Exercising Too Hard? Find a Quality Group Exercise Class

From my experience (and I am sure of many others) in the 1980s and early 90s, most aerobics classes were taught at such high impact during the duration of class the participants would leave with headaches, getting sick, or at the urge of getting sick. Little did these participants know their bodies were training at an anaerobic state which means the presence without oxygen when exercise intensity can no longer meet the metabolic demands of the muscles aerobically. Aerobic fitness on the other hand is where large muscle movement performed over a sustained period. The purpose of exercise is to help people become healthier and in return, live happier lives. Unfortunately, today there are still group exercise participants that believe the harder you exercise the better. They are under the impression that their bodies will not achieve results unless they endure pain or exercise to the point of fatigue. Let me be the first to tell you that you do not need to exercise at a high, continuous level during your aerobics class to see result. If you are new to exercise, please do not fall into this belief. “Pain No Gain” is a myth.

I remember teaching for a fitness company in the late 80s and being reprimanded because I did not teach the class at a non-stop high impact level. I refused to teach classes that were unsafe and after that day, I worked hard on designing my first fitness program called Interval Training. I was the first in the area to design an aerobics and weight training combination exercise program (today everyone is teaching similar class formats). The result is a super effective workout that gives three times the fat loss than aerobics alone. I also teach at various levels where beginners can easily follow and advanced exercisers can be challenged. However, I do not teach to the point of where a participant will feel sick or extreme fatigue. All participants in any class should feel great, energized, motivated, like they had a fun yet challenging workout, and looking forward to their next class. It is not necessary for an instructor to teach hard choreography or at an extreme exercise level unless it is in the class description. If a class description states that all fitness levels can participate, it better be just that.

It is not only important that group exercise instructors educate the public on exercise safety and motivation, but to go back to the basics of teaching. I noticed a decline in quality instructors, especially lately in several classes that I participated in or observed. It may be due to several of these instructors being “authorized” to teach a dance specialty class, yet they never taught group exercise in their lives. Or because the clubs they teach at are satisfied with just having a body to teach their classes and not care about the quality of their classes. It is unfortunate that most of these members assume that their classes are typical and do not know the difference of a quality group exercise class.

If you are a group exercise participant, look for the following attributes in your fitness instructor. If your instructor at your club does not have these, demand it.

• As a good Fitness Instructor, you should be able to design moves that will help your students get the most out of their workout - whether a beginner, intermediate or an advanced fitness participant.


• As a good Fitness Instructor, you will want everyone to feel welcome. Making eye contact, smiling, and keeping the students motivated during the session is VERY important!


• As a good Fitness Instructor, you should teach facing your student. You should be able to demonstrate each movement and make modifications for the beginner to the advanced students. You must also explain the benefits of each exercise and demonstrate how to do the exercise to prevent injury. Your main focus should be on helping your students understand the importance of improving (or maintaining) their health and not just on looking better on the outside!


• As a good Fitness Instructor, you should focus on making sure the class is fun, making their workout the best it can be and keeping them motivated.


• As a good Fitness Instructor, everyday you will have to keep up with your knowledge in fitness, stay connected with the Industry at all times, and give up-to-date fitness/health information for your students/clients. You will need to keep your certification/CPR up-to-date at all times too. You are not a medical professional, but you are a fitness professional that should be able to share your knowledge of fitness with your clients.