[00:00:00] Welcome to Pilates Teachers' Manual, a podcast for Pilates teachers by a Pilates teacher. I'm Olivia, and I'll be your host. Jump in the conversation on Instagram @pilatesteachersmanual. Today's chapter starts now.

Hello, hello. Today, I'm going to be talking about how to lead your classes with confidence. And that's something that I feel like all teachers want to do, whether you're teaching group classes or privates. A lot of what I'm talking about, I feel translates more directly into the group class teaching [00:01:00] style, but some of the principles I go over will also serve you well in private lessons. 

So the first part, I'm going to be talking about what I consider to be the principles of teaching confidently and why those principles are important. So the first thing I'm going to share with you is a counter example and experience that I had in a first aid training that really demonstrates what can happen if you're not teaching your class with confidence.

So when I got to the room that they were going to be hosting the first aid training, the person who was leading it wasn't there yet. And I wasn't there super early, but they weren't there yet. When they did get there, the first thing they did was like this really big sigh and just this attitude of, Oh, this is so terrible. I don't want to be here. And the entire atmosphere in the room changed .All the students for this first aid training were already there and you could just kind of see the cloud that settles [00:02:00] over the room. And even if you weren't feeling bliss going into it, when the person who's in charge tells you, whether it's through body language or verbally, or just the words they're choosing that, like, this is not fun. This is not enjoyable. It changes the way everyone in the room feels. 

And, you know, first aid training is first aid training. It's very important to do and it can be done in a way that's enjoyable or it can be done in a way that's gross. Just some things that I remember from that experience, just the fact that the instructor was kind of asking students for feedback all the time, like, Oh, is this okay?

Or just self-deprecating, like "that didn't make any sense. Let me try it again." You know, things like that, that continually lowered their standing, I guess. When you're constantly putting yourself down and you're in the person who's in charge, as a participant, there's almost this desire to want to help the person or like tell them [00:03:00] that it's okay. And that's really just not the exchange that you want to be having with your students. And the same thing goes for teaching Pilates. 

On the flip side of that, what a class that is being taught confidently feels and looks like is you see that students are working, they're enjoying themselves. They're paying attention to the instructor. The instructor is commanding the room and commanding their attention. The teacher does that by being comfortable, by engaging with the students and adjusting based on the feedback that they're getting. 

And feedback isn't always like, was that okay? Did I do a good job, but you know, how does the student's body react? Okay, we're doing planks. If no one can do a plank, I'm not going to keep teaching planks and then do harder versions of plank. Right. I'm going to break it down. I'm going to adjust to the bodies that are in the room with me. 

The teacher, I would say also is comfortable in their own skin. They are interacting, as I said, and the class just has this [00:04:00] vibe or this energy that's fun. And everyone's enjoying themselves, teacher included. Some of the things that go into that are as the instructor is the person in charge in this setting is really creating the tone for the class. As I said before, and I will say forever, your energy sets the tone. You're telling students how to feel and how to interact.

Especially when people are brand new to Pilates. Like I teach a lot of Pilates equipment and not everyone knows what they're doing. They might feel really uncertain or really unsure. They may have just started, or they may, it may be their first time at the studio and they're nervous. Like even as adults, we get nervous in these new situations.

And as an instructor, you being comfortable, you talking with the students, making the students feel welcome will put them at ease and create a positive environment for your class to take place. [00:05:00] Just the fact that you, as the teacher are happy to be there, even if you're just acting like you're happy to be, there will make a big impact on the way the students feel and make them feel more comfortable.

Things that will show that you, as the teacher are comfortable is what I call clear, concise cuing and that's just confidence in what you're teaching. That's the fact that you are able to give students the directions so that they can do this class, right? Because we came for Pilates, we're using the language of Pilates and moving our bodies as, you know, the way that we're interacting. That's the language of this interaction. 

The fact that you can clearly and concisely lead students through the exercises is just going to show your finesse as a teacher and also inspire the students to trust you and really believe in you because you're feeding into that. Right. 

