Make Your Workout a Class Act

Judi Sheppard Missett began dance lessons as a toddler. By her teen years, she was dancing professionally and getting mostly private instruction. Her teachers were good, but she missed working with other students.

"The group classes were always the most fun,'' says Sheppard Missett, who used her experience to create the popular Jazzercise classes she still oversees.

As Sheppard Missett found, joining a group devoted to fitness can help you enjoy exercise, particularly if you find it tough to stick with workouts. And while "group exercise" once meant aerobics, a variety of classes today can help meet almost any fitness goal.

"In a group situation the enjoyment level goes up, the adherence level goes up, and the social factors go up,'' says Curt L. Lox, Ph.D., a Southern Illinois University sports psychologist. "All of those things keep people coming back."

Excuses, excuses

When we work out alone, excuses can derail us. Joining a group, though, means we're committing not only to better fitness, but also to other people. "Groups can provide an external motivation because you don't want to disappoint others,'' Dr. Lox says.

The presence of others can also drive you to work harder. If you exercise by yourself, you may have a tendency to slack off. In a group, where others may set the pace, that's less likely.

Groups can add a new dynamic to an old routine. "In a group class, people often feel that the time goes faster and that it doesn't feel like work,'' Dr. Lox says. That removes "two of the biggest reasons why people don't exercise.'' Older adults in particular seem to enjoy the social aspects and find extra motivation.

"There's a real energy in a group situation,'' Sheppard Missett says. People make friends and feel they're part of something special.

One key bond is that of student and instructor. The instructor inspires while helping students exercise safely and properly.

Some people may feel awkward exercising in front of others. "They just need to remember that nobody is really looking at them,'' Sheppard Missett says. Everybody is there "to get something out of it for themselves.''

One way to pick a class is to decide what type of exercise you prefer. If you want a cardiovascular workout, aerobics classes range from kickboxing to dance. For building muscle, classes use all kinds of resistance training. For a gentler workout, choose from an array of pool-based classes. There are even classes for children and young adults. Junior Jazzercise, for instance, is tailored to 6- to 9-year-olds.

Most gyms and fitness centers have classes to fit any schedule. "People just need to get out there and find out what works for them,'' Sheppard Missett says.

Double your fun

Many group exercise classes address more than one area of fitness:

• Core Board: This device looks like a mini teeter-totter. You use the core muscles of your back and abdomen to keep it stable while honing your sense of balance.

• Stability Ball: These large, inflatable balls boost strength and flexibility in the abdomen, back, gluteus, and hips.

• Free Motion: Set to music, resistance training on a tower of pulleys and weights improves strength, balance, and flexibility. It can provide a cardiovascular workout.

• Dance: Classes draw from styles ranging from ballet to jazz to salsa. They can aid strength, balance, and flexibility.