Why Your Group Fitness Classes Aren't Full (And How to Fix It) - with Joella Hopkins & Diana Gilbert (S7 E2)

How do you build a group fitness program that members keep coming back to and great instructors want to be part of? Joella Hopkins, Executive Vice President of Group Fitness at EōS Fitness, and Diana Gilbert, Senior Director of Fitness at Chuze Fitness, share practical strategies for recruiting and developing instructors, building a strong team culture, increasing class participation, and breaking down the silos between personal training and group fitness. They also reveal how their teams get new members into classes, why instructors should arrive early and connect beyond the studio, when it's time to remove an underperforming class, and what group fitness managers need to do differently to keep their programs relevant.

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(00:00) Building Better Group Fitness (03:51) Finding Amazing Instructors (05:49) Bridging PT and Group Fitness (10:24) Building Instructor Culture (13:20) Getting Members Into Classes (17:01) Joella's Top Leadership Tips (21:22) Building Your Instructor Bench (23:23) Hiring for Culture (27:51) Getting More Members Into Classes (31:45) Breaking Down Fitness Silos

Joella Hopkins, EōS Fitness Website: https://www.eosfitness.com/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joellahopkins/

Diana Gilbert, Chuze Fitness Website: https://chuzefitness.com/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/digtraining12/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/digtraining/

Thank you to the partners who support The Fitness Business Podcast: - Groe Solutions: Provides AI and computer vision software for gym member retention. https://www.groe.solutions- Budderfly: Provides comprehensive, no-cost energy efficiency as a service for businesses. https://www.budderfly.com/- Gym TV (Club Com): Provides custom digital entertainment, music, and signage for fitness clubs.https://www.clubcom.com/- Performance Food Centers: Helps businesses open smoothie and juice bars with clean ingredients. https://www.performancefoodcenters.com - Power Plate: Sells whole-body and targeted vibration plate machines for fitness and wellness.https://www.powerplate.com/

About Our Guests: Joella Hopkins is the Executive Vice President of Group Fitness at EōS Fitness, where she leads the company's group fitness strategy, programming, innovation, and instructor development across the growing EōS gym network. She brings more than 25 years of fitness industry leadership experience, having held senior group fitness roles with EōS Fitness, XSport Fitness, Gold's Gym International, and Les Mills. Joella is recognized for developing inclusive, high-energy fitness experiences and has presented master classes, workshops, and business seminars at leading fitness conferences worldwide. She holds a bachelor's degree in Psychology from North Carolina State University.

Diana Gilbert has more than 35 years of experience in the fitness industry and is Senior Director of Fitness at Chuze Fitness. From instructor and competitor to manager and director, Diana's career has been rooted in leadership, strategy, and serving others. Known for developing people, strengthening programs, and leading with kindness, she is dedicated to creating exceptional experiences that help both fitness professionals and members thrive through the power of fitness.