Barre with Justine

When we talk about burnout in fitness teaching, it’s often the physical toll that teaching takes on our bodies that we discuss. Overuse injuries are a real thing that many fitness instructors deal with. In her 2016 book The Melt Method, fitness professional Sue Hitzmann describes how, at one point, she was teaching 28 classes a week until her body rebelled: “…consider what I believe is the most closely guarded secret in the fitness industry: almost all professionals in the fitness industry have chronic pain.” (21)

In all honesty, I’m not sure that this is entirely true any longer. Many instructors have become more aware of recovery and the importance of balancing workouts. We can still see instances where instructors take on many classes without considering the toll it takes on their bodies (I’m so guilty of this at times!)

While we have come a long way in terms of addressing the physical effects of overtraining or ‘over-instructing’, I think we still have a long way to go when it comes to emotional burnout. So many instructors I know care deeply for their students and will put themselves last when it comes to emotional well-being by saying yes to helping out, coming early and staying late to help members, putting on a happy face despite the difficulties we may be facing.

I can remember a training in my early days as an instructor when we were reminded that “no one cares if you are having a bad day, they are there to forget about theirs.”

It becomes part of the routine to bring a mindset of positivity and motivation to each class, despite the emotions we might be feeling. On many levels, this makes sense and I agree – we are providing a service to members and they deserve a wonderful experience.

It can also be a recipe for burnout. We have a limited amount of energy and giving all of our energy to others leaves us with nothing. I love being able to give energy and happiness to others but admit that it wears on me and can lead to my being snippy with the kids and my husband (and then feeling horrible about it).

I’ve taught on days when my heart feels broken – days when my children are hurting, family members have lost jobs, and the worst – after losing someone very dear to me. As to why go forward with teaching, it’s complicated. My fitness family is exactly that – people I know and love, who lift me up just as much as I might for them.

I am the type of person who worries constantly and that hour of class takes me out of my head and into my body – where I have some level of control.

But it is a fine balance between the joys of teaching fitness and feeling depleted, physically and emotionally.

What is the tipping point?

As instructors, I think it’s difficult to accept the level of burnout we may be experiencing. It’s easy to grab that coffee, put on some lipstick and a smile to greet the next class!

But when you feel one of the following, it may be time to take a reset:

• lack of energy and creativity (to build routines, post content, or even share ideas in class)
• Mental and physical fatigue
• Irritability (higher levels of cortisol can make us feel upset and stressed, easy to anger)
• Resistance to slowing down or self-reflection(for me, this is my biggest indication that life has become to hectic – it’s easier to just push forward)

Have you ever felt this feeling of burnout? How have you managed?

Thanks for reading and sharing!