How did you embark on your journey to become a Les Mills Instructor?
After taking crucial steps to improve my own health and fitness, exercise became an integral part of my of day-to-day life that I found extremely beneficial for both my physical and mental health.
My exercise routine involved a lot of martial arts training. During the first lockdown I stumbled across BODYCOMBAT on the Les Mills+ app whilst working out at home and I instantly fell in love with the programme and decided to do something completely outside my comfort zone…
I took the plunge to train to become a Les Mills BODYCOMBAT Instructor, with the ambition to inspire others and share the benefits of exercise that I had experienced.
Which Les Mills programmes are you now certified in?
After completing my BODYCOMBAT training, I began team teaching and covering for local gyms in the Kent area. In time, I added BODYPUMP and SH'BAM to my repertoire. Keen to develop even more, I decided to complete my advanced training in BODYCOMBAT and SH'BAM, and I’m due to complete my advanced training for BODYPUMP in June this year.
When Les Mills Qualifications launched, I thought this was the ideal time to get valued feedback from the assessors and find out which areas I can improve on. So far, I’ve completed Les Mills Qualification grading in BODYCOMBAT, and I’m looking forward to doing this for BODYPUMP too.
Through teaching Les Mills classes, I have built a positive rapport with gym members and a real buzz in the studio as we all return to live classes. Becoming an instructor has also been fantastic for my own personal development and I’m able to transfer skills from teaching to my full-time job as an Architect, and vice versa. Life is busy, but I think I have a good balance!
How did you get in touch with clubs whilst being a qualified Instructor?
I initially created my Les Mills Connect profile just so I could collate my achievements, lay out my programmes, skills, and availability all in one place.
However, once my profile was up to date, local clubs began to contact me via Connect and invite me for a chat with them about cover lists, potential classes or just to say hi! It was really exciting to have clubs reach out to me directly.
How many classes have you taken on from Les Mills Connect?
One Bannatyne club got in contact with me via Les Mills Connect and added me to their cover list which meant I was immediately able to step in and help where needed. Shortly afterwards, I was given one timetabled class a week, but had to carefully consider my other regular commitments to another Bannatyne gym in the Kent area.
What has been great is that the success and positive reviews from this one class alone has meant I have now been given another regular class at this club. I am pleased I was able to make a good impression, even the fitness manager who contacted me on Connect has been attending my class!
What's the main benefit of Les Mills Connect for you?
The fitness industry and environment is ever changing. It’s so important we have these platforms in place that are able to adapt to the needs of both Instructors and Clubs, and most importantly, allow us all to connect online and in real life.
I am temporarily putting my availability on hold on Les Mills Connect due to having plenty of classes to fill my week! However, Les Mills Connect provides me with the flexibility to update my status should a weekly timetable change occur, or if I want to seek new opportunities. I can even change my profile settings to let new clubs know that I am around. It’s great to have the cushion of Connect that I know I can use at any time.
Would you recommend Les Mills Connect to other instructors?
I was pleasantly surprised with the positive outcome that I have achieved through the platform, and I would totally recommend it to others.
Setting up your Connect profile doesn’t take very long, and it's nice to look back and see how you have fared as an instructor. I think it works particularly well for newly certified Instructors as it gives them a first reference point to turn to.
Do you think Les Mills Connect has made your instructor journey easier?
Les Mills Connect has absolutely taken the hassle out of cold calling or asking around gyms. Connect bridges the gap between Clubs and Instructors and makes it much easier to pin point which gyms are local, who is actually hiring and which programmes they are interested in. It's certainly a very sophisticated platform, and I do hope it grows and thrives in helping more instructors like me get their foot in the door.
DO YOU THINK LES MILLS CONNECT COULD HELP YOU LIKE IT HAS FOR PRIYA?
