The 30-second article
• Group fitness helps form the social life
and culture of many clubs, so the role
of the Group Fitness Manager is a
critical one
• A group fitness program is only as
good as its instructors, so a GFM
needs to know exactly what to look for
when hiring team members
• In addition to having the right skillsets,
instructors should be reliable team
players that are social, energetic and
passionate about their health and
fitness
• There are a number of ways to find
great instructors, including contacts
of existing team members, asking
local RTOs, advertising and reaching
out to current club PTs and passionate
group fitness ‘front rowers’
• Once you have a great team, you
should strive to retain it by making it a
priority to acknowledge their
achievements, loyalty and reliability.
Exercise combinations
In order to offer exercise variations that
challenge your clients to work in all three
planes of movement – sagittal, frontal and
transverse – you can combine different
exercises into one routine.
When combining exercises, be sure to
offer smooth transitions from one exercise
to another:
• a one-footed move to another, e.g. Jog to
Rocking Horse
• a one footed move to a two-footed move
(or vice versa) with a centre bounce, e.g.
Front Kick to Jumping Jacks
• a two-footed move to another, e.g.
Jumping Jacks to Tuck Jumps.
Using fitness music programmed with
32-count blocks helps instructors to create
dynamic routines that are easy to teach
and follow. ‘Music mapping’ is a useful tool
for all instructors to learn – click HERE for
more information about this and other group
fitness teaching tips.
Movement progressions
All basic exercises in the water can be
varied to increase intensity. The focus of
these progressions is to build strength and
increase cardiovascular and respiratory
endurance. This can be achieved by
increasing the intensity of the movement via
increasing speed, power, acceleration and
propulsion.
50 | NETWORK SUMMER 2018
The Aquatic Fitness Professional Manual produced by the Aquatic
Exercise Association states each workout can progress through
various levels of impact and include numerous hand positions, all
contributing to variations in intensity.
For example, working a base move from:
• upright neutral position with hands slicing water
• increase power and acceleration working with open palms
• add plyometric variation
• add suspended variation.
Movement regressions
All base moves can be pared back to isolate both arms, or a single
arm or leg. These movement regression workouts have a multitude
of benefits, with the moving limb targeting specific muscle groups
while the rest of the body experiences a stability, balance and core
strength workout.
This can be achieved using the ‘4,3,2,1 Method’. Start with a dynamic
movement, such as Cross Country Ski, working both arms and both
legs in the sagittal plane, and end with isolating a single arm or leg.
For example:
• (4 limbs) working two arms and two legs
• (3) working two arms and one leg, or two legs and one arm
• (2) working one arm and one leg
• (1) isolating one arm or one leg.
The posterior chain
The posterior chain describes a group of muscles, including back
muscles, gluteus maximus, hamstrings and calves. Its function is to
allow the body to perform movements safely, as well as to return and
stabilise the body in the upright position.
The muscles of the posterior chain are often underutilised,
particularly in circumstances where individuals sit for 8 to 10 hours
per day. The longer the body remains in the seated position, the more
the hip flexors and quadriceps tighten, which can eventuate in the
glutes ‘forgetting’ their primary role as hip stabiliser and extensors.
Programming workouts and educating participants about the
importance of strengthening the posterior chain is vital for assisting
participants to move with better function on land.
To ensure the focus of a workout is on the posterior chain, trainers
can adapt any base move to use the ‘1:3 method’. For example, a
‘one leg kick’ movement can be varied from the standard ‘front to
back and repeat’ to ‘one front kick and three back kicks’.
Brain training workouts
Simple coordination-based exercises improve brain function as
well as coordination by helping clients engage the mind and create
better body awareness. Recent research conducted by Cheng has