8 Full Years Since I Started Writing on note: From "Personal Trainer, Maybe" to "Alignment Artisan"

Haisai.
I am Yutaka Gokita, an Alignment Artisan.

In this note, I write daily about gently aligning the gaps between mind, body, and thought.

June 23, 2018.

Exactly eight years ago today.

I wrote my first article on note.

The title was
“What is my ‘profession’?”

It has been exactly eight years since then.

Looking back at that first article,
the words that connect to who I am today
were already there.

Back then, I wrote this:

Reading that word “maybe” now,
I feel it is very much like me.

I work as a personal trainer.
But there is a part of me that
doesn't quite fit into the box of a personal trainer.

I provide exercise instruction.
But I am not supporting people through exercise alone.

I look at the body.
But I am not looking at the body alone.

The mind, thoughts, daily life, and life itself
are all connected somewhere.

That sense of discomfort—
eight years ago, I hadn't yet found the right words for it,
but I started writing it on note.

The prototype of who I am today was already in that first article.

In that first article,
I wrote about how “I feel uncomfortable calling myself a personal trainer.”

I don't like being bound by existing values or frameworks.
Before I knew it,
I found myself
spilling out of the box labeled personal trainer.

That is what I wrote.

In my sessions back then,

There were times when we barely did any exercise at all.
Sometimes we just talked.
Sometimes it was just bodywork.

I also went to shrines often.
I read a lot of books, too.

Anyway, I am not like a typical personal trainer.

That is what I wrote.

I, who had pursued the qualities of a personal trainer (such as expertise),
was becoming less and less like a personal trainer.
(in the sense of the general image of a personal trainer)

But, looking back at it now,
I think thatwas not a digression.

I wasn't doing things that were unlike a personal trainer;
I was trying to see things that couldn't be seen
within the framework of a personal trainer.

I wasn't just looking at exercise,
I was also looking at the heart.

I wasn't just looking at the body,
I was also looking at habits of thought.

That person's daily life,

their emotions,

their values,

and their life,

I was trying to look at everything together.

As of eight years ago,
the prototype of the current 'Adjustment Artisan'
seems to have already begun.

Exercise was just one of the means to an end

In my first article,
I also wrote something like this.

Exercise is nothing more than one of the means to an end.

This is
a feeling I still cherish today.

Of course, exercise is important.

Moving your body has
great power.

Your posture changes.

Your breathing changes.

The way you use your body changes.

Your mood changes.

Your actions change.

Your life's options expand.

However,
exercise is by no means the only answer.

Behind stiff shoulders and lower back pain,
there is psychological tension.

Behind weight fluctuations,
there is not just diet,
but also stress, loneliness, and dissatisfaction.

Behind feeling easily tired,
there is not just a lack of physical strength,
but sometimes a habit of trying too hard to please others.

Behind poor posture,
there is the influence of emotions and thoughts.

Therefore,
it is not just about whether to exercise,
nor is it just about whether to seek treatment,

but what that person is tired from.

What they are enduring.

What kind of life they are living.

What kind of emotions they are holding.

What kind of thought patterns they have.

It is necessary to look that deeply.

Eight years ago, I
was not yet using the word “totonoeru” (to align/tune)
as much as I do now.

But,
I was already facing in that direction.

Mind and body are two sides of the same coin.

In my very first article, I even wrote,
“Mental issues are simply manifesting in the body.”

If you look only at the body,
there are things you cannot see.

If you look only at the mind,
there are things you cannot see.

Even if you try to change only your thoughts,
sometimes your body won't follow.

Even if you are moving your body,
sometimes your mind gets left behind.

Even if you understand it in your heart,
sometimes your body won't move.

Even if you understand it in your head,
sometimes things don't change in your daily life.

Mind, body, and thoughts,
though they may seem separate,
are always connected.

The phrase I now use in this note,
“Gently aligning the misalignment between mind, body, and thoughts,”
is something that has grown little by little from the sense of unease I felt eight years ago.

