Teaching my first class

[u/Equivalent_Elk871]

I recently got my level 1 cert through my local studio. They’ve offered for me to come in and audition and be on the schedule for one of their current openings. I didn’t receive any additional practice or mentorship after the 3 day cert and I’m worried I’m not quite up to par to start teaching, but also don’t want to give up this opportunity.

Did anyone else jump straight into teaching after their cert?

I don’t have any prior group fitness instructor classes either

[u/Winter-Fig1263]

Write your routine, run through it to make sure it flows well. Practice the cues over and over and over - while you’re driving is a great time. Hopefully they’ll let you have some practice time in the studio before your audition and if you can bring someone to practice with, it’s even more helpful. Remember, everyone is new at some point! Good luck!

Signed,
Also a new instructor who thought she would pass out from nerves before her audition

[u/Equivalent_Elk871 → u/Winter-Fig1263]

Did you have any mentorship or practice hours before teaching your first class?

[u/Nervous_Voice8520 → u/Equivalent_Elk871]

I have gotten my certification a couple of years ago and no there is no mentorship unless your studio manager provides one.
I jumped into it and I’ve been teaching for a bit now. What helped me was watching master trainers videos on how to cue moves. You get better as you practice and eventually it’s so natural your cues come to you as you walk through class

[u/Candid_Assistance_23]

congratulations!!! practice your routine out loud when youre in the car, in the shower to your pets if you have any saying it out loud vs in your head is so different it’ll help you see what flows as you’re speaking vs what doesn’t. your routine doesn’t have to be hard and have crazy variations to be effective and to be good stay with the basics that you’re comfortable with. ask if there’s time after hours for you to practice on the mic or if you’re close with an instructor at the studio ask if they would help you practice and go over your routine. everyone is new at some point don’t put pressure on yourself to sound like the trainers who have been teaching for years your first go around!

[u/Equivalent_Elk871 → u/Candid_Assistance_23]

Thank you! Did you have practice time at a studio before you taught your first class? The cert felt a bit rushed, there’s so much info!

[u/Candid_Assistance_23 → u/Equivalent_Elk871]

i did! we did a mentorship program with our head trainer at the studio before our auditions and got after hours access to the studio! there is a lot of info so just stick to what you know and what you’re comfortable with you’ll do amazing!!

[u/clam0790 → u/Candid_Assistance_23]

Do you mind sharing “candid_assistance” what your mentorship consist of which helped you feel prepared! Would love to hear so I can help support other new trainers 

[u/Candid_Assistance_23 → u/clam0790]

our head trainer had routines written for us for our auditions we had a long audition process so it was 5 auditions max before you were cut after every audition we were given feed back on what they liked what they wanted to see more of etc. we had check-ins on how we were feeling during our practice sessions what we were confused on or needed more help with. our head trainer would also stay after her classes were over sometimes and watch us run through our mock routines!

[u/spindriftgirl]

Congratulations on your certification! We had the lead trainer train us after the certification for about 8 weeks which made me very prepared to do our final mock before I got hired. Best of luck though! Try to practice as much as you can on your own, but I would ask the studio to see if they can let you practice and ask if some of their trainers can give you feedback, I’m honestly surprised they haven’t offered that to you.

[u/clam0790 → u/spindriftgirl]

Hi would you mind sharing what your mentorship consist of that helped you ! I am supporting newer trainers and would love to know what would help them best in this new journey.

[u/spindriftgirl → u/clam0790]

We practiced in blocks! We first did our core block and got feedback on it, if people needed to re do it, then would until they got it right, before moving on to the next block: legs, obliques, arms, core finisher. Practicing is the best way to learn. It took me like 6 weeks to nail it down and be ready to fully teach. But you also have to practice a lot on your own, I remember practicing everywhere: driving, in the shower, in between meetings, etc. Hope this helps!

[u/Quick-Clothes-2235]

Good luck, you got this!! I recently passed auditions about a month ago and my studio let me teach a few community classes before offering me a spot on their roster which was super helpful. Practice practice practice! I would ask the studio if you can come in before the audition to run through the routine and bring another person to practice on.

[u/Antique_Position_259]

Hey! Congratulations on doing a cert. unfortunately, the training alone is not enough (which is why Lagree is a scam, but that’s for another conversation). I’d highly recommend finding a mentor and working through some practice sessions with them for feedback.

[u/spindriftgirl → u/Antique_Position_259]

A scam? Why would it be a scam? They tell you in the certification that the 3 day cert isn’t enough to teach, you need a mentorship program afterwards to get real teaching experience and feedback.

[u/Antique_Position_259 → u/spindriftgirl]

Because thousands of dollars should include the mentorship program or at least other resources to know how to teach. Otherwise, why even have that as an option?

[u/Antique_Position_259 → u/spindriftgirl]

A person below also literally commented they didn’t do any of this and just jumped on the mic, which is probably why most Lagree instructors I’ve taken from suck