Yes You Can

My Top Ins and Outs of 2024: Trends I love and Hate

• Hannah Pratt

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WHAT A YEAR. In 2023 - the podcast grew beyond my wildest dreams with some of the BEST and most amazing guests... and we had the most amount of downloads, listens, and episodes published.

In this wrap-up, I review those guests and the takeaways, along with my top list of "ins and outs": a. list of trends I'd love to see grow in the next year, and also, a list of things I'm ready to see say sayonara to.

I also talk about my new coaching program for wellness + fitness professionals I'm launching in 2024 that will help you spend LESS time on the podium to ensure higher quality of classes while you make more money with passive income. To get on the waitlist, HEAD HERE!

IN: 

  • Collaboration with other instructors 
  • Creative choreography that doesn’t sacrifice form
  • Resistance-focused power tracks 
  • Quality classes > quantity of classes 
  • Themes that light you up 
  • Taking breaks from the podium 
  • Cross-training 
  • Boundaries in the DMs 
  • Spending less time play-listing, more time honing your message 
  • Making $ off the podium with multiple streams of income 

Out 

  • Feeling guilty for getting a sub 
  • Comparing class sizes and obsessively checking registrations 
  • Overly complicated and performative choreography 
  • Shaming clients for cancelling (one/two times)
  • Copying creators choreography + content without giving credit
  • Teaching 20 classes a week 
  • Relying on spin as your only therapy 
  • Relying on teaching as your only source of income
  • Doing triples every day 

YYC GUEST HIGHLIGHTS:


Want to level up in 2025? My Black Friday sale is on now for ALL courses and programs with 25% off! Use code BLACKFRIDAY at checkout.


Speaker 1:

Hello friends, welcome to the final episode of 2023. Oh, my goodness, I have another episode coming out next week about the highs and lows of my last year and talking a lot about my grief experience at the end of 2023. But today we are focusing on one of my favorite topics, which is the trends I'm seeing in the fitness industry, and I'm using it and framing it with the ins and outs trend that's been going on on social media that I posted a few days ago about indoor cycling coaches and instructors, because I've been in it for a while and I've seen, I feel like this, like like wise old grandma at this point of like the things that I see kind of come around trend-wise and I'm really hoping that some of my predictions or some of the things that I'm I'm hoping for also help you if you are an indoor cycling professional or coach or somebody who's even remotely interested in the fitness world, because I think that there's some things that have just like. They've just like. It's just time, you know, it's just time for us to stop doing this thing. I also wanted to take a moment and thank you all for listening.

Speaker 1:

Over the last year, this has been the biggest year of growth for the podcast. I've had the most amount of new listeners, I've had the most amount of downloads, I've recorded and published the most amount of podcast episodes and I've had the most guests, some of which have been Anna Edie, and we started this off in January with the episode on boundaries and being brave. Then I had an excerpt from the masterclass with Christina Giraud in February. Then I had Andrea Cowan-Howan, who used to go by Ugly Growth on Instagram, and so we talked about becoming wild and worthy with subconscious freedom. Then we had Jen Foster, who was a holistic nutritionist talk about menstruation and how not to hate your period. Then we had Krista Gurka, who is a boutique fitness studio owner coach, and we talked about scaling your studio to seven figures. We had Ryan Jones, which actually feels like it happened last year because I've been connected with Ryan's for so long and I just love him. This is one of my favorite episodes and actually the most popular episode of this year. So Ryan Jones, who's a senior soul cycle instructor, on a authenticity and mindset, on the podium. Then we had Mariana Salazar, who is the creator of the Experience from Mexico, and we talked about how she created the Experience, the event and the indoor cycling trends in Mexico. It was amazing. We had House of Ride founders Harry French and Felicia Paris on teaching at multiple studios, indoor cycling trends and taking control of her fitness career. Then I had Zach Sharers making noise in the fitness industry in July and then I finished.

Speaker 1:

I rounded out the year with Cortland Fizakis in September from a guest perspective. So we have those are just the guest episodes. There's other tons of other episodes that we have had that were just solo episodes, and so thank you so much to my guests and thank you so much to all of you for listening, because I truly feel like this is sort of the beginning of yes, you can, and I am really so excited to see where we go in 2024. I have some really great ideas and dreams, but I'm also just building on the success that I've had and taking a moment to celebrate the fact that I did this, because it's not easy. I don't get paid. To do the podcast Like this is truly just a labor of love, and I'm really proud that I've stuck with it and that it's grown, because we're just hit our three year anniversary. Okay, so let's get into the ins and outs that I'm going to describe to you for fitness instructors and I posted a reel that's been popular over the last few days, and so these are trends that I see. So, in collaboration, let's do the in list first. Actually, let's do the outlets first. Let's do the outs list first.

Speaker 1:

So out is feeling guilty for getting a sub. Transparently. I have needed a lot of subs in December. I've had some personal stuff happen I talk that you will likely be aware of if you are on my social media. I lost a friend, I have had a horse that's been really sick and I have been sick I'm actually sick right now as I'm recording this but I am committed to doing this. I've needed a sub for a few classes and I'm so done with feeling guilty for getting a sub, because I don't want anybody else to feel guilty either, and if you are a writer who comes to our classes, I'm not gonna shame you for not coming. So why would I feel guilty? So that is self-explanatory. We are out. We are done with feeling guilty for getting subs.