It wasn't complete from the start.

While writing,
while facing the people in front of me,
while feeling my own life,

it gradually turned into words.

Also, over the course of eight years,
it seems I have acquired “gentleness.”

The old me often had quite harsh words 😅

The sense of unease of not being like a “personal trainer”

Eight years ago, I wrote,
“Not like a personal trainer.”

Now,
I can express those words in a slightly different way.

It wasn't that I wasn't like a personal trainer,
I was just trying to look at the act of supporting people
from a slightly broader perspective.

It's not just about exercise,
there is also a therapeutic perspective.

There is nutritional support.
There is rest.
There is the mind.

There is daily life.
There are relationships.

There are the seasons.
There is the atmosphere of the land.

There are things felt at shrines.
There are things that become words through reading books.

At first glance, these might seem
unrelated to
personal training.

However,
for a person to return to their true self,
none of these are irrelevant.

People do not live
by muscles alone.

They do not live by posture alone.

They do not live by diet alone,
by sleep alone,
by exercise alone,
or by the mind alone.

Various things overlap
to create that person's current state.

Therefore,
to support that person,
a single framework is absolutely insufficient.

The sense of discomfort I felt eight years ago
was likely a sign that I was beginning to realize this.

Shrines and reading were not detours

In my first article,
I wrote about visiting shrines frequently,
and reading books excessively.

Over 250 shrine visits per year.
Over 150 books read per year.

These were things
I started doing naturally, but

thinking back now,
they have also become very important
for my work and my messaging.

Visiting shrines
was a time to reset my senses.

To touch the atmosphere of a place.
To touch the silence.

To put your hands together in prayer.
To set aside the unnecessary things within yourself.

Reading was a time that
gave words to
the discomforts and questions within me.

Sensations I couldn't put into words on my own
began to take shape
by encountering the words in books.

After this,
I began visiting over 500 shrines a year,
and reading over 600 books a year,
which led me to

sharpen my senses,
and I became able to express what I previously could not.

That is why,
both shrines and books

for me,
were not hobbies separate from my work as a personal trainer,
but the essential foundation that has built who I am today.

The 'Totono-e Craftsman' bookshelf I am writing about now,
my articles on the twenty-four solar terms,
and my articles on daily life,
are all connected to this.

To support others,
it is not just about knowledge and technique,
but about how much you can heighten your own senses and sensibilities.

For that purpose,
shrines, books, the seasons, and travel
were necessary for me.

note was a place to search for my profession

The title of my first article was,
'What is my "profession"?'
.

Eight years ago,
I was searching for my profession and my title.

Who am I?
I was searching for the answer.

Am I a personal trainer?
Am I a coach?
Am I a practitioner?
Am I an instructor?

Am I someone who visits shrines?
Am I someone who reads books?
Am I someone who thinks about the mind and body?

Even I
could not explain it well.

But,
I kept writing about that inability to explain
without erasing it.

I am a personal trainer.
...maybe.

I didn't pretend that “maybe”
didn't exist.

I didn't gloss over that sense of discomfort,
but instead put it into words.

Beyond that,
lies the term“Adjustment Artisan”that I use today.

The term “Adjustment Artisan”
wasn't something that was clearly defined from the start.

It is a term I arrived at little by little
while writing,
while engaging with people,
and while tracing my own sense of discomfort.

Perhaps the place called note
wasn't a place to decide my job title,
but a place to gradually put into words
the parts of myself that didn't fit into any title.

Writing was a place to return to myself

Looking back after eight years,
it feels less like I have been continuously writing on note,
and more like I have returned to note time and time again.

There were times I could write every day.
There were times I couldn't write much at all.
There were times when my themes weren't set.
There were times when my language changed.

The place I live has changed.
The form of my work has changed.
The places where I share my thoughts have changed.

My job title, too,
has changed little by little.

