GROUP FITNESS
RAPPORT BUILDING 2020-STYLE
A year of disruption can take its toll on instructor-participant dynamics , writes Group fitness instructor Mel Morony . So , when it comes to re-establishing rapport , what can stay the same , what needs to be tweaked and what will need to take a back seat ?
I t ’ s something of an understatement to say that 2020 has been nothing like what any of us envisaged . On New Year ’ s Eve 2019 I envisaged a year ahead packed with teaching group fitness , travel to the US and Canada for an aqua conference and tour , and some trips to bushfire-affected parts of Australia to ‘ do my bit ’ in helping out their struggling economies .
Obviously in March everything stopped . For those of us who live in Melbourne that interruption to our normal lives went on considerably longer than the rest of the country – with the exception of a few weeks in June / July . Now , restrictions around the country are easing to varying degrees , and we ’ re certainly in a better position than most countries . While the possibility that a few front-runner vaccines will start to be administered soon is very encouraging , it isn ’ t a silver bullet for life returning to pre-pandemic normal , since distributing pharmaceuticals , particularly those requiring specific refrigeration conditions and durations , is a major logistical challenge .
An extended time of absence from our classes can result in us having a question of ‘ how ’ do we get back to where we were . After so many months , it is going to seem like we are getting to know our participants all over again . This will be particularly so if we have new classes and patrons to connect with . So , what is the way forward from here ? When it comes to rapport building , what can stay the same , what needs to be tweaked and what will need to go AWOL for a while ?
NETWORK SUMMER 2020 | 59