Category — Tips

So, as promised, here is the followup post to 12 Things you can do right now to fall in love with teaching again. Because it was geared toward indoor cycling instructors and Spinning instructors, you might have found it a bit unhelpful. So here you go Zumba, Kickboxing, Step, Sculpt, Hip Hop and Whatever-Style-You-Teach teachers… A list just for you!
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Don’t you love that “top-of-the-world” feeling? When you are bursting inside with inspiration, look forward to coaching and can’t wait until your next class begins? And yet, those times are few and far between. Usually, we are just in the grind, day in and day out, teaching and going through the motions. Are you suffering from the doldrums? More importantly, are YOUR CLASSES suffering as a result of your doldrums? Wouldn’t you like to fall in love with teaching again?

I’ve compiled a quick list of ways you can kick start your inspiration and get back on top of the world again. While this list has specific inspirations for indoor cycling and Spinning instructors, the advice can certainly be adapted for any type of fitness instructor or personal trainer. But don’t worry, I’ve already started a list for group fitness instructors, which will be posted in a day or two.

I just discovered a new site for getting music that has caused me to get not a drop of work done today!! The website is Masterbeat.com.  As an avid (and by “avid” I mean rabid, mouth-foaming with excitement) fan of dance remixes, I could not contain my excitement while perusing their outstanding collection of remixes, electronica, and dance music.  So here’s a no-brainer:  What’s better for our Spinning Profiles and Group Fitness Classes than music the participants know and love?  Answer: Music they know and love with a beat that makes them want to dance!

I know you are going to find something here you can’t live without. I just listened to the Top Ten List in the Right-Hand menu and cannot wait to start putting a ride together for this! I’m setting to work on that playlist and I will share when I’ve got it together. I’ll also have to figure out how to link directly to a song — so far I’m only getting albums. But I digress. Get there. Go now! Grab your headphones and start downloading!! Here’s that website again:

Masterbeat.com

You know you want to dance!!

Raise your hand if you downloaded the Mamma Mia mix from last week’s Step Choreography post and were totally rocking it out, loving the energy, partying like a rock star and then WHAM!!!  Deafening obnoxious pause as track 1 ended and the CD player waited for track 2 to begin?  ARRRRGH!!!   I imagine that when an elephant trips and falls it feels about the same as having that irritating 2 second lull interrupt your flow.  I can’t stand it in my Spinning or Pilates classes either, which is why I started DJ’ing my music long ago.  You can too!  There are ways to avoid that annoying pause, but beware — it could take a bit of effort.
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GroupFitPower is very excited to be adding iTunes to our playlists and choreography notes.  Now, in addition to accessing songs and playlists on Napster, you will have links to open the same great music in iTunes as well!  No more copy/pasting or endless searching to make these great profiles go with iTunes.   It will take some time for archived profiles to be updated, so please be patient as we add iTunes to old posts.  I’ll be working from most popular to least popular — if you have a request, please leave me a comment and I’ll be happy to get to those as quickly as I can!

Here is the first profile that’s been updated.  I hope you find the new style useful.  Feel free to provide feedback on how it could be more readable/usable!  Check out the 90-min Endurance Ride

Thanks to all of you for helping make this the go-to site for Group Fitness and Indoor Cycling choreography, profiles and playlists!

Here is another outstanding contribution from Biray Alsac on a topic of great personal interest to me!  Music plays a very large role in how our classes are received, so I know you will appreciate this great info from Biray!

Music Outside the JukeBox!
By Biray Alsac

It’s no secret – music can make or break any group fitness class. Without good tunes, members may tune out (or listen to their iPod while exercising to their own beat). So, instructors are always looking for new songs (or remix of old songs) that continue to engage and motivate participants.

With websites like iTunes, Napster and Pandora (a site that recommends new music based on songs you already like), there are endless opportunities to discover new material. But sometimes we don’t have time to search for new music or find different resources on the web. Read below to learn new ways to create your perfect soundtrack for class.

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