GROUP
MENTALITY
Sarah Leeves, Marketing Manager
at EMD UK, looks at how group
exercise can be utilised for sports
and why fitness professionals
should take note.
n 2007,
on a ranch
in northern
California,
a group of
70 athletes
gathered for the
inaugural CrossFit Games
competition.
I
They competed across events
that would test their ability ‘to
handle any and every task’.
Fast forward to 2020 and
CrossFit is booming across
the world and Games athletes
now compete for the title of
Fittest on Earth™. If the sport
of fitness, as CrossFit has
become known, is booming,
could group exercise be a
pathway to encourage people
to play sport?
8
FM
www.exerciseregister.org
The answer is yes. As it
currently stands, there are
nearly 400 different types of
group exercise, according to
Classfinder – the UK’s largest
database of group exercise
classes. From dance fitness to
yoga to HIIT training to aqua
classes, all tastes and abilities
are catered for. With major
sports competitions like Tokyo
2020 Olympic and Paralympic
Games fast approaching, there
are a wealth of opportunities
for fitness professionals to
get more clients through their
doors.
Who is inspired?
It is often thought that Olympic
and Paralympic Games create
spikes in physical activity.