From: mahoney@cs.utexas.edu (J. Jeff Mahoney)
Newsgroups: misc.fitness
Subject: Re: My aerobics teacher can't follow the music
Date: 10 Apr 1992 11:10:03 -0500
Organization: Just Do It Society
NNTP-Posting-Host: grit.cs.utexas.edu

In article <1992Apr8.174446.11411@awdprime.austin.ibm.com> ...@cs.utexas.edu:ibmaus!auschs!YOURCOMPUTER.austin.ibm.com!YOURLOGIN writes:
>
>Got a little problem w/ my aerobics teacher
>
>she's great and all that, but quite often she doesn't follow the beat &
>goes too fast or too slow
>
>this bothers the hell out of me and i usually ignore her and stay with the
>music even thought the whole class is going w/ the instructor
>
>am i stubborn or rude for doing this?  if you're an aerobics instructor,
>please tell me if it bothers you at all when someone in the class does
>their own thing like this, or even starts doing their own exercises if
>they don't like yours (which i also do a lot)
>
>thanks in advance
>
>lisa koh
>
>hook 'em horns!!

A couple of issues here...........first the fact that your instructor
can't follow the beat.  To me this is a definite sign that she is not
so "great and all that."  I've been doing aerobics for nearly a
decade (teaching for five), and I often run into instructors that
can't follow the beat.  I rarely do their class twice.  Hearing the
beat is the first thing a new instructor is taught to do (remember this
IS a dance as well as exercise class), and if they can't do this, I
have little faith in their competence.  I'm not saying that you can't
get a good workout nonetheless, but I personally can not enjoy such
a class (bad dancing is not my idea of fun).  My aerobics coordinator
gets headaches when she hears complaints about her instructors not
being able to keep the beat.  She tries to schedule "Back to Basics"
workshops at least once a year for her instructors, and I hope other
clubs do the same.  I would suggest that you complain (politely) to
the person in charge of aerobics at your club.  This instructor needs
to be aware of this weakness in her abilities.

Now, secondly, should you do your own thing in class?  A couple of times
I have taken classes with instructors who can't follow the beat, and
I DO follow the beat, but I am doing this to let the instructor know that
she is screwing up.  They rarely pick up on it.  When I am teaching
a class, and I see someone deviating from my routine, I always ask
myself, "Am I screwing up?"  I don't mind at all when people do
variations (changing the arms, modifying for low-impact etc), but
if someone does something radically different (doing jumping jacks
when I'm doing push-ups) I think it can be disruptive to the class.
If you really want to do your own routine, I prefer you to stand
near the back of the class, so you won't confuse the neophytes who
are deperately trying to match my footwork.

Just my opinions

(Lisa...let me know where you are working out.  I invite you to come
to my class if you so desire---ALWAYS on the beat.)
-- 
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