How to Keep Everyone Happy Teaching a Mixed Ability Group Class

It's a common problem for us Pilates teachers - how to keep everyone happy and feeling like they are not only cared for but are having their needs met in a class where there are several levels of ability. It can really be a balancing act.

We have all been there, a group is just bonding, getting their act together they have claimed their place in the room, when a new person joins the whole group dynamic can change. We are faced with the problem of alienating some of the group because we need to change our cues and “deal” with the newcomer.

The other part of this scenario is when the place we teach at allows everyone to join the class when they want - the teacher has no control over the attendees because the club/studio do not stream their sessions.

It is an understandable dilemma for the studio or club owner - they need to make money and do not want to have you teaching lots of different classes to small numbers, they see it as a no option situation for them.

Unfortunately they do not have to deal with the problem as directly as us, but of course if we don’t handle it well they will lose customers - so it’s necessary for us as teachers to offer a safe, effective and enjoyable session for everyone.

A Place For Everyone

The main issue here is that everyone attending needs to feel that they are in the right class for them - this assumes of course that there is no alternative. Streaming classes so that clients are clear about the skill level they need to have to attend will always make life easier for everyone, even if someone stumbles into the wrong class, as a teacher you have a clear reason to recommend they attend a more suitable session.

So. Assuming that there is no choice and mixed ability is the only option those people who are more advanced need to be able to feel they are recognised as such and they are continually improving and developing, whilst the less skilled participant wants to know they are noticed and their needs met in so far as variations to allow them to learn a sound basis of knowledge and to enjoy the class.

Teaching Style

A tall order if ever there was one! The key is in the planning, format and presentation of the session. As a teacher of any exercise programme you need to develop a teaching style that is not only informative, professional and technically skillful, but also, and in some instances this is more important, a style that is relaxed and non judgemental, one that creates an atmosphere for the clients to explore new elements of the technique as you present them, but also to “opt out” of the suggestions you make whether these are to increase or decrease the challenge.

In order for a client to make the “intelligent” decision with regard to their work out they need to feel that they have permission as well as the confidence to do so. If your verbal cueing does not have a “get out clause” one way or the other a client may become totally reliant on your direction,which puts the responsibility for the class totally on your shoulders.

I am not suggesting you let the class participants just do what they want, of course you need to guide them with authority, but in order for the various levels of ability to get what they need from your session you need to instill in them a sense of responsibility for their own workout.

You will do this by not becoming too fixed in your approach - you are a facilitator to this type of session (mixed ability) unlike a class where a definite level of ability is needed such as a class that’s marketed as intermediate or advanced; in these instances there will be guidelines that tell the client who should attend. In a mixed level class the spectrum of ability could be vast. As a facilitator you are there to lead the group and help them achieve their best.

Planning The Class

When you are faced with a mixed level group the exercises you choose can help you make the transitions for each client easier to achieve. For example if you choose to teach movements from the more advanced end of the repertoire such as Cork Screw, Jack Knife or Roll Over, exercises that need a good level of flexibility, stability as well as strength, they will be more challenging to vary for those clients who for whatever reason cannot safely practice these movements yet.

Movement like, 100, Side Bend, Shoulder Bridge and Double Leg Stretch will cause less of a cueing problem as generally you will teach them from the bottom up as it were - from the more simple level then add the challenge. Whereas the more advanced movements are generally taught from the top down, peeling away the difficulty.

I often hear from teachers that they worry clients who attend regularly will become bored if the workout doesn’t change often - my experience tells me this is not so. There are so many ways you can create different sensations from the same move if you only change the accent of the movement - but that is another article.....

I recommend that you teach movements in a mixed ability class that will allow you to offer varying levels of challenge easily and quickly to the group so they can make their decision on the day to get the most from the session. You have plenty to choose from, even to the point of using small equipment - this can be an option for your clients. Whether or not to use a foam roller for example can be a choice when the purpose of using it is to increase the challenge by adding an unstable surface.

Cueing The Session

The language you use will be significant for your client’s learning curve. Make sure that you are using words that suggest a choice rather than a direct cue that keeps the client within a rigid format. With moves such as 100, double leg stretch and scissors for example:

• “raise one leg and if you can maintain alignment raise the second”

is quicker and has a permission element to it rather than

• “raise both legs if you can” this only leaves the less able client to do nothing but wait.

This is a simplistic example I know but you get the point, by giving the client a reason to make a choice “if you can maintain alignment” allows them to come to a decision rather than just following the crowd or feeling left out. Naturally you would then continue with the permission to lower one leg if as they graduate through the movement alignment is lost. This type of non judgemental cueing is the get out clause for the clients without feeling that they are less able than others.

Those clients who are able will add the challenge without problem. Another way to “allow” clients to opt in or out is to suggest that it is only ‘today” that poses the problem. Adding in the suggestion that it’s today they do or don’t want the challenge lets the client know that you understand everyday is different that you are encouraging them to listen to their body then react accordingly. In fact by offering this style of cueing consistently you will give your clients the confidence to choose the level of workout they want every time they attend without worrying. It will also take the pressure off you to provide the exact workout for everyone, which of course we know is impossible.

In closing I would summarise by saying if mixed level classes are part of your programme, teach in a style that encourages your clients to take responsibility for the level of their class. You can do this by teaching in a way that offers choices and permission for your clients, it is not all about the moves themselves it is definitely about how you present them and the language you use.

By teaching in this way the benefits are twofold both for you and your clients.

• You will benefit by taking the pressure from yourself to create the exact session
  
  
• The client will benefit from improved confidence and also from getting the
  workout they want.

Nuala Coombs

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