0:00

Hello friends , welcome to

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the final episode of 2023

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. Oh , my goodness , I

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have another episode coming out next week

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about the highs and lows of my last

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year and talking a lot about my

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grief experience at the end of 2023

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. But today we are focusing on one

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of my favorite topics , which is the trends

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I'm seeing in the fitness industry

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, and I'm using it and framing it with the

0:25

ins and outs trend that's

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been going on on social media that I posted

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a few days ago about

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indoor cycling coaches and instructors

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, because I've been

0:37

in it for a while and I've seen , I

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feel like this , like like wise

0:42

old grandma at this point of

0:44

like the things that I see

0:46

kind of come around trend-wise

0:48

and

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I'm really hoping that some of my predictions or

0:52

some of the things that I'm I'm hoping for

0:54

also help you if

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you are an indoor cycling professional or coach or

0:59

somebody who's even remotely

1:01

interested in the fitness world , because

1:04

I think that there's some things that have just like . They've

1:06

just like . It's just time , you know

1:08

, it's just time for us to stop doing this thing . I

1:11

also wanted to take a moment and thank you all

1:13

for listening . Over the last

1:15

year , this has been the biggest year of growth for

1:17

the podcast . I've had the most amount

1:20

of new listeners , I've had the most amount of

1:22

downloads , I've recorded

1:24

and published the most amount of podcast

1:26

episodes and I've had the most guests

1:29

, some of which have been

1:31

Anna Edie

1:33

, and we started this off in January

1:35

with the episode on boundaries

1:37

and being brave . Then I

1:39

had an excerpt from the masterclass

1:42

with Christina Giraud in February . Then

1:44

I had Andrea Cowan-Howan

1:47

, who used to go by Ugly Growth

1:49

on Instagram , and so we talked

1:51

about becoming wild and worthy

1:53

with subconscious freedom . Then

1:56

we had Jen Foster , who was

1:58

a holistic nutritionist talk about menstruation

2:02

and how not to hate your period . Then

2:04

we had Krista Gurka , who is a

2:06

boutique fitness studio owner

2:09

coach , and we talked about scaling

2:11

your studio to seven figures . We

2:13

had Ryan Jones , which actually feels like it

2:15

happened last year because I've been connected with

2:17

Ryan's for so long and I just love him . This is

2:19

one of my favorite episodes and actually the

2:22

most popular episode of this year

2:24

. So Ryan Jones

2:26

, who's a senior soul cycle instructor , on

2:28

a authenticity and mindset , on the podium

2:31

. Then we had Mariana Salazar

2:33

, who is the creator of the

2:35

Experience from Mexico , and we talked about how

2:38

she created the Experience , the event and

2:41

the indoor cycling trends in

2:43

Mexico . It was amazing . We

2:45

had House of Ride founders Harry French

2:47

and Felicia Paris on teaching at multiple studios

2:49

, indoor cycling trends and taking control of her fitness

2:51

career . Then I

2:53

had Zach Sharers making noise in the fitness

2:55

industry in July and

2:58

then I finished . I rounded out

3:00

the year with Cortland Fizakis

3:03

in September from

3:05

a guest perspective . So we have those

3:07

are just the guest episodes . There's other tons of other

3:09

episodes that we have had that were just

3:11

solo episodes , and so thank you so much

3:13

to my guests and thank you so much to all of you

3:16

for listening , because I truly feel

3:18

like this is sort of the beginning of

3:20

yes , you can , and I am really

3:22

