The allure of group fitness classes is not misplaced. They can foster a sense of community and motivation in pursuing various health and fitness goals. Whether you are a beginner, don’t enjoy working out, or want something fun to do with your friends, group fitness classes are a popular choice.
However, I believe that if you aren’t able to put in the effort, they may be failing you.
In my experience, instructors call out exercises and poses, expecting most people to know them. Those who are unfamiliar learn by watching. Sometimes, instructors demonstrate a movement in front of the class, giving tips on how to position your body. If others are blocking your view, you might have to resort to an imaginative game of Twister until you can mirror your neighbors.
To keep up with the pace and sequence, group fitness classes often disregard complex movement. Basic instruction is provided, but it rarely goes beyond visual cues into a deeper understanding.
If I were learning plank for the first time, I would assume you hold the pose by placing your hands under your shoulders and stepping your legs back. The movement itself looks simple, but this is where group fitness classes are failing you.
To properly activate your entire body and get the most out of your effort, you must move with intention.
In a plank, spreading your fingers and pushing the ground away activates your shoulder stability and upper body support muscles. Tucking your pelvis engages your lower and deep abdominals. To turn on your upper abs, exhaling fully to draw your ribs in and down does the trick. Thinking about kicking the floor back with your toes incorporates your leg strength. To ensure your spine is aligned, keeping your gaze past your fingertips will keep you steady. Suddenly, the plank becomes more than a static hold.
It becomes a full-body, skill-based movement that requires detailed coordination and internal awareness. It becomes more difficult, but not for long.
While careful attention and guidance are subject to the instructor, class type, and studio, individualized feedback and modifications in a group setting are limited. Improper technique is easily overlooked, allowing inefficient movement patterns to persist and increasing the risk of injury. As a personal trainer, scanning the room and seeing an anterior pelvic tilt in a plank illustrates how often fundamental errors go unnoticed.
Most importantly, what you walk away with is the direct product of your own intentionality and effort. As individuals, intentions vary. There are several reasons one might attend one of these classes: to get stronger, become more disciplined, sweat, or relieve stress.
As group fitness becomes more entwined with social media, participants tend to become more concerned with how they appear in the room than with how they move within it. Imagine arriving at class in whatever gym clothes were clean that day, focused simply on getting through the workout, only to later find yourself captured in the background of someone’s photo or video. The moment feels intrusive as a private intention to move and feel better is easily repurposed into public content.
Ultimately, the impact of group fitness classes depends on how they are approached, not their inherent energy or aesthetics. When movement is treated as something to be seen rather than felt, technique suffers, and health becomes secondary. True progress requires intentionality, an awareness that no camera, mirror, or crowd can replace.
Be the difference between doing it and doing it well.
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