The Indoor Cycle Instructor Podcast. This website presents the worlds best Indoor Cycling instructors, presenters and industry leaders. They discuss a broad range of topics from teaching and presentation skills to class ride profiles to promoting your class and so much more. I found them after learning that my pedal-on buddy SpinBob was featured for his discussion on Mentoring. They have lots of great advice, so if you teach Indoor Cycling, I encourage you to check them out!

http://www.indoorcycleinstructor.com

For those of you who teach your classes with a message…
For those who are constantly searching for the right blend of words to not just convey an action but a feeling…
For those who do these things, but find yourself without the right words from time to time…

…have I got a blog for you!!! (I mean, besides this one! LOL)

I just read STAR 3 Spinning Instructor Melissa Marotta’s Spinning Blog. Whoa. She spills her guts on pretty much every page, and leaves lots of gems along the way. Her posts are long, but reading even just one of them left me with tons of content for reaching out to my students on a deeper level than just “sweat, baby, sweat!” I am even going to apply some of her trains of thought to my Pilates and Yoga classes. I think you’ll like this resource, too. She’s going on the blogroll.

http://spintastic.blogspot.com

Getting back on the bike after my maternity hiatus has been an amazing learning experience for me. I have not worked my way into a permanent class slot, so all of my practicing and tweaking has been just for me. But the new insights I’ve gained into my own body and how I’m feeling and functioning right now are only going to improve the quality of the classes I will be teaching in the future, no doubt.

In that light, I’d like to present another Endurance Profile for you to digest this week. I call it the “Know Thyself” ride, because it is meant to allow your riders to explore what is happening within themselves while Spinning. This ride will keep the heart rate under 80% for the entire duration. Naturally, if you have riders who need to top this heart rate, the ride can be easily modified for their needs without sacrificing the experience for your other students.
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Another great contribution by guest blogger, Biray Alsac!

Biray Alsac
http://fittmaxxinstitute.com
http://befitwithbiray.com

 It’s refreshing to meet a gym member who is a ‘first-timer’ to a health club or a newbie to our group exercise classes. You know the ones – they aren’t very fitness-savvy, are overwhelmed by the classes available on the schedule, and aren’t entirely familiar with gym culture. But, bless their hearts, they are open to trying something new.

As instructors, we love these people. Why? Because it gives us an opportunity to dispel any myths about group exercise and a chance to create an experience that will hopefully motivate them to come back for more – not scare them away.

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This is, to me, one of the most moving stories of athleticism I’ve read in a while: http://blog.oregonlive.com/breakingnews/2008/04/the_best_tale_of_sportsmanship.html

I hope you find some inspiration in there to pass along as you continue working to make the world a better place!

Best wishes,
Krista

So it’s the middle of winter.  The cold weather has set in and your body has switched into energy conservation mode.  Maybe it isn’t the weather though.  Maybe something has happened to leave you feeling less giving, less motivated, less able to make it to your classes with a smile on your face.  Whatever the reason, wherever it came from you’ve got it…  You’re slumping.  The thought of leading a group of students to fitness nirvana leaves you cold.  How do you pick it up and find your joy of teaching again?  Not only for your sake, but the sake of your students?

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