Today I wanted to give a little behind-the-scenes update about life as an (almost) full-time fitness instructor and answer some of your FAQ’s. Currently, I teach 15 permanent classes a week at Y7 and Bar Method but I say almost because the truth is I still do a few other jobs too.
I do the occasional partnership on this blog and my Instagram, @kaylakleinman. I also work a few front desk shifts at Bar Method (~6 hours a week) to make additional money.
There are a lot of misconceptions about what it looks like to be a full-time fitness instructor. Contrary to popular belief I don’t just workout all day 😜 I always want to be super honest and as open as I can be about my current career path. Here are some of my thoughts on being a full-time fitness instructor and I’m also answering some questions you guys asked on instagram!
Your FAQ on being a full-time fitness + yoga instructor:
What’s a typical day like?
Every day looks a bit different for me but my weekly schedule is pretty consistent. I’ll sub a class here and there but at this point every week looks more or less the same.
Some days are really really crazy. I jokingly call my Monday “Shake Your Money Maker Monday” because I teach 5 classes… and it honestly is the day I make a good chunk of my income. But I like to think it evens out as the end of my week is pretty chill. I rarely do work things on Friday. And I keep Sunday’s COMPLETELY empty so I can sleep in and be lazy.
How do you keep your energy levels up in all your classes?
Lots of coffee? I’m only half kidding…
Besides drinking a fair amount of caffeine every day I don’t have any special tricks. In all honesty, keeping my energy up while I’m teaching is pretty easy for me. I think my background as an actor and performer helps. Even if I’m dead tired I can usually “turn it on.”
There are times when the second I stop teaching I’ll feel myself totally crash because the adrenaline rush is over.
In the last year, there have been times when teaching has felt emotionally challenging. I don’t recommend teaching a barre class 12-hours post-break-up. Not a fun day for me. But something I like about teaching is it challenges me to be SO present. If I let my mind wander to whatever drama is going on in my life I lose my place or fumble over my words.
Do you get paid hourly or per head?
Every fitness and yoga studio pays a bit differently.
- Some of my classes are a flat-rate fee. It doesn’t matter if 1 person shows up or 25 I get paid the same rate.
- Some of my classes I get paid per-head. So I get a base pay, plus a bonus for every person that shows up to class.
There are pros and cons to both.
Flat-rate is great if you teach off-peak times. Even if it’s a small class I’m still going to get paid the same, woohoo! I feel like it also means instructors aren’t fighting over “good teaching times.” It’s all the same in essence. And I can easily predict my income from those classes every week.
Pay-per-head is great when you have peak time slots. Without fail a 7PM class is going to sell-out. No matter who is teaching it, it just does. The earning potential is MUCH bigger. I could make $100+ for a sold-out class. But a small class? I might only be making $30. I’ve had most of my pay-per-head classes for a while now so I can kind of predict what attendance is going to look like. But sometimes it’s a total crapshoot and a class that’s typically full will be quiet one day or vice versa.
Truth be told: Whether it’s a big class or small class I’m still working just as hard as an instructor! Maybe sometimes even harder in a small class to keep the energy going.
How do you prep for your classes?
I’m a plan-ahead kind of gal. Flying by the seat of my pants in class would stress me out.
For Y7 I teach the same yoga sequence all week and use the same playlist in all my classes. Every Monday I create my sequence and playlist for the week. I might tweak it here and there as the week goes on but for the most part it’s the same all week. I’ll memorize the sequence before I teach my first class Monday and practice saying the postures too. After I teach it once I’m usually pretty confident in the sequence.
For Bar Method, I teach a different set of exercises every day. I’ll write out my plan before every class I teach there (usually the day of or before) and I actually bring my class plan into the classroom with me to occasionally glance at. Ain’t no shame in having a cheat sheet!
A lot of prep work goes into teaching each and every class between creating playlists, sequences, reviewing moves I haven’t taught in a while, thinking about my intention for the week, etc.
Do you get benefits (medical, vacation, sick days, etc)
Nope! I’ve heard that if you’re employed as a full-time instructor at a mega studio-like SoulCycle you receive benefits and all that jazz. Because I’m a part-time employee at two studios I get nada. I think this is a major misconception about working in the fitness industry — finding a full-time teaching job with benefits is a unicorn. It doesn’t really exist.