Speaker 1:

Number two comparing class sizes and obsessively checking registrations. This is something I've intentionally done over the last year is peaking in a few times to see what the numbers are for the class and who's in it, but not doing the thing where I was, like basically having the window open and like clicking refresh like every hour, like it's just not worth it. It's not worth it to see who's cancelled and to have that in your mind as to wonder why they cancelled and take it upon yourself to be like, oh, it's something personal, it's not. It's literally not personal. People's lives. They happen, and sometimes it's your schedule. That is the thing that gets in the way. Of course, getting data and keeping track of trends is helpful and that's something we do inside Instructor Magic, which PS is opening in January. So get on the wait list if you're not already there. But this mindset of like being obsessed with your numbers we're just done with it, like it doesn't mean anything about you as an instructor, and there's such a it's. It's truly a science of using an ingredients list to create a wait listed class, and I know how to do that. I'm happy to teach you how to do that. But if it's not happening for you, it doesn't mean you're a terrible instructor or that you're not worthy. So we are not going to be checking registrations and comparing class sizes, because that is the thief of joy. And if you need more on comparison, being the thief of joy, go listen to the Ryan Jones podcast episode.

Speaker 1:

Okay, overly complicated and performative choreography. This was something that we, zach and I, discussed in our episode and what I've seen a lot of in the last two years specifically is choreography that is like sequences that are obscenely long and also feel performative in the way that only the instructor and very few riders actually are getting the choreography. I think there's a difference between intentional choreography sequences where you know you should be challenging your riders beyond the level they're at, but just beyond the level they're at, not way or far beyond the level that they're at to achieve a certain sequence of choreography. But it is intentional. It is building on what you've been doing with this room for a while. You're not stepping in and saying, okay, we're gonna be doing this 32 count sequence and it is at a speed of a 130 BPM out of the saddle and your riders are just barely able to maintain a 130 out of the saddle at all. So there is a difference between choreography that is performative AKA just for you and maybe one other rider and you're still doing it anyway versus choreography that really is aspirational but also attainable to at least 50% of the room. So 50% of the room should be your barometer of getting it and actually being able to maintain it to delivering new sequences of choreography. If you want more help with this, you can sign up for Instructor Magic or you can grab the choreography vault at any point, which is my at this point. It is 10 videos where I am delivering choreography tutorials and I'm showing you how to build and layer effectively, and that is also a bonus when you sign up for Instructor Magic within a large timeframe. So there's a lot of resources I have on choreography specifically, especially the videos that you are welcome to grab at any point, and I'll put both links in the shout-outs.

Speaker 1:

Okay, shaming clients for canceling one to two times. So this is there's clients who are repeat offenders who will sign up for classes and then cancel or not show up consistently, and this is not who I'm talking about. I'm talking the one to two times. Like you know, if somebody's going through something and they cancel they don't wanna then also feel guilty for cancelling, because they probably already do. There's so many things that happen in life, like kids being sick, you being sick, just not mentally being there, and there's, for whatever reason they've decided that they're not coming to class, and that is totally fine and it's not really up to you to police them or like double down on them. The studio should have a fee that's applied for late cancels and they'll take that, they'll eat that and that's fine. But I see instructors like really overly going after the cancellations and it's just, there is a limit, right? Because even if it really bothers you and irks you and for sure I've been there with you it's the energy that you are putting off as an instructor on your personal platform, on your with your personal brand. I personally don't wanna be the person who's like, who you're afraid to have a conversation with about not coming to class. I don't wanna be the person people are like afraid is gonna shame you for not coming for whatever reason. I wanna encourage you. I don't wanna hold you accountable, for sure, but there's a limit to where that accountable that exists with instructors. I think.

Speaker 1:

Okay, copying creators' choreography and content without giving credit Now this is honestly this has pissed me off. In the last year. This has really pissed me off. I have had multiple brands copy my stuff to the point where it is like you see me post something that is my original content and a few days later they will have the exact same post with maybe a few changes, using my ideas or even copying the core curriculum of Instructor Magic and using my brand. Copy Like this is all stuff I have put my blood, sweat and tears into, and so, as the content creator, I get really frustrated and I've had to really unfollow or mute these brands, because I get that social media is a creative space and we take inspiration, but there's, I think there's a limit when I see people specifically basically duplicating my stuff or using my brand, messaging of like waitlisted classes, level up, fill classes, change lives and like tweaking little bits of it and then even using the trends that I'm creating, or like I'm using a trending sound and I use it in a certain way, I lip sync it in a certain way, and I see them take my sound, my like it'll be like Hannah Rose-Benn, like original sound because I've forgotten to link it to the trending one, and they'll do the exact same thing and not credit me and I'm just like I don't get it.

