Group Fitness Instrutor Certification – is it worth it?
Hi everyone, I’m considering becoming a Group Fitness Instructor and have been researching which governing body to take the test through (ACE, ACSM). I am interested in starting a career that’s healthy, flexible and allows me to schedule around my family. In considering this, I have also researched salary/hourly rates. It looks like the average hourly rate is $25.00/hour. So, according to my calculations, if I was interested in making $30,000/year, I would have to teach 3.5 classes per day. Calculations:
$30,000/year
$2,500/month
$625/week
$625/$25 per class = 25 classes per week
25 classes per week = 3.5 classes per day
So my questions are this:
1. Is a Group Instructor paid per class/session?
2. Assuming the class is one hour, are instructors only paid for the actual hour teaching or is there time in front or back of the actual class hour for things like set up, clean up etc? If so, how many hours should I be calclating to be paid on per class? 1.5? 2?
3. My initial thought is 3.5 classes per day seems like a lot – or is it?
4. What is the definition of “group” – would training a class of five people justify a group or am I wandering off into the personal training side?
At this point, I’m wondering if getting the certification is even worth it. Would appreciate any and all thoughts and bits of advice. Thanks much!
Hi Maura,
your math is impeccable but I wonder how flexible you are scheduling time around your family when you teach every day of the year at least 3 group fitness classes.
Let me answer your questions first:
1. The rate per group class varies by geography but $25.00 is a reasonable assumption.
2. At least around here, there is no consideration for compensation at the front or back end of the classes.
3. 3.5 classes per day, 25 classes a week is an awful lot unless you can teach such a variety of modalities that you can just stand there and talk people through.
4. If the facility where you teach is okay with 5 people or less in class, then that’s what it is. Most facilities have a policy that will cancel a group class if it has consistently less than a specified number of participants.
Another consideration: no facility would let you teach that much per week. It is simply too much of a risk. If you get sick (and, trust me, with that many classes to teach, you will), then the entire group exercise schedule is jeopardized. So you would have to teach in at least 3 facilities which means travel back and forth.
Is it worth it? Not in the way you put the question. Frankly, I have yet to see an instructor who teaches that much or makes that much off group exercise alone.
I look at the classes I teach more as a hobby than as a money making enterprise. I enjoy it a lot but I keep my commitments to only 2 classes a week and substitute for others if I can. It has also given me great exposure to a lot of people which has benefitted my personal training business.
I wish you best of luck with whatever path you choose. Being a group exercise instructor has many rewards but they are not primarily pecuniary.