Exercise caution when choosing an Exercise Facility

Finding an exercise class or facility is easy. Finding a good one, however, is not.

You have to know what to look for in an exercise facility. No one regulates exercise studios or exercise facilities, and the standards for instructors, vary widely. You have to do a little homework and some scouting if you want to find a program that’s both effective and safe.

Some exercise facilities will hire any instructor who looks great in a leotard.  Others hire young people with little or no training in the principles of safe exercise, because such employees command lower salaries than better trained instructors. These exercise instructors often encourage participants to push themselves too hard, often times resulting in unnecessary injuries.

Frequently, instructors do not provide proper warming up, stretching out, and cooling down exercises. As a result, you may be injured and become unable to exercise at all.

Classes should always begin with a good, slow warm up and proceed to aerobics in a way that begins with the least strenuous activity and builds to the most strenuous. The class should then slow down to stretching and floor work and end with cool down and relaxation.  The aerobic portion should elevate and sustain your heart rate, while the cool down phase lowers it again.  It sounds perfectly logical, but you’d be surprised at how many exercise instructors are unaware that this is the proper method.

Always check out the exercise instructors credentials for any class you are interested in attending. Most instructors specialize in a certain style or class. As in most things, not all exercise instructors  are created equal.

Questions you should ask might include:                                                                                                                              

 Has the exercise instructor had any training in anatomy, physiology, kinesiology, or the care and prevention of athletic injuries ?

 Does the instructor or program manager ask all participants to obtain medical clearance, when necessary?

Is the instructor certified in CPR and first aid?

Does the exercise instructor belong to a professional organization, to keep  up with current theories  and techniques in the field ?

Does the class begin with a good warm up period, of at least five minutes ?

Does the aerobic exercise portion of the class build gradually in rate and intensity, and is sustained for at least twenty minutes?

Does the instructor explain the benefits of each movement and how to perform it correctly?

Does the exercise instructor move around the room periodically to correct students movements?

Does the instructor encourage participants to exercise at their own pace or just push everyone to work at the same strenuous pace?

And lastly, does the exercise instructor provide modifications of exercises or alternative exercises for beginning and advanced students and students with special conditions ?

Remember, it’s a group exercise class, but each participant needs work at their own pace and progress when their ready, safely.