Laura’s small community is grieving over a recent tragedy. As she prepared for her Saturday ride she scoured the web to find information on how to teach grieving students. Today she shares her thought process as she prepared for her class and encourages a dialogue so that others will have information to draw upon if faced with a similar situation.Read more…

In their book, “The Power of Moments: Why Certain Experiences Have Extraordinary Impact,” the Heath Brothers describe how certain experiences leave a lasting impact and change us. These can happen anywhere. Have you encountered such a moment as an instructor; an experience that changed you? How might you create these, either for yourself or for others?
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Today we lost Ed King, the guitarist for the iconic southern rock group Lynyrd Skynyrd. He’s the one whose voice can be heard counting down at the very beginning of their most famous hit, “Sweet Home Alabama.” Here are a few tracks you can sprinkle into your playlists as a tribute to one of the more recognizable southern rock groups in the country.Read more…

As instructors, we become accustomed to being the center of attention. Even if we’re never totally comfortable with it, it becomes routine. We implicitly agree when we take the mic that we will be evaluated by our participants. But what goes through your head (and your heart) when you’re REALLY being evaluated on your ability to lead? Are you open to constructive feedback?Read more…

Today’s landscape of fitness classes is a vast array of choices both for participants and instructors. When it comes to indoor cycling, in some situations you are bound by the style your facility expects, in other situations you are at a licensed facility required to teach specific formats by the book, and in others your imagination is the only limit. The goal of this article is to answer the question, regardless of the style, format, or intention of the class you teach…are you a true fitness professional?Read more…

Last week one of the club managers came to take my class to do some reconnaissance in order to figure out my secret for filling my classes. Here are 15 things I do for every class that few of the other instructors do—these are likely the reasons why I have a waiting list and they don’t.Read more…