From warm up to cool down: how to deliver a group exercise experience that brings people back to your studio again and again.
Part 2 of Leila Neve’s new 5 part series on making group exercise classes work for you – and your PT business.
We’ve all been in those great classes that feel spontaneous and magical, and it’s easy to think that the best instructors just ‘feel the room’, make it up on the spot and somehow everything flows beautifully for them.
In reality, the instructors who look relaxed, confident and engaging aren’t necessarily better at the job than you are, they’re just usually the ones with the strongest frameworks behind the scenes.
In my last blog I wrote about how we as group exercise instructors can develop and use a framework to help us create an inclusive and positive first impression. In this post, we’re taking things one step further and creating a framework so that whether you’re teaching HIIT, spin, Pilates or circuits, the goal is the same: participants should leave feeling physically and emotionally better than when they arrived.
Frameworks don’t make classes rigid or boring – they do the opposite. They help participants to feel safe and reduce your mental load, giving you the freedom to be present, responsive and human.
Why a framework matters (more than you think)
Participants don’t come to class just for the gains and PBs. They come for:
- Social connection
- Mental health improvements
- To create movement competence
- Accountability
- Confidence building
- Motivation
As fitness professionals we need to remember that not everybody loves movement and exercise like we do (I know, weird right?!) and not everyone has a social job or home life. Your class might be the only time that some participants have to themselves where they can socialise, let off some steam and feel as though they are achieving something of their own.
Exercise may come naturally to us but throughout a class, participants are processing far more than just the exercises we’re asking them to perform. They’re constantly assessing how safe, capable and welcome they feel – even if they’re doing it subconsciously.
- What are we doing?
- Why are we doing it?
- How do I do it?
- How should I feel?
We do this job every day. We know that these questions are common and valid. But it’s important for us to remember that a participant can often feel like the only person to be struggling and can easily feel a failure. If we can address these questions before they arise, and repeat this throughout our session we can create and maintain that positive atmosphere which people will want to come back to.
Creating this framework is really easy and, as it can be applied to various scenarios, will become second nature in no time
First, think of how we can weave information and assurances into the warmup – chatting to your class as they perform their movements and letting them know what kind of session you have planned, how the session will run and how you plan to make the session inclusive is a great way to immediately put minds at ease
Secondly you would look for opportunities to repeat this information through the main body of your session by letting the class know what’s coming next, how many sets are left, when the next break is, repeat any different options etc.
The cool down is another opportunity to create a positive experience and connect with your participants by acknowledging that they did a great job and letting them know what they can expect to feel after the class.
Have a look at the example below and have a think how you could incorporate this into your current group exercise offering:
| Warm up | Briefly explain how the session is going to run e.g. “today we have a bodyweight cardio session – 40 seconds work, 10 seconds recover/transition time” Address injury/ability concerns e.g. “I know we have a couple of injuries in the room so I’ll be providing plenty of options. Keep your eyes on me and just give me a wave if you need anything” |
| Main session | Let your participants know what’s coming, what equipment they need etc. e.g. “ok let’s head into round 1 – you have squats, deadlifts and walking lunges so grab your bar and your 2 kettlebells”
Let them know where they are in their workload e.g. “come on team, this is your last set” or a simple “10 seconds left” |
| Cool down | Reassure participants that it’s normal to feel out of breath and sweaty and relate to how they feel e.g. “I’m glad you’re all out of breath too!” or “did anyone else feel those last squats as much as i did?!”
Let them know they may feel sore tomorrow and advise how they could deal with it |
This framework is a great tool on its own, but to really take your classes to the next level and make your classes the hottest ticket at your facility, we need to go further. Maya Angelou famously said “People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel”.
“People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel”. Maya Angelou
And this rings true for group exercise – people will forget that you asked the class if anyone had any injuries and people will forget that killer glute combo you came up with (once the DOMS have worn off) but they will always remember the instructor that made them feel welcome, who remembered that their child had been ill and asked how they were, who made them fall in love with exercise which helped them build their confidence.
Participants will only be passionate about making sure that they can come to YOUR classes because of the way YOU make them feel.
So whether you come alive leading a class or you would rather be anywhere else courtesy of a kindly hole in the ground opening up and whisking you away, I have a bonus tool to add to your framework which will help make your classes a more consistent, less energy draining experience for you – I like to call this tool my rolodex of happiness and it’s a mental file that I have which is full of ways that I can raise a smile in class:
- I love those trainers!
- Perfect squats over there! Seriously, I have zero notes!
- I see you lifting heavier than you usually do! Nicely done!
- Oo new hair colour? That looks great!
I pride myself on a great class playlist and if I hear someone say “I love this tune!” or they start singing along i’ll start singing it with them and have a dance (please note that I am being VERY flexible with the word ‘dance’ here – it’s a wiggle at best)
It’s important that you don’t just think of a handful of stock phrases to use in every class. We need to build genuine connections and it’s important that you be yourself; professional at all times, but still you.
The rolodex of happiness is such a great tool to use when you have new people in your class who may be feeling a little shy. Being included in some lovely comments and words of encouragement can immediately make people feel relaxed and part of the team.
So, next time you plan your classes, have a think about what you could include in your framework and some phrases that you could fill your rolodex of happiness with. I promise, once you see someone beaming from ear to ear because you like something that they wore or you told them that they’re doing a good job, you will make it a priority in every other class that you deliver.
Next time, we’ll be talking about how we can use the time between the cool down finishing and the participants leaving to make their experience even better.
Read part one of Leila Neve’s series on making group exercise work for you and your PT business on the FitPro blog.
Leila Neve
Leila Neve is an award-winning personal trainer and group exercise instructor with a BSc in Sport Science, specialising in physical rehab and motivational coaching. She is incredibly passionate about making health and movement accessible to all, her black Labrador, Leonard, and pretty much anything covered in cheese.
