I Do NOT Like Instructors to Stop During the Workout

[Kathryn]

Originally Posted by koinonia

It usually doesn't bother me except when there's only the instructor and no backups to follow along to. Like in Classical Stretch, I'm following Miranda's moves and sometimes she just stops to explain something, and I stop too even tho I'm not suppose to.

That would be weird. Luckily, I've never had a workout like that.

[Jennifer R]

Originally Posted by tigger

Same here. I guess I feel like it's my workout, not theirs. I also rely mostly on audio cues. I don't need to watch the instructor to know what good form is, or what a particular move is.

I haven't read the whole thread, but this is me too. Guess that's why I also enjoy audio and even paper workouts, and do my own thing a lot too.

I guess I've taken enough dance classes where the teacher tells you what the pattern is going to be, then you do it till they tell you to stop, no matter what the teacher is doing--that's what I do when Miranda goes off explaining something, I just keep going.

[ddj]

I think there must be a big difference between doing the workout and doing it while talking non-stop. It's not that these instructors can't do their own workouts, but not many of us could do it well and talk with ease at the same time.

Also, I think many of the instructors who stop and walk around might be trainers more than teachers, so they're not used to working out with people but watching them work out. Maybe. Just thinking out loud.

[bubbles76]

Amending to add that, like Alikruegs, it doesn't bother me for a live yoga class or yoga in general. Pilates either. I guess because in weights and cardio I know what I'm doing so I just want someone to "work out" with me, but in pilates and yoga, I really need the form pointers

[Indy]

Sorry - this annoys me. I think the instructor should do the workout and instruct. If I'm paying for that person's particular workout - I want to watch that instructor - not their background exercisers. I actually lose respect for them when they stop. Yeah, I know they can do it - so why aren't they? What exactly are we all getting from someone walking around pointing at somebody else's abs?

I didn't like Tony Horton doing it - I won't buy Jillian Michaels because she does it. The only time this didn't faze me was when Kari Anderson walked around and instructed during the Curl video and didn't do too much of it. I suppose I just like her too much.

[ilovemygreatdane]

Don't care. I'm the one who has to work out not them.

[cataddict]

The only time this bothered me (and only a teeny tiny bit) is when Patrick didn't do all those "drop-to-the-floor" type moves in Lean Hot Body. He needed to share in the suffering (I struggle with those type of moves)!! I think they do this either for motivation (Patrick was pushing the background exercisers to work harder in LHB) or to give form pointers, so it normally doesn't bother me, unless it's so prominent that the instructor isn't even breaking a sweat.

[Fidget Queen]

It's interesting how split we are in our opinions over it!

Logically, I don't care if an instructor stops the moves in order to "instruct" but my body has different reactions. I guess it interrupts my working meditation in such a way that my body and mind revolt when they stop.

Also, most of the time the instructors aren't sharing any useful information. They seem to stop just for the sake of stopping to talk, but I'm not getting anything out of it. As someone said so well , I don't need them to point at a background exerciser's abs for me. I know what abs are.

If they really had a great point to make regarding form or something of that sort, I wouldn't mind so much. But to start every exercise, stop every exercise, walk around, say things that don't matter, come back to the exercise on the last rep, throw everyone off.... it's so weird to me .

I also don't mind this in live yoga classes - actually, I expect it then. The point there is to truly instruct us on the minutia of form, and that requires real demonstrations as well as adjustments.

I suppose if the instructor in a video kept up his verbal cues while stopping, that might help. But I'm not sure... Oh, I also have to add that for some odd reason, Billy Blanks doesn't bother me when he does this. It should, but it doesn't so much. I don't think I have a logical reason for it .

[laurajhawk]

Some people seem so puzzled why a video instructor would do this. Folks, remember that these people aren't fulltime career-long video instructors. Most of them have been (and probably a majority still are) personal trainers or group instructors or both, and therefore, *this is how they teach*. If you're a personal trainer, you have to pay more attention to the client than to getting your own w/o in. If you're a successful group instructor, you need to make form corrections plus you're probably teaching too many hours a day to work out the whole time. So what we're seeing is the style they've developed and been successful with for their whole career.

Now for some of them, Cathe for example, video has become a big part of what they do and they've developed an effective video style that includes doing the whole workout. Good for them, and I'm not saying we shouldn't discuss what we like best (hey that's why we're here, well that and enabling ), but just saying it shouldn't be a big mystery why so many of the instructors stop to correct and/or to talk.

[imhere2dance]

I don't like it because it throws me off. We're both moving and all of a sudden the instructor stops. If it's my first time doing the workout, I might stop too for a second because I don't know what's going on. The only time it's never bothered me is when Kari Anderson does it in Curl.