But,
I have returned to writing again and again.

By writing,
I can see what I am thinking.

By writing,
my sense of discomfort gains a contour.

By writing,
I notice the misalignment between my heart, body, and thoughts.

By writing,
I can understand a little better where I am right now.

Writing was also
a way to reach out to the world.

But at the same time,
it was also a way to return to myself.

Even my first article eight years ago,
now that I think about it, was a piece of writing meant to return me to myself.

What is my profession?
Who am I?
What kind of person am I?

I paused for a moment,
and it was a piece of writing that faced that question.

I didn't keep writing; I kept coming back.

Recently, I wrote an article titled
“Habits grow by returning to them, rather than by trying hard.”

While writing that article,
I thought that this also applied to me.

For eight years,
I haven't been writing with the same level of intensity the whole time.

There were times I stopped.
There were times I was lost.
There were times my direction changed.

There were times I didn't know what to write.
There were times I rethought the meaning of sharing my thoughts.

Even so,
I came back again.

I came back to the place where I write.
I came back to my own words.

I came back to the place where I observe the gaps between my mind, body, and thoughts.

Therefore, I think these eight years were not so much
“eight years of continuous writing,” but rather
“eight years of coming back again and again.”

Continuing something
is not just about never stopping.

It is about being able to return.
It is about having a place to return to.
It is about the fact that every time I return,
my own words deepen a little more.

That, too,
is what it means to continue.

Doing something every day is not the only way
to continue.

Even if things don't come together well,
no matter how unrefined it may be,

even if it's just a little,
even if you pause once,

what is still continuing is continuing.
What you have restarted is also continuing.

How would I answer the question from eight years ago now?

The question from eight years ago.

What is my “profession”?
Who am I?

If I were asked now,
how would I answer?

“I am a personal trainer.”

This is still not wrong, even now.
I am still active as a personal trainer.

“I work in a job where I observe the body.”

This is not wrong either.

“I work in a job where I support people.”

I think this is also true.

“I am a writer.”
“I am a reader.”
“I am someone who visits shrines.”
“I am someone who feels the seasons.”
“I am someone who observes the gaps between mind, body, and thought.”
“I am someone who writes words to return to myself in daily life.”

All of these are parts of me.

But,
the words that feel most right now,
are still“Totonoe Craftsman”.

Not just tuning the body,
but also tuning the mind.
Tuning thoughts as well.
Tuning from daily life.

To help people return to their original selves,
I observe their gaps together with them.

Tuning (整える)and also
Adjusting (調える).

Therefore,
Totonoe (tuning/adjusting).

The sense of discomfort from 8 years ago,
“I am a personal trainer. Maybe.”,

has led to my current words,
“I am a Totonoe Craftsman.”

Things that have changed, and things that have not

In these 8 years,
many things have changed.

The place I live has changed.
I moved to Okinawa.
The form of my work has also changed.

The themes of my posts have changed.
The way I use note has changed.

Totonoi Village was born.
The Your Best Solution Laboratory also began.
I started writing paid articles as well.

I began writing articles about the twenty-four solar terms.
The series on unraveling structures also started.
The Totonoe Craftsman's bookshelf has also been growing.

However,
there are things that have not changed.

Not viewing people through a narrow frame.
Observing not just the body, but the mind as well.
Observing not just the mind, but the body as well.
Observing not just exercise, but daily life as well.

Looking not just at surface-level problems, but at the roots and essence.
Not dismissing my own sense of discomfort.

Through reading, shrines, and the seasons,
honing my own senses and sensibilities.

And,
wanting to convey words that make someone feel a little more at ease.

This aspect,
has not changed at all in eight years.

However,
I feel that the words used to express it,
have gradually become more refined.

About Totonoe Craftsman and Your Best Solution

Currently, there are two main entry points for my content.

One is the content you are reading now,
my posts as a Totonoe Craftsman.