so excited to see where we go

3:24

in 2024 . I have

3:26

some really great ideas and dreams , but

3:28

I'm also just building

3:30

on the success that I've had and taking a moment

3:33

to celebrate the fact that I did this

3:35

, because it's not easy . I don't get paid . To do

3:37

the podcast Like this is truly just

3:39

a labor of love , and I'm really proud

3:41

that I've stuck with it and that it's grown , because

3:43

we're just hit our three year anniversary . Okay

3:45

, so let's get into the ins

3:47

and outs that I'm going to describe

3:50

to you for fitness instructors and I

3:52

posted a reel that's been

3:54

popular over the last few days , and so

3:56

these are trends that I see . So

3:58

, in collaboration , let's do the in list

4:01

first . Actually , let's do the outlets first . Let's

4:03

do the outs list first . So

4:05

out is feeling guilty for getting a sub

4:07

. Transparently . I have needed a lot of subs in December

4:10

. I've had some personal stuff happen I

4:12

talk that you will likely be aware of if you

4:14

are on my social media . I lost

4:17

a friend , I have

4:19

had a horse that's been really sick and

4:22

I have been sick I'm actually sick right now as I'm

4:24

recording this but I am

4:26

committed to doing this . I've needed a

4:28

sub for a few classes and I'm

4:30

so done with feeling guilty for getting

4:32

a sub , because I don't

4:35

want anybody else to feel guilty either , and if

4:37

you are a writer who comes to our

4:39

classes , I'm not gonna shame you for not coming

4:42

. So why would I feel guilty ? So that is self-explanatory

4:44

. We are out . We are done with feeling guilty for getting subs

4:47

. Number two comparing

4:50

class sizes and obsessively checking

4:52

registrations . This is something I've intentionally

4:54

done over the last year is peaking

4:57

in a few times to see what

4:59

the numbers are for the class and who's

5:01

in it , but not doing the

5:03

thing where I was , like basically having

5:06

the window open and like clicking refresh

5:08

like every hour , like

5:10

it's just not worth it . It's not worth

5:12

it to see who's cancelled and to have that in

5:14

your mind as to wonder why

5:16

they cancelled and take it upon yourself

5:19

to be like , oh , it's something personal , it's not . It's

5:21

literally not personal . People's lives . They

5:23

happen , and sometimes it's your

5:25

schedule . That is the thing that gets in the way

5:28

. Of course , getting data and keeping

5:30

track of trends is helpful and

5:32

that's something we do inside Instructor Magic , which

5:35

PS is opening in January . So

5:37

get on the wait list if you're not already there . But

5:39

this mindset of like being obsessed with your numbers

5:42

we're just done with it , like it doesn't

5:44

mean anything about you as an instructor , and

5:46

there's such a it's . It's truly

5:49

a science of using

5:51

an ingredients list to create

5:53

a wait listed class , and I know how to do that . I'm

5:55

happy to teach you how to do that . But if

5:58

it's not happening for you , it doesn't mean you're a terrible instructor

6:00

or that you're not worthy . So we are not going

6:02

to be checking registrations and comparing

6:05

class sizes , because that is the thief of joy

6:07

. And if you need more on comparison , being

6:09

the thief of joy , go listen to the Ryan Jones podcast

6:11

episode . Okay , overly

6:13

complicated and performative choreography

6:16

. This was something that we , zach and I

6:18

, discussed in our episode and what

6:20

I've seen a lot of in the last two

6:22

years specifically is choreography that

6:24

is like sequences that are obscenely

6:27

long and also

6:31

feel performative in the way that

6:33

only the

6:35

instructor and very few

6:37

riders actually are getting

6:39

the choreography . I think there's a difference

6:41

between intentional choreography

6:44

sequences where you know

6:46

you should be challenging your

6:48

riders beyond the level they're

6:50

at , but just beyond the level they're

6:52

at , not way or far beyond

6:54

the level that they're at to

6:57

achieve a certain sequence

6:59

of choreography . But it is intentional . It

7:02

is building on what you've been doing with this

7:04

room for a while . You're not stepping

7:06

in and saying , okay , we're

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gonna be doing this 32 count

