Motivate and Retain Your Fitness Clients

THREE SIMPLE TIPS TO CREATE A CLASS EXPERIENCE THAT DRIVES LONG-TERM PARTICIPATION

By STRONG Nation™

Today, the fitness industry is more competitive than ever. New workouts, new technology, and a younger customer base with new expectations have all changed the rules of the game. It is more than just a workout now—people are looking for an experience.

Here are three key factors that will help motivate students, increase attendance in your classes, and drive the intention to return to your fitness studio.

1. The effect music has on workouts.

Talk about the power of music! The vast majority of us say that fun music and a good workout go hand-in-hand—and science attests to that. Music affects the mind profoundly. It acts as a positive distraction and diverts the attention from the discomfort of the exercise, the awareness of the fatigue, helping push through and work harder. Translation: less pain, more gain!

Two of the most important qualities of workout music are tempo—or speed— and what psychologists call “rhythm response.” Most people have an instinct to synchronize their movements and expressions with music. The rhythm of the music while working out stimulates the motor area of the brain to trigger them to know when to move, thereby aiding self-paced exercises.

STRONG Nation™ is a new type of HIIT program that uses both tempo and speed to create original, custom-crafted music to sync and match every move.

We use music as a tool to motivate people to move and unleash their power, so they can reach and surpass their transformation goals.

2. The “group effect” and sense of community.

The “group effect” plays a powerful role in positively influencing a club member’s overall workout experience— their enjoyment, satisfaction, exertion, and their intention to return. We know that people are more likely to adhere to an exercise program when they work out with others. The more group interaction, the more the group impacts and heightens an individual’s effort throughout the workout.

Altogether, the music, the routine, the synchronization, and a motivational instructor in a group fitness class creates a positive group effect and experience that improves individual fitness outcomes. This is precisely the type of results members are eagerly looking for. But now we know it does more: the group aspect of the classes is a key factor in keeping people motivated and drives long-term participation.

3. Adding a unique class to your schedule.

Setting your class offering apart from your competition can make all the difference in the success of your studio. Adding a unique class to your existing rotation can help increase class attendance. A great example of this is STRONG Nation™. In this workout, fitness-aficionados are gifted with an experience that is powered by original music and movements that are synchronized to every beat. Every squat, every lunge, every burpee is driven by the music, helping students make it to that last rep, and maybe even five more.

This is a workout where music is certainly not an afterthought. It has all the key factors to create a positive group effect like we mentioned above and aims to increase the motivation of the class. And hey, you never know, this just might be the class that will help you forge long-term relationships with your current tribe, and a new wave of members.

Interested in training your team members to teach STRONG Nation™? Use code TSCAN55 to receive 55 per cent off a STRONG Nation™ instructor training. To learn more on how to bring STRONG Nation™ to your location, contact our Gym Relations team at gyms@zumba.com.

STRONG Nation™ is a revolutionary high-intensity workout where music is created to match every move, pushing students harder to give it everything they have got, and then some. Using only their body weight, STRONG Nation™ will test their strength and stamina in a powerful cardio and muscle-conditioning session in one, all led by music.