Hello world!

Thanks for stopping by my fledgling little blog. She’s still just a little thing, but we’ve got big dreams over here and we are growing day by day. 🙂

As I experiment with writing about my passions (travel, fitness, and prepping for my Everest trip) I’ve noticed that so far my fitness related posts have gotten the most traffic of all. And I’m SO GLAD! Because I truly love writing about this stuff.

So, today’s post is fitness related in a bit more of a personal way: Why I LOVE Teaching Group Fitness

First, some background

I am a certified ACE (American Council of Exercise) Group Fitness Instructor and a Les Mills RPM instructor. I completed my Les Mills RPM initial training in October of 2013 (a life-changing weekend I will never forget!) and I’ve been teaching classes every week ever since.

From the first time I took a group fitness class as a participant, I was hooked, I knew I needed to teach these classes. Like love at first sight, I knew I was meant to do this. I could not believe I had gotten so far in life without knowing the world of group fitness existed. It felt like the universe was showing me my path in life.

What is Les Mills?

In short, Les Mills is an amazing fitness company based in New Zealand. They been around for years and years and provide (in my opinion) some of the most effective and exciting group fitness classes in the industry. Their classes cover almost every type of workout imaginable from strength training, yoga/pilates inspired movements, kickboxing, and my personal favorite, indoor cycling, among others. Wherever you are in the world, if you’ve ever had a gym membership, you may have encountered some of their classes. The most popular to date are BodyPump, BodyCombat, BodyFlow, and RPM.

I began my instructor journey about a year and a half after my first group fitness experience. My home gym was hosting a Les Mills RPM training and I could not pass up the opportunity. Becoming an instructor was very much a step outside of my comfort zone. I’m a bit of an introvert and I don’t really like being the center of attention, but when it comes to health and fitness those things don’t seem to apply.

My Personal Passion

The fact that my shyness seems to fade when I lead a class, or even talk about fitness, is near the top of my list for why I love teaching. And it’s not because I’m ashamed of being shy. That’s just who I am and part of what makes me, me. I think the excitement and extra confidence I feel when leading a class is just added proof that I am doing a thing in life that I am TRULY meant to be doing. It’s my passion. I found it, I pursued it, and I’m living it.

The Community

An instrumental part of any group fitness class is its participants. (I hear you saying “Duh”) Yes, we need bodies to fill the classes, but I’m talking about the connection that is made during a class. Fitness is a personal journey, but everyone needs a support group and some cheerleaders. And, that encouragement is the backbone of group fitness. Over the years, I’ve been able to follow the journey of several members and watch their bodies and lives transform because of their dedication to a healthy lifestyle.

I should also mention here, the great privilege it is to lead participants through their fitness journey. Even if it is just one class at a time. When leading a class, your workout isn’t really yours anymore. Your focus is on your participants making sure they have correct technique, completing the movements safely, and mostly, ensuring they are enjoying themselves. It really is a marvelous feeling to know you are helping someone through their fitness journey.

Every once in a while in the middle of a class, I’ll notice someone so focused on their workout who is also beaming ear to ear. That smile is everything to me. It’s hard to describe what I feel when I see it happen. It’s knowing we connected as participant and instructor, it’s a feeling of personal accomplishment for leading a decent class, it’s watching this person challenge themselves and succeed. It’s just everything.

Fitness Magic

Here is a bit of a personal story. I’m currently teaching a weekly Sunday morning class (at 8:30am). I’ve been teaching this class for years and I really love it. I have a die-hard group of regulars who rarely miss a class. Being a weekend class, we also see our fair share of brand new participants. It’s a fantastic mix of people. Like most gyms, ours is pretty sleepy on a Sunday morning. Sometimes it feels like the majority of the cars in the parking lot belong to my participants. I look forward to teaching this class every week.

However, sometimes Sunday mornings are hard. Sometimes the weekend gets away from you. Sometimes, I just want to sleep and enjoy an extra cup of coffee and snuggle in my bed.

Recently I had one of those mornings. I stayed up too late the night before, and in a bit of a panic to prepare for class, I woke up way too early. I had Thai food with a friend for dinner the night before and, well, my tummy was a little unsure at the prospect of a strenuous workout. I ran out of coffee at home and during my busy Saturday, I totally forgot to get more. (Being a coffee-addict, I drove to Starbucks around 6am for my fix.) This weekend, life happened.

While getting ready for class, I felt pretty grumpy. I was tired, my tummy hurt, and I was a little shaky from too much caffeine and not enough breakfast. I listened to my playlist on the way to the gym to prepare for class. I didn’t feel enthusiastic. I had switched out some new tracks for the class and I didn’t feel prepared with my choreography notes. I was pretty sure this class was going to SUCK. And I felt bad about it. Obviously, I want my participants to have the BEST experience EVER in every single class. And if I can’t make that happen, I feel pretty crappy. I don’t want to be the reason they have a bad experience.

I pulled into the gym and waited a few minutes before going in. I tried to summon some extra cheer and put on my best instructor “game face”. But it felt pretty forced.

I walked into the gym; I clocked in, grabbed the cycle room keys, and trudged through the gym floor to my room.

My Sunday morning regulars were waiting for me when I got there. We said our usual hellos as I began to set up the room. I turned on my music, I dimmed the lights, and as more people filed in something happened. For some mysterious reason, all my grumpiness faded. My tummy wasn’t bothering me any more. My panicked-prepping for the class didn’t seem to matter anymore. We were going to have a good time whether I missed a cue or not.

My participants showed up ready for a stellar work out. They were excited and I could feel their energy. One of my regulars mentioned she’d had a late night too and her husband convinced her not to miss class. (That’s dedication!)

There is some kind of magical positive energy that flows through the air right before a class. When I completed my Les Mills instructor training, they called this “Fitness Magic”. When everything comes together for a class. Sometimes, you can even feel goosebumps.

This magic is what I love most about teaching group fitness. Before I began teaching, I felt this jolt of energy too, I just didn’t know what to call it. These days it’s the energy of the participants combining with my personal passion for this stuff that creates something amazing. It is almost impossible to leave a group fitness class in a bad mood. It sets you up for a successful day, in body and mind.

 

Have you taken any Les Mills classes? Have you felt Fitness Magic too?

 

Comment below!