7:10

sequence and it is at

7:12

a speed of a 130 BPM out

7:14

of the saddle and your riders

7:16

are just barely

7:19

able to maintain a 130 out of the

7:21

saddle at all . So

7:23

there is a difference between choreography

7:25

that is performative AKA just for

7:27

you and maybe one other rider and

7:30

you're still doing it anyway versus choreography

7:32

that really is aspirational

7:35

but also attainable to

7:37

at least 50% of the room . So 50%

7:39

of the room should be your barometer of

7:43

getting it and actually being able to

7:45

maintain it to delivering

7:47

new sequences of choreography . If you want

7:50

more help with this , you can sign

7:52

up for Instructor Magic or you can grab

7:54

the choreography vault at any point , which

7:56

is my at this point . It

7:58

is 10 videos where I am delivering

8:00

choreography tutorials and I'm showing you

8:02

how to build and layer effectively

8:04

, and that is also a bonus when you sign up

8:06

for Instructor Magic within a large timeframe

8:09

. So there's a lot of resources I have

8:11

on choreography specifically , especially the

8:13

videos that you are welcome to grab at

8:15

any point , and I'll put both links in the shout-outs

8:17

. Okay , shaming

8:19

clients for canceling one to two

8:21

times . So this is there's clients

8:24

who are repeat offenders who will sign

8:26

up for classes and then cancel or

8:29

not show up consistently

8:32

, and this is not who I'm talking about . I'm talking

8:34

the one to two times . Like you

8:36

know , if somebody's going through something and they

8:38

cancel they don't wanna then also feel

8:40

guilty for cancelling

8:43

, because they probably already do . There's

8:45

so many things that happen in life , like

8:47

kids being sick , you being sick , just

8:50

not mentally being there , and there's , for

8:52

whatever reason they've decided that they're not coming to

8:54

class , and that is totally fine and it's not

8:56

really up to you to police them or like double

8:59

down on them

9:01

. The studio should have a fee

9:03

that's applied for late cancels and they'll take

9:05

that , they'll eat that and that's fine . But

9:08

I see instructors like really overly

9:11

going after the cancellations

9:13

and it's just , there is a

9:15

limit , right ? Because even if it really bothers

9:17

you and irks you and for sure I've been there with you it's

9:20

the energy that you are putting off

9:22

as an instructor on your personal

9:24

platform , on your with your personal

9:27

brand . I personally

9:29

don't wanna be the person who's like , who

9:31

you're afraid to have

9:33

a conversation with about not coming to class . I don't wanna

9:35

be the person people are like afraid is gonna shame

9:38

you for not coming for whatever reason

9:40

. I wanna encourage you . I don't wanna hold you accountable

9:42

, for sure , but there's a limit to

9:44

where that accountable that exists with instructors . I think

9:46

. Okay , copying

9:49

creators' choreography and content without giving

9:51

credit Now this is honestly this

9:54

has pissed me off . In the last year . This has really

9:56

pissed me off . I have had multiple

9:58

brands copy

10:02

my stuff to the point where

10:04

it is like you see me post something

10:06

that is my original content and

10:09

a few days later they will have the exact

10:11

same post with maybe

10:13

a few changes , using

10:15

my ideas or even

10:18

copying

10:20

the core curriculum of

10:22

Instructor Magic and using

10:24

my brand . Copy Like this is all stuff

10:26

I have put my blood , sweat and tears into

10:29

, and so , as the content creator , I

10:31

get really frustrated and I've had to really

10:33

unfollow or mute

10:35

these brands , because

10:37

I get that social media

10:39

is a creative space and

10:41

we take inspiration , but there's , I

10:43

think there's a limit when I see people specifically

10:46

basically duplicating my stuff or

10:49

using my brand , messaging of like waitlisted

10:51

classes , level up , fill classes , change lives

10:53

and like tweaking little bits of

10:55

it and then even

10:57

using the trends that I'm creating , or

10:59

like I'm using a trending sound and I use

11:01

it in a certain way , I lip sync it in a certain

11:04

way , and I see them

11:06