The pro of this is I can travel whenever I want. In 2019 I spent about 6 weeks traveling between multiple trips. I never could’ve done that at a traditional job. No one would’ve allowed me to take 6 weeks of vacation! But obviously the con is I only get paid when I teach which means I have to be strategic about travel since no teaching means no paycheck.
I am shamelessly still on my parent’s health insurance and will be until I turn 30 (thanks parents! And the Age 29 Law). Come May 16th, though, I’ll have to figure things out…
How many classes does it take to be full-time?
At studios that offer benefits and such, I’m not sure how many classes you need to teach at a minimum. For me right now the 15 permanent classes I teach are still not enough steady income to afford to live in New York. And my sushi addiction. This is why I supplement by working front desk shifts and I feel grateful to have partnership opportunities from blogging.
Teaching 15 classes a week might sound like a lot. I mean, I guess it is. But financially it shakes out to less than you’d think. I still consider myself a full-time instructor as teaching yoga and barre is how I make ~90% of my income.
What’s it like teaching yoga vs. barre?
Teaching at Y7 is very different than teaching at Bar Method but the two complement each other nicely.
Teaching Barre:
The Bar Method has a very specific style and vibe. There’s a whole manual of rules to follow that’s 100’s of pages long. There are rules about how I give cues, the alignment of different exercises, how to give hands-on adjustments, maximum reps I can give, etc.
I’m someone that thrives when I have rules to follow. I like that I’m not planning a class totally from scratch, I gotta follow a structure and method no matter what!
I find teaching Bar Method to be more mentally draining than yoga. It takes a lot of brainwork to remember everyone’s names, the perfect set-up for each exercise and to be 100% present the entire class! Physically it’s not too bad. I get to use a microphone and I don’t demo a ton. This was actually one of the reasons I auditioned for Bar Method in the first place — I knew it would be kinder to my body than when I was previously teaching Yoga Sculpt at CorePower Yoga.
Teaching Yoga:
Right now besides the occasional event, the only yoga I teach is at Y7.
Y7 has a specific style and vibe too, but I have a bit more freedom. There are fewer rules to follow. Because every Y7 instructor comes from a different yoga background we are allowed to use our own judgment when it comes to form and alignment. I can curse if I really want to 😂 play ALL the Mac Miller and I get to give really weird cues. Today I told people to imagine there’s a wall behind them in half moon and they’re trying to press both butt cheeks on the wall. That wouldn’t fly at Bar Method…
Teaching Y7 is more physically draining in my opinion. Because the class is heated to ~90 degrees the heat can really take a toll on you. After teaching back-to-back classes in the hot room my legs feel like lead.
I also don’t have a microphone so it can take a toll on my voice on crazy teaching days. At Y7 I don’t do a ton of demo-ing because it’s dark but at other yoga studios I used to teach at I did more demo-ing which was physically challenging.
Teaching both:
Sometimes it feels like I’m switching between two different languages. I have my yoga language and my barre language. I’ll have moments when I’m teaching barre that I’ll slip into Yoga Kayla mode. My vibe is different at each studio, Y7 I’m a bit more chill, cuz duh yoga whereas Bar Method I always gotta be sparkly. I think I’m naturally a high energy person so I’ve actually had to work on chilling the f*ck out at Y7…
Teaching at Y7 made it so much easier to transition to being a Bar Method instructor. It gave me the confidence and stage presence to just own it and not freak out when I first started teaching. I was already used to being in front of a room teaching. I feel like I’ve grown exponentially as a yoga teacher thanks to my experience in Bar Method instructor training.
I love having the yin and the yang of both studios.
✨
Your Turn: Got any other questions for me about being a fitness instructor? Did any of the above surprise you?
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How often do you take breaks/holidays? Sometimes as a personal trainer I’m finding it tough if I don’t go away and re-energize. I’m naturally introverted so it’s even more important for me.
It really depends! I have a lot of traveling coming up at the beginning of this year, but then sometimes I’ll go a few months without any major changes in my schedule. I do try to plan a few vacations throughout the year to give myself some time off.