well, you know where to find us.
Ready to Work with Real Coaches?
At Lumos Fitness Collective, we don’t do gurus.
We do guides.
We do growth.
We do curiosity over certainty, every damn time.
If you’re tired of being sold someone else’s story — and ready to write your own — come train with us. We’re here for it.
