Season 6, Episode 10: How do I keep long-term clients challenged, and keep growing myself?

Tania Huddart: Nobody wants a clunky class. You know the one. Your clients are flopping around like a fish on the mat, from one position to the next, with nothing joining it up. Flow is what joins it up. There's a clear structure, and a clear story you're telling with the movement. And your long-term clients can feel the difference.

Host: Welcome to Build Confidence and Purpose with Pilates. I'm here with Tania Huddart: Pilates teacher, teacher trainer and author of Teach Pilates with Confidence and Pilates & Purpose. Both voices you'll hear are made with AI. Every word Tania says is her own, and she's approved each one.

Last episode was about planning one class that works for everyone in the room. Today is the season finale, and the end of Part 3 of the course. How do I keep long-term clients challenged, and keep growing myself?

Tania Huddart: Those two go together. Your long-term clients grow when you do. So let's talk about both.

Host: Let's start with flow. Why does it matter so much?

Tania Huddart: Well, first of all, it's one of the Pilates principles. So it makes sense to put some focus on how we move from one exercise to the next.

We create flow in two ways. The first is the exercises we choose, and the way we put them together. The second is spending some time thinking about the transitions. How we get from one exercise to the other.

Host: What does a transition actually look like?

Tania Huddart: It can be very simple. If your clients are lying on their back, you ask them to roll over onto their side. Or you can find a more interesting way to get from their back to their side. Or from lying on their front up onto their hands and knees. We call that four-point kneeling.

So think about different ways you could cue people to move from one position to another. And plan them. Don't leave them to chance.

Host: Here's my sceptical question. Isn't this a bit of choreography for its own sake? Does it make any real difference to the client?

Tania Huddart: It makes a big difference. The first thing is, it saves time. If you build the transitions into the way you structure your class, there's much less stop-starting. So you get more done, and your clients get more out of the hour.

It also gives you more room to be creative. You can challenge your clients without grabbing for a more advanced exercise.

Host: So the challenge comes from the flow itself?

Tania Huddart: Yes. There's less downtime, so the class moves smoothly from one exercise to the next. Your clients feel like they're working a little harder. And most of them sit at desks all day. Flow gets them moving in ways they may not have moved for a while. It doesn't make the movement more difficult. It makes it more consistent. And for people who don't move much, that's a challenge in itself.

It keeps them engaged, too. They don't have time to think about what they're cooking for dinner tonight.

Host: And for the teacher?

Tania Huddart: This is probably the biggest thing, especially as you keep teaching, and you have to pull a number of classes out of the hat every week. If you think about your transitions and how your classes flow, you beat the boredom. Not just for your clients. For you.

Your clients start to wonder, "What's she going to have us do today?" It's good not to be predictable. It's like a surprise parcel. And it brings a more social, fun feel into the room. Movement should be joyful. It gives them something to talk about in the changing room. And it builds a deeper connection between you and them. That know, like and trust.

Host: Let's talk about the client who's been coming for years. They know every exercise. How do I keep them challenged?

Tania Huddart: Long-term clients don't need harder. They need different. You don't need a new exercise. You need a new way into the one they know.

In the course, there are four ways I come back to. The first is to change the position, and the resistance. Say you've done some arm work lying on your back. You can take the same idea onto hands and knees. Check first that they've got no knee or wrist problems that would make that a poor choice. Or change what they're working against. Go from the springs on the equipment to a resistance band. It always feels different.

Host: And the second?

Tania Huddart: Go from two arms or legs to one. It's one of the most interesting ways to change an exercise. They need more coordination, and it brings in balance control too.

The third is to add a balance challenge. Use something a little unstable. A ball, a foam roller, a wobble cushion. And if it's safe, ask them to close their eyes.

And the fourth is to add more compound movements. That's two things at once. Balancing on one leg while they do a shoulder exercise, for instance. It saves time, and it gives your exercises a whole new dimension.

Host: That's a lot to add to someone who's been doing it one way for years.

Tania Huddart: So change one thing at a time, so you can see what it did. Their needs, their goals and the way they learn will guide you. You don't have to follow any order.

And keep linking it back to their life. A balance challenge on the mat is a balance challenge on the stairs, or in the garden. When they can see that, they take responsibility for their own movement, and the challenge means something.

And if you feel out of your depth, with an injury or with pain, refer them to someone who can help, like a physiotherapist. That keeps your client safe.

Host: What could a teacher do in their next class?

Tania Huddart: Take one exercise your long-term clients know really well. Change one thing about it. The position, the resistance, one leg instead of two. And plan one new transition into it. Then watch their faces. You'll see who's suddenly paying attention again.

Host: And the second half of the question. How do I keep growing myself?

Tania Huddart: There are three steps in the course. Film yourself teaching. Practise the exercises. And set goals and objectives for your teaching.

We talked about filming yourself back in Season 2, so I'll just say it again. Watch it as if you were your client.

Then the goals. Set yourself a goal for an exercise or a class. It keeps you motivated, and you can still keep your clients' needs at the centre.

Host: What does practising look like, for someone who's been teaching for years?

Tania Huddart: It matters more than people think. Learn the exercise, practise it, and understand it on every level. Do it in your own body, not just in your head.

Then practise the ways you teach it. Try a different kind of cue, and watch how it lands on different bodies. Get to know each client's skill level, what they can do, and any injuries or limits. Keep those in mind when you plan, and when you teach. That's practice too.

Host: That sounds like hard work, years in.

Tania Huddart: It is. We have to get comfortable with the uncomfortable. It's much easier to keep doing what we've always done. But the better we become as teachers, and the more honest we are with ourselves, the better our businesses will be. The teacher who keeps learning is the one whose clients keep coming.

Host: We've been right through the course this season. Can you take us back through it, briefly?

Tania Huddart: I'd love to. Part 1 is understanding your clients. How adults learn, and why they need to see the point. What keeps them coming, and what keeps them away. How each person learns, and the two kinds of feedback. It's all about the people on the mat, before you teach them a single exercise.

Part 2 is your teaching toolkit. Showing and saying. Asking, and touching. Cues that work. Images and stories. These are the tools you reach for in every class. With your words, your body and your hands.

And Part 3 is planning and teaching your classes. One class for everyone in the room. Then keeping it moving, and keeping it fresh, for the clients who've been with you for years.

Every part of the course comes back to the same place. The person on the mat.

Host: So, three things to take away?

Tania Huddart: One. Plan your transitions. Flow saves time, adds challenge and beats the boredom, for them and for you.

Two. Long-term clients need different, not harder. Change the position or the resistance, go to one arm or leg, add balance, or put two movements together.

Three. Keep growing. Film yourself, practise, and set yourself a goal.

Host: And the question to sit with?

Tania Huddart: Think of your longest-standing client. When did you last surprise them? And when did you last surprise yourself?

Host: Everything we talked about today is in Part 3 of Tania's online course, Teach Pilates with Confidence: Planning and teaching your classes. It's an online course built on Tania's book. It has three parts: understanding your clients, your teaching toolkit, and planning and teaching your classes. There are video lessons from Tania herself, and a short quiz at the end of each part. It's open now, and you work through it at your own pace. You'll find it at taniahuddart.com/academy.

That's the end of Season 6, and there's more to come. Thank you for listening, and for all the teaching you do.

Tania, last word?

Tania Huddart: Movement should be fun. For your clients, and for you. Keep it moving, keep it fresh, and keep learning. Your clients will feel it, and so will you.