Another thing that is [00:06:00] big for me, but I know is not big for all teachers is an element of theatricality, which in this regard involves engaging with the students, not just welcoming them in at the beginning of class, but during the exercises, you're checking in, in a way that is making students feel seen and heard. And you're also gauging the students where they are in the exercises, offering modifications, offering variations. And just conducting the class a really well led class is like a symphony, right? There's so many moving parts, but we're all working together. 

Another principle is finding your teaching style and your teaching voice. And that's for me, again, like theatricality, is sort of a teaching persona. The reason that's important is because that's, when you're the most comfortable when you know how you teach and you teach that way when you have this voice that is uniquely yours, but also very clear. You're the [00:07:00] most comfortable. You're doing your best work. It's important that you're doing all of these things as well, because when you are creating a class experience that is positive. That's the kind of class that people will want to attend week after week. They'll want to invite their friends to your class, and you'll really get a dedicated following when people know that when they come to your class, they're going to feel better and they're going to have a good time doing their Pilates. 

To reiterate, my key thoughts on leading your classes with confidence, or my principles for it, are really about setting the tone, which happens in a bunch of different ways. Everything from your energy in the room, your ability to cue clearly and concisely and element of theatricality that keeps students engaged and also being very comfortable in your teaching style and just your voice as a teacher. When you are really nailing those things, that's when you're going to [00:08:00] get students who just love your classes. And that's when I think you're going to enjoy yourself the most as a teacher.

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Those principles are all well and good, but how do you set the tone? How do you have good energy? Super vague, but there [00:09:00] are tips to sort of achieve those things. 

Going back to this idea of having a teaching persona. What that is for me is just the best part of yourself. It's not quite an act, but it's more of yourself and just the best bits of yourself. That means that you have a positive attitude that you're replying to people positively you're framing things in a way that's positive. You know, sometimes you will interact with people who have had experiences in fitness centers and gyms that have been negative and there's this sort of bad taste in their mouth about exercise.

And so when they're interacting with you, you really want to frame your responses in a positive light, just to shine light on the things that you know, their bodies can do and things that are possible. One way that I really frame that is when I ask people at the beginning of class, when it's their first time in my class.

Hey, is there anything going [00:10:00] on in your body that I need to know about? Sometimes people will say, Oh, I have a bad knee, or I have a bad shoulder, or I have a bad wrist or. It's not clear to me what that means. So I will always ask a followup question and I, or I'll say something like, I don't think that's true. You know, I think your knee has a pretty good track record in terms of getting you to all the places and on all the adventures of your life. And then I'll ask for more information, you know, Is there anything that your wrist or your knee or your shoulder doesn't like to do? Is there anything that I can do to make you more comfortable and, you know, just keeping those things in mind. 

If I'm leading exercises with someone who said that they can't put weight on their knee, for whatever reason that I'm going to have modifications available, or I'm going to have a knee pad available if there's something where it's light contact with their knee, but I'm going to have other things for them to do so that they start to see themselves as capable. And that will contribute to that positive experience. They came in thinking that they couldn't do things and you really show them all of the things that you can do. That is amazing. 

[00:11:00] Another element of that teaching persona is being confident in what you're teaching and that's what your entire teacher training was, you know, all the exercises and the modifications and the contraindications and variations. So that's really where you should be able to shine. You get to share this amazing knowledge that you have because in this situation you are the expert when it comes to the exercises.

I always want the people in my class to feel that they're the experts of their own bodies, that they can make choices and decide whether they need to try a modification or bump it up a notch. Like I always want people to feel comfortable doing that, but at the same time you are the expert. They came to learn this movement style and these exercises from you. 

So you should feel good knowing that like you have trained for this, you know, they're not throwing you in front of the classroom and expecting you to recite poems in Japanese or something, like this is something that you've trained to do and that you are doing, and that you're good at doing. So feel [00:12:00] comfortable. 

I always try to share lots of visuals, give lots of examples. I'll cue one, exercise, a bunch of different ways. I'll try to build on cues that I've already given or on exercises that we've already done so that people can start to make those connections for themselves. But that just comes from feeling like I know what I'm doing when I'm teaching. I can give examples, things like that. 

