By Christina CastañedaThink of all the things you gain from a workout; the blood pumping through your veins, the endorphins flooding your brain, the feeling of triumph when you finish. But there is one more thing you gain from a workout that is often overlooked; knowledge. When The ClassRoom, an aerobics and fitness studio in Austintown, Ohio, opened in 2011, the owners found a new way to make their motto “a lesson in fitness” come alive with their mentoring program.

Opportunity for New Instructors

After opening their doors a few years ago, The ClassRoom made an effort to hire staff that emphasized both instruction and education. To achieve this goal, owner Alaina Ruber created a mentoring program to . “All new instructors to stick to the fundamentals of the Spinning® program,” says Alaina. “We began using a mentoring program to ensure we would have consistent, quality instructors.”

High Expectations

No instructor at The ClassRoom is exempt from the mentorship program, even subs or highly experienced instructors. “We mentor all new instructors that we hire,” says Alaina. “This helps us express our expectations clearly as well as ensure that all instructors represent our brand and the Spinning program correctly so our studio members can benefit.”

Teamwork

So far, this mentoring program has been a tremendous success. A factor for that success was understanding the value collaboration and providing each other with a well-thought critique. By making extra time and carefully coordinating schedules, the studio can team teach with shared classes for new instructors, conduct playlist reviews and full-class observations. They also have members provide comments and feedback by conducting member surveys.

Expanding Programming:

After multiple surveys and careful considerations, the ClassRoom became more conscious of the increasing senior population. When it came time to consider new programming and class schedules,  the staff knew which classes and what considerations to take to cater to the senior demographic.

Professional Development and Growth

For Alaina, it’s not enough to bring a good workout, but instead bring the purpose of the lesson in fitness is to allow riders to “leave with more fitness knowledge then they came with.” According to Alaina, “the professional development opportunities to share ideas and keep all instructors up to date.” This provides the long term win-win as riders are safe and expand their knowledge while experiencing a fun workout.

The Result

Aside with the growing senior population, many members of the ClassRoom are also college students that travel between home and school. “One of our members was encouraged to become a Spinning instructor by the instructor at her university because of her good form and fundamentals,” says Alaina.All the lessons pay off when riders, like Alaina’s college student, can proudly say that she “learned from the best instructors at The ClassRoom in Austintown.”For more about making your fitness business thrive, subscribe to our newsletter!