take my sound , my like it'll

11:08

be like Hannah Rose-Benn , like original sound because

11:10

I've forgotten to link it to the trending

11:13

one , and they'll do the exact same thing

11:15

and not credit me and I'm just like I

11:17

don't get it . I truly do not get

11:19

it , but it has frustrated me , I think

11:22

, because I talked

11:24

about copycats

11:27

and I have a whole episode on it and

11:29

I also have this like this background of being

11:31

in communications and being a college instructor

11:33

who I have to make

11:35

sure that Students are not plagiarizing

11:37

or copying , and there's that , there's appropriate

11:40

citations . And so I get frustrated

11:42

when I see social media being

11:45

a space where I feel I do feel

11:47

ownership over what I create and I do

11:49

feel ownership over my intellectual property and

11:52

I see it just being sort of blatantly used

11:55

. I also get frustrated when I see instructors

11:59

doing the same exact

12:01

choreography as some

12:03

of the people who are , I think , the the

12:06

leading drivers of trends

12:08

in our industry , without crediting

12:10

them appropriately , so literally like

12:13

we see Christina Giroux drop new choreography

12:15

I would argue that her

12:17

choreography has been the driver

12:19

of trends and indoor cycling for the

12:21

last few years and I can recognize

12:24

it really well and I absolutely

12:26

, if I have used any of her stuff , I give

12:28

her credit in class , I give her credit on social media

12:30

, I love her as a person and

12:33

when I see people not doing that , I'm like we

12:37

all know that that move didn't come

12:39

from you and so it's just

12:41

. I think that we are we're lagging a

12:43

bit behind the general

12:45

rules of engagement with with

12:48

drawing

12:50

inspiration and then quite

12:52

literally copying somebody without actually

12:54

giving credit . It's like in

12:56

the dance world . That would be frowned

12:58

upon in marketing communications

13:01

, that would be absolutely grounds for dismissal

13:03

. But for some reason we haven't quite

13:05

caught up yet , and so giving credit

13:08

is like it's not

13:10

taking anything away from you . In fact , it's

13:12

showing such a level of maturity that I appreciate

13:14

and I love and I respect , and

13:17

so you have to be respectable

13:19

in your industry to be able to grow in

13:21

it , and that's just something I want to encourage everybody to do

13:23

. You might not have done it intentionally either

13:25

. I know for sure a fact there's people

13:28

who are copying me intentionally , and you know

13:30

what Imitation , I guess , is the best form of flattery . I

13:32

also know that there never . It's like it's

13:34

like the bring it on movie , you know

13:36

, and it's like there's going to be a limit to

13:38

your success if you're constantly just

13:40

copying . So say case rah

13:43

, rah , rah , but getting on to the

13:45

next one , teaching 20 classes a week . So

13:47

teaching an obscene amount of classes to me

13:49

is not sustainable , both as

13:52

you progress in your age , injuries

13:54

, and I think

13:57

that for me it used to be a moment

13:59

of or like a point of pride to

14:01

be able to teach a certain amount of classes . I think

14:03

the most I taught was like seven or eight consistently

14:05

on the schedule and now I'm down to three

14:08

and that is with

14:10

a full time or nearly full time job of teaching

14:12

at the college , with instructor magic , with all the other things

14:14

, my horse , all the other things I'm doing Like

14:16

that is totally enough and it

14:18

feels good . But it's only because I've gone

14:21

, I've burnt myself

14:23

out physically , that I know that this is what I can do

14:25

and this is what I want to

14:27

do right now . But

14:29

for those of you who are wanting to teach more and more

14:31

classes , just ask yourself why . And if

14:33

it's a financial reason , I really

14:35

encourage you to look at how

14:37

you can make various income

14:40

streams that are outside of teaching . So

14:42

for me , of course , instructor magic , podium

14:44

, perhaps the choreography vault , all the coaching I do

14:46

that helps that

14:48

supplement and create passive streams of income . So

14:51