Here, I write in language accessible to everyone about the fatigue and discomfort felt in daily life, the misalignment between mind, body, and thought, seasonal changes, resting, habits, books, shrines, and ways of living.

The other is
my posts as Your Best Solution.

This is aimed at professionals and supporters involved in mental and physical health, such as exercise instructors and therapists.

What is health?
What does it mean to observe a person?
What is support?
As a professional, beyond just technique and knowledge, how should one engage with people?

I write about these things in a slightly more specialized way,
from a multifaceted and comprehensive perspective.

Totonoe Craftsman is,
words for the reader to return to themselves.

Your Best Solution is,
words for the supporter to observe people more deeply.

The entry point is different, but
the root remains the same.

I will continue to harmonize things by writing.

Eight full years since I started writing on note.

To those who have read this far.
To those who have read my past articles.
To those who met me along the way.
To those who have known me for a long time.

Thank you so much.

Because there were people like you reading,
I was able to come back here time and time again.

Receiving comments.
Receiving 'likes'.
Being followed.

Receiving tips.
Having my articles purchased.
Having people join my membership.

When we meet in person,
hearing you say, 'I read that article.'

Each and every one of those things
has become my strength.

From here on out, too,

without trying too hard to write well,
without trying too hard to look perfect,

while valuing my own current feelings,
I want to keep writing.

Stories that gently harmonize the gaps between mind, body, and thought.

Stories about the seasons.
Stories about resting.
Stories about habits.
Stories about the body's voice.
Stories about books.
Stories about shrines.
Stories about daily life.
Stories about support.
Stories about ways of living.
Stories about ways of being.

Those are the things
I will continue to write about in my daily life.

Eight full years since I started writing on note

Eight years ago,
I wrote about my profession.

I am a personal trainer.
…maybe.

That was the version of me who wrote that.

Looking back now,
I feel that “maybe”
was a very important word.

Because I didn't ignore my sense of discomfort,
I was able to arrive at my current words.

Because I didn't deny the part of me that didn't fit the mold,
I was able to encounter the term “Totonoe Craftsman” (Alignment Artisan).

Because I didn't force myself to act like a typical personal trainer,
when I wasn't one,
I was able to become who I am today.

Writing,
for me, was a place to return to myself.

A place to return to my own questions.
A place to return to my discomfort.
A place to return to my senses.
A place to return to my true self.

And,
a place to quietly connect
with those who read my work.

Eight full years since I started writing on note.

Rather than saying I kept writing,
it has been eight years of returning again and again.

From here on out, too,
as a Totonoe Craftsman,

I want to gently align the gaps between mind, body, and thought
with my daily words.

Thank you so much
for always reading.

I look forward to
your continued support.

2026.6.23
Totonoe Craftsman
Jo Gokita

Related Articles

・What is my “profession”?
This is the first article I wrote on note on June 23, 2018. It is the origin of the discomfort that led to the current Totonoe Craftsman.

・When writing becomes fun, sharing becomes a habit
An article about how sharing naturally becomes easier when writing becomes a time to return to yourself.

・Habits grow by returning, not by trying hard
An article that redefines habits not as perfect continuity, but as a path of returning again and again.

・The Totonoe Craftsman's Bookshelf | Why do we read books?
An article about how reading books is not just about increasing knowledge, but also an act of noticing your own state.

・Decoding Structure Series | To gently decipher the gaps between mind, body, and thought
An introductory article for a series that deciphers daily discomfort and fatigue as structures rather than personal weaknesses.

・Do experts observe people including their environment?
This is an article written about the perspective of observing people not just by their bodies, but also including their environment and relationships.

・Emotions are the power source for action
This is an article that interprets behavioral change not just through strength of will, but through its relationship with emotions.

・Don't blame a lack of willpower for why things don't last
This is an article written about how to interpret the background of why habits or actions don't last, without attributing it solely to the individual's willpower, from the perspective of a supporter.