Speaker 1:

I truly do not get it, but it has frustrated me, I think, because I talked about copycats and I have a whole episode on it and I also have this like this background of being in communications and being a college instructor who I have to make sure that Students are not plagiarizing or copying, and there's that, there's appropriate citations. And so I get frustrated when I see social media being a space where I feel I do feel ownership over what I create and I do feel ownership over my intellectual property and I see it just being sort of blatantly used. I also get frustrated when I see instructors doing the same exact choreography as some of the people who are, I think, the the leading drivers of trends in our industry, without crediting them appropriately, so literally like we see Christina Giroux drop new choreography I would argue that her choreography has been the driver of trends and indoor cycling for the last few years and I can recognize it really well and I absolutely, if I have used any of her stuff, I give her credit in class, I give her credit on social media, I love her as a person and when I see people not doing that, I'm like we all know that that move didn't come from you and so it's just.

Speaker 1:

I think that we are we're lagging a bit behind the general rules of engagement with with drawing inspiration and then quite literally copying somebody without actually giving credit. It's like in the dance world. That would be frowned upon in marketing communications, that would be absolutely grounds for dismissal. But for some reason we haven't quite caught up yet, and so giving credit is like it's not taking anything away from you. In fact, it's showing such a level of maturity that I appreciate and I love and I respect, and so you have to be respectable in your industry to be able to grow in it, and that's just something I want to encourage everybody to do.

Speaker 1:

You might not have done it intentionally either. I know for sure a fact there's people who are copying me intentionally, and you know what Imitation, I guess, is the best form of flattery. I also know that there never. It's like it's like the bring it on movie, you know, and it's like there's going to be a limit to your success if you're constantly just copying. So say case rah, rah, rah, but getting on to the next one, teaching 20 classes a week.

Speaker 1:

So teaching an obscene amount of classes to me is not sustainable, both as you progress in your age, injuries, and I think that for me it used to be a moment of or like a point of pride to be able to teach a certain amount of classes. I think the most I taught was like seven or eight consistently on the schedule and now I'm down to three and that is with a full time or nearly full time job of teaching at the college, with instructor magic, with all the other things, my horse, all the other things I'm doing Like that is totally enough and it feels good. But it's only because I've gone, I've burnt myself out physically, that I know that this is what I can do and this is what I want to do right now. But for those of you who are wanting to teach more and more classes, just ask yourself why. And if it's a financial reason, I really encourage you to look at how you can make various income streams that are outside of teaching. So for me, of course, instructor magic, podium, perhaps the choreography vault, all the coaching I do that helps that supplement and create passive streams of income. So I don't need to be on the podium every day to be able to make money. And if I'm sick I can still. I still have a business that's moving and thriving without me. So teaching 20 classes a week I just don't think is sustainable. I don't think it should be something we're striving towards. I think quality over quantity is always great.

Speaker 1:

Next one relying on spin as your only form of therapy. I'll probably come out with an unpopular stance on this at some point. But when people say spin is therapy, like it is a form of therapy, sure, it should not be your only therapy. There should be multiple other modalities of therapy, whether that's meditation, whether that's talk therapy with a therapist, whether that is like physical, another physical release. But I see people who use spin as their only form of therapy and it is not healthy, and so that's my unpopular stance. It's not therapy. It is a form of therapy. It could feel therapeutic, I'm sure, but it is not going to be the person holding up the mirror to you and really working through, giving you different ways to cope and also change your behavior if you're not liking it Like. It's just not going to be that right. So I encourage everybody to go to therapy in 2024.

Speaker 1:

And also make sure you're not using spin as your only form of it, relying on teaching as your only source of income. So this is something I already talked about with the 20 classes a week, but I'm coming up with a new product that is going to be helping spin or fitness instructors, wellness entrepreneurs, create new sources of revenue through digital products and courses and various other ways that they can use the platform they have been given by their studio to amplify their personal brand and bring a new sources of revenue so that they can do more of what they love without burning themselves out. So I'm really excited to offer this in 2024, that it's still coming together. It's going to be an intimate coaching program with fitness professionals and wellness entrepreneurs. If you are interested, there is a link in my show notes. I bring triples every day.

Speaker 1:

So again, the 20 classes. It's not helpful. It's not good for you. Don't do three classes of spin. Anything in excess is just not good. It's just not good.

Speaker 1:

Now let's get into the ends list. So, collaboration with other instructors this is again dropping the ego and being really interested in collaboration and partnership with other instructors. I hope that next year, my list is going to also include collaboration with other studios because, if you feel anything like me, I'm just so over the divisiveness of the industry and the ways in which studios compete against each other. It's like we all serve the same group of people. We all serve the fitness community and I would love to see more collaboration with studios, but definitely collaboration with other instructors.

Speaker 1:

It is one of the best ways to get yourself into different groups who are at your studio already, so people who go to see other instructors. If you teach with them, if you do a co-teacher, a co-leader, whatever, you're going to get in front of their people and bring them into your community and vice versa. So creative. And then the second one creative choreography that doesn't sacrifice form. So this kind of parlays or builds on the performative choreography. So choreography that doesn't sacrifice form means you will see when every rider in the room is has a strong foundation to which they were going to add choreography. It might mean that, instead of bouncing all over the place, they have appropriate resistance and they are able to maintain that speed and tempo, and then when you ask them to lift up an arm, it is.