Another ingredient in my teaching persona is I like to tell jokes and I like to make people laugh. And I have, you know, specific things that I say a lot. Like I'll say, you know, "laughter was the first abdominal exercise" or "the next level of every exercise is to do it while laughing."

A lot of my humor is contextual. So it doesn't always translate in this kind of way, but I do make jokes and give silly examples. And that's just something that for me, fills [00:13:00] the space and gets people to really engage, that you can't check out while you're in my class, because you might miss something that is super hilarious.

I'll say things like, "but wait, there's more "or I will tell people instead of the next exercise, "All right, let's go on a different adventure. Let's shift gears." Like I have little things that I say that just feed into that idea of being funny and just being comfortable in front of people. 

Another thing is just in terms of the tone of class, trying not to apologize for little things or little mistakes that you make, as soon as you start apologizing, like I experienced in that first aid training, you put the people who are in the class in the position of needing to comfort you. And that's not a great dynamic. So if something happens and you know, I didn't set a spring on a station or I, you know, didn't put a [00:14:00] ball under the reformer of some piece of equipment that we needed. Someone doesn't have instead of coming over and saying, "Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry."

I'll say, "Oh, coming right at you. Just one second. I'll be right there," but I'm never asking people to tell me. Oh, it's okay. I'm always trying to move on and just keep the class moving. Oh, you need that thing. You don't have it. Let me get it for you. Here you go. You're all set. So that you don't a get down on yourself and be- change the energy in the room to be like, "Oh no, I'm so terrible. I can't do anything," like, or that's not a feel good adventure. Let's not engage with that. 

Another thing you can do as you continue to grow as a teacher, as you continue to teach, and just the more you teach, the more comfortable you're going to be teaching that is for sure. It's funny, in the yoga world, when you have taught a thousand hours of yoga and you're a member of the Yoga Alliance, they say that you are an E-RYT [00:15:00] or an experienced registered yoga teacher. And I think that that's kind of nice because even if you started as a terrible teacher, if you do it for a thousand hours, you're definitely going to improve. 

Knowing that as you're growing and it is a process, you don't have to be all the way there and you'll have good days and bad days and really, on days and days when, like none of my jokes land and I'm just like, we'll try again tomorrow. 

It's important to give yourself feedback, notice what worked in your classes and try to build off of that, try to do more of that. And if you notice that something isn't working and it might be an exercise that no matter how you cue it, people aren't understanding it. It might be a joke you made that just really didn't land, just know those things and try to make a note of those things so that you can continue to grow. 

This is by no means an exhaustive list, but these are some things that I think about when I think about teaching confidently, being my [00:16:00] best teaching self and commanding the room as an instructor.

I'd love to hear from you. If you have some tips for being your best teaching self, please drop me a line on email or on Instagram. Share what makes you tick. Do you have a teaching persona? 

Oh, just a fun story about my teaching persona. When I was training to be a teacher. I had a practice body that I could come into the studio and teach privates with them for free. And that was just like the way my training worked. 

I had my partner Bobae be my training body, and he thought that my persona was really weird. Because as someone who knows me, like really closely, who talks more like I'm talking to you right now, he felt that it was very strange that I had this like other person sound that I made when I teach.

But I think that's just part of the game. You are being yourself when you're teaching, but you're being your best self. [00:17:00] Me might be teaching in my pajamas, and that's not my best self. That might be my most comfortable self, but that's not the side of myself that I want to share professionally. So that's kind of a fun thing, but yeah.

Let me know about you and your teaching tips and, yeah. What do you think? How do you set that up in your room? Drop me a line. Let me know. Until next time, friends. The adventure continues.

Thank you for listening to this chapter of Pilates Teachers' Manual. Be sure to visit the Instagram link in the description for the post on today's episode. There, you can leave your comments, ask questions, and join the conversation. Also be sure to support the podcast and take advantage of the great affiliate links in the description.

The adventure continues. Until next time.