When you offer the same classes in the same time slots for months — or even years — those classes, inevitably, will begin to fall flat. Clients and instructors can feel like they are in a rut. That’s when it’s time for you to help spice thing up at your studio, before they go to other studios looking for ways to mix up that routine.
Incorporating themed classes into your studio’s schedule is one way to get clients engaged and instructors excited about class again.
No matter if you are guiding your clients to achieve their moments of zen or pushing them to sweat through puddles onto your studio floor, these theme ideas can be incorporated into nearly any fitness discipline.
MIX UP THE MUSIC
Changing the music can make the same class feel completely new. Making a new mix around a theme is a quick and inexpensive way to create a themed class. And the ideas are nearly endless. Create a class around '80s songs from John Hughes movies, like “Oh Yeah” from Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, "Don't You (Forget About Me)" from The Breakfast Club, and “If You Were Here” from Sixteen Candles. These songs will give your clients a blast from the much-loved movie past.
Other ideas for musical themes include a Saturday Night Fever-style disco, classic hip hop, throwback to hair band/glam rock, best of the boy bands, jazz or Motown. Depending on your studio’s demographic, you can also host a super fan class and play only songs from a particular artist, such as Taylor Swift or Coldplay.
GIVE YOUR CLASS THE BOOT (CAMP)
Boot camps are a great way to challenge your regulars. Kick up the intensity of a typical class, make it a two-hour sweat session or take you clients outside to work out in the fresh air.
Themes for a boot camp vary depending on your fitness discipline. You could create a boot camp theme around a holiday or season, such as an outdoor obstacle course for Spring Break, a Tabata boot camp for holiday stress busting, or a “new year, new you” theme to help your clients making New Year’s wellness resolutions start the year off right.
You could also create boot camps that focus on a specific muscle group or help clients improve performance. A “ready to run boot camp” theme can help the runners at your studio improve their endurance, while an inversion immersion can devote time to helping yoga students achieve or improve their handstands.
AT THE CORE
Core work is high on many people’s list of fitness priorities. Design a class that focuses on dynamic core strengthening moves. By dedicating an entire class to this theme, you can show clients that core strength is much more than flat abs.
CREATE THE CHALLENGE
Hosting a challenge or competition will keep your clients and instructors engaged for several weeks at a time. It can be as simple as a plank challenge, where instructors time clients as they hold the perfect plank, or as elaborate as a seven-day HIIT challenge, where clients come every morning for a body weight sweat session.
To make your challenge feel like a big event, give participants some swag. Print up t-shirts, water bottles or tote bags with your studio logo and the name of your challenge.
RELAX AND RESTORE
Themed classes don’t always have to kick up the intensity. Try giving your clients an opportunity to stretch and relax instead.
You can design an entire class that focuses on stretching and breathing exercises or extend the cool down portion of class. Dim the lights, put on some soothing music and treat your hard working clients to some much needed de-stressing and restoration.
Once you decide what type of themed class will work best in your studio, promote it like crazy. Use social media outlets to tease an upcoming playlist or a new class format. Have the instructors mention the upcoming themes in their end-of-class announcements. Don’t forget to update the class schedule on your website to reflect any changes or additions.
