The 30-second article
• Very few people exercise for the love of
it: everyone has their own underlying
motivation for participating in your
class
• By expanding on basic rapport-
building, group fitness instructors
increase the likelihood of unearthing
participants’ true motivations for
working out and connecting with them
on a deeper level
• Consciously working to establish
points of mutual interest between
yourself and a participant can expand
upon basic rapport
• By deepening the connection the
participant feels with the instructor
and the facility, we can also strengthen
a participant’s adherence to exercise.
or if your centre ever puts on ‘member
breakfasts’, join in! When I did this with
an early morning cycle class a couple of
years ago, I found it to be one of the most
valuable opportunities for getting to know
my members, and it became a highlight of
my week. There were times when I didn’t
really say much, but that didn’t stop me
from listening to ‘my people’. Those that had
taken my class would give me their feedback
straight away and, in turn, I could explain the
reason for the way certain things were done,
or discuss any changes I’d made to class.
Another place ‘outside of the box’ that
I will sometimes use for rapport building
purposes is the pool after an aqua class.
After noticing that a few participants would
stay in the water after class had finished, I
decided to bring some swim-wear and jump
in after I’d packed up. I’ve found that it is
in the aquatic environment that people are
more likely to open up and discuss the ‘big
things’ with me. Not being a psychologist, I
can merely guess that this may be due to the
combination of being wet and wearing only
swimwear bringing peoples’ barriers down.
The more we talk to participants, the
more comfortable they will feel talking to
us – about the small things at first, but
Small talk can pave the way for ‘big talk’, so
use it as an opportunity
then, hopefully, the bigger things, like their real motivations for
exercising. By verbalising this, they are acknowledging to both you
and themselves the thing that is driving their behaviour, which can be
a truly empowering experience.
Proceeding with caution
Building rapport so that people will open up to us does have the
potential to put an instructor into some sticky situations. As
mentioned in the first part of this article, there’s the possibility of our
participants telling us about aspects of their lives that would require
us to refer them to somebody more qualified, such as a dietitian in
the case of disclosure of a potential eating disorder. There is also the
potential for us to have to refer a matter to the police, in the case of,
for example, domestic violence.
Rapport building is an ongoing process. The more we can connect
with participants, the higher the chance that we will retain them as
members, and the greater the likelihood that they will have not only
good, but great – referral worthy – experiences.
Mel Morony is a group fitness instructor based in Eastern Melbourne. She
is passionate about raising standards in the area of group fitness, for both
participants and instructors.
NETWORK SPRING 2018 | 67