I don't need to be on the podium every

14:54

day to be able to make money . And

14:56

if I'm sick I can still . I

14:59

still have a business that's moving and thriving without me . So

15:01

teaching 20 classes a week

15:03

I just don't think is sustainable

15:05

. I don't think it should be something we're striving towards . I

15:08

think quality over quantity

15:10

is always great . Next

15:14

one relying on spin as your only form of therapy . I'll

15:16

probably come out with an unpopular stance on this at some

15:18

point . But when people say

15:20

spin is therapy , like it is a form of therapy , sure

15:23

, it should not be your only therapy . There

15:26

should be multiple other modalities

15:28

of therapy , whether that's meditation , whether that's

15:30

talk therapy with a therapist , whether

15:32

that is like physical , another

15:34

physical release . But I see

15:36

people who use spin as their only

15:38

form of therapy and it is not healthy , and

15:41

so that's my unpopular stance . It's not therapy . It is a form of therapy

15:43

. It could feel therapeutic , I'm sure

15:45

, but

15:48

it is not going to be the person holding up the mirror

15:50

to you and really working through , giving

15:52

you different ways to cope and also change

15:55

your behavior if you're not liking it Like . It's just not going

15:57

to be that right . So

15:59

I encourage everybody to go to therapy

16:02

in 2024 . And

16:05

also make sure you're not using spin as your only

16:07

form of it , relying on teaching as

16:09

your only source of income . So this is something I already talked

16:11

about with the 20 classes a week , but I'm

16:13

coming up with a new product that is going to be helping

16:15

spin or fitness

16:18

instructors , wellness entrepreneurs , create

16:21

new sources of revenue through digital products

16:23

and courses and various other

16:25

ways that they can use the platform

16:27

they have been given by their studio

16:29

to amplify their personal brand

16:32

and bring a new sources of revenue so that

16:34

they can do more of what they love without

16:36

burning themselves out . So I'm really excited

16:38

to offer this in 2024

16:41

, that it's still coming together . It's going

16:43

to be an intimate coaching program with fitness

16:45

professionals and wellness entrepreneurs . If

16:48

you are interested , there is a link in

16:50

my show notes . I

16:52

bring triples every day . So

16:57

again , the 20 classes . It's not helpful . It's not good

16:59

for you . Don't

17:01

do three classes of spin . Anything

17:04

in excess is just not good

17:06

. It's just not good . Now

17:08

let's get into the ends list . So

17:10

, collaboration with other instructors this

17:13

is again dropping

17:15

the ego and being really interested

17:17

in collaboration and partnership with other instructors . I

17:20

hope that next year , my list is going to

17:22

also include collaboration with other studios

17:24

because , if you feel

17:26

anything like me , I'm just so over the

17:28

divisiveness of the industry and

17:31

the ways in which

17:33

studios compete against each other . It's

17:35

like we all serve the same group of people . We

17:37

all serve the fitness community and

17:39

I would love to see more collaboration with studios

17:42

, but definitely collaboration with other instructors

17:44

. It is one of the best ways to get yourself into

17:47

different groups who are

17:49

at your studio already , so people

17:51

who go to see other instructors . If you teach

17:53

with them , if you do a co-teacher , a co-leader , whatever

17:55

, you're going to get in front of their people

17:58

and bring them into your community

18:00

and vice versa . So

18:02

creative . And then the second one creative

18:04

choreography that doesn't sacrifice form

18:07

. So this kind of parlays or builds

18:09

on the performative

18:12

choreography . So choreography that doesn't sacrifice

18:14

form means you will see when every

18:17

rider in the room is

18:19

has a strong foundation to

18:21

which they were going to add choreography

18:23

. It might mean that , instead of bouncing

18:25

all over the place , they have appropriate resistance

18:27

and they are able to maintain

18:30

that speed and tempo , and then when you ask them to

18:32

lift up an arm , it is .