CEC
ARTICLE
GX SKILLS
KEEPING IT FRESH
Participants can tire of our classes – and so can we. So how can you keep
things fresh in the studio while retaining your unique flavour?
WORDS: CAROLINE HYNES
ne of the biggest challenges
faced
by
group
fitness
professionals
is
maintaining
variety in their classes, particularly in
freestyle programs. If participants feel like
they’re doing the same thing over and over,
week after week, their devotion to a class
can be short lived – especially if they’re also
not seeing results. On the flipside, humans
are also creatures of habit who value a
certain level of consistency. This makes
knowing exactly how much to change, and
when to change it, tricky.
O
So how do you know it’s time to shake
things up?
Identify the signs from
participants
Firstly, learn to identify some telltale warning
signs. If there are no signs then perhaps
you are already providing the appropriate
level of variety, but if things are starting to
tire, the first hint you’ll receive will generally
come from your participants. Sometimes
you’ll receive direct feedback asking you
to include certain methods of training
or particular exercises or focuses in the
workout. If it’s a music-based program they
may ask for a new track.
Other signs I’ve identified include regulars
changing the exercise you’ve prescribed for
‘something different’ or because another
instructor has told them a new or innovative
way of doing it. Generally this isn’t done
with any malice, so rather than taking it
personally, take it as a sign that they are
looking for something more and throw in a
few innovative tricks of your own for them to
try. I bel