In 2017, we’ll be expanding our group fitness offering by developing our use of MyZone, virtual, indoor cycling and water-based classes, as well as evolving our studio-based fitness.

This year we introduced H2O HIIT classes to our aqua programme, as well as Lane Fit swimming sessions. We’re assessing a Float Fit class for 2017.

In the new year, we expect higher demand for dance-based classes, high- and low-intensity sessions and short, 15- to 20-minute gym-based classes. We’ll be increasing our indoor cycle programme and introducing fitness classes at one of our Victorian baths.

We’ll also be developing our group fitness environments, adding experiential effects. Our lighting, virtual on-demand and mind-body experiences at the refurbished Drumbrae club have been well received, as have the new areas for HIIT and group training.

We recognise that the most inactive people in the community and those attending our targeted health referral programmes don’t always feel confident about our mainstream programmes. Lower intensity options like chair-based exercise, strength and balance classes and low-level gym and circuit-based classes will feature more prominently in our timetabling, improving pathways from our existing health referral programmes and providing more opportunities for people to be active.

Crunch is excited to change the game with new, innovative and fun group fitness in 2017. In our Action Sports arena, we’re launching first-to-market class Adrenaline Rush, featuring a gravity-defying bungee suspension system.

In our Mind Body Burn genre, Yoga Beats – a meditative drumming and yoga class – allows participants to ‘ohm’ to the beat of their own drum in rhythmic, powerful patterns. Meanwhile Cardio Dance has always been a huge pillar for Crunch, and in the new year there’ll be an expansion of dance-based workouts, as well as a variety of circus and aerial-inspired movement classes.

Lyra (aerial hoops), Trapfit (trapeze-based), Pole Dancing and Red Velvet (aerial silks) classes will continue to grow in our major markets. Additionally, our newest class concept Mash-Up – which fuses two popular classes together into one intensive workout (eg. Zumba vs Hard Knocks) – will hit all major US cities.

Finally, our indoor cycling programme Ride will welcome the addition of new technology. Our immersive and interactive classes will complement and amplify current programming in our Rhythm, Road and Remixed Ride buckets.

Group exercise (GX) has always been key to the success of our New Zealand clubs and this year we will build on that, based on key global GX trends.

HIIT remains the hottest trend in the industry and we’re piling on more Grit classes, plus a new 30-minute HIIT cycle workout: Les Mills Sprint. Grit is our second biggest class after BodyPump, with 8,000 weekly attendances across our 12 clubs. Launched in 2016, Sprint is already attracting 2,000 per week.

We’ll also add more Immersive cycle studios and virtual RPM classes, which are filling studios in off-peak times. With weekly attendances of 1,800 across the seven clubs offering virtual cycle, we’ll expand the class into the five remaining clubs.

Mind-body classes are trending strongly, with 4,300 weekly attendances for BodyBalance and 800 for freestyle yoga. We’ve just had a record-breaking pilot response to yoga, barre and meditation classes; these will therefore be a major timetable addition in 2017.

Despite the rise of HIIT, slow strength classes remain our most popular category, with 6,000 weekly attendances at CXworx and 10,000 at BodyPump. We’ll be launching the 100th release of BodyPump on 14 January with a major promotion.

Kicking off the year includes putting all our members through a ‘Fitness Frenzy’, which means they do a double workout each day for 14 days. This engages them in all group exercise classes. It’s designed to kick-start our members’ fitness regimes for the new year. Anyone who completes the Frenzy receives two weeks free on their membership.

The Australian school year starts at the beginning of February, so we begin this programme the second week after school goes back – we don’t have a rush of New Year’s resolutions until February, as many members leave town in December and January.

Our ‘21 Days Clean’ programme then leads us to the Easter break. We bring in nutritionists, focus on BodyBalance, yoga and core classes, and aim to provide a holistic programme. Results show that attendance increases to capacity in our group fitness studios during these times.

Gymbox is expanding, bringing its ‘Play Harder’ attitude to three new sites in London in 2017. As group fitness is the heartbeat of Gymbox, each of our new gyms will offer totally new and unique spaces designed to both challenge and enhance the way people exercise together.

Next year will see us launching some completely new group fitness concepts: Flat Line, Counter Punch and Rope Burn, to name a few. We’ll also be launching new studios that will enhance our group offering. Our fitness team has worked closely with the design team to ensure each studio is optimised for a particular type of class, paying special attention to flooring, lighting and technology. 

2017 will also see us expand how we use tech to enhance the member experience in the class, providing genuine feedback on performance.

At Third Space, we’re continuously improving our programme with exciting new class launches in each new timetable. New for January we have Afterburner, a high-intensity functional training class designed for maximum EPOC (burning calories for many hours after the class is over).

The class takes place on our custom-built rigs using a wide range of equipment including plyo boxes, kettlebells, weights, battle ropes and slam balls. This is combined with calisthenics exercises such as pull-ups and dips to constantly challenge our members, who are continuously looking for inspiring ways to get fit.

Our boutique concept, Another Space – which is based entirely around group exercise – continues to grow as we plan new site openings for 2017. HIIT has been particularly popular and we’re extending this continuously. We’re also planning some new yoga fusion classes for 2017, as these are increasingly popular.

In 2017, we’ll be looking at where we can include new scientific exercise principles in our group fitness classes. We’ve always kept a rather traditionalist approach, but we don’t fight the tide. There will be some exciting developments for us within the realms of high-intensity training and pilates.

Our pilates teacher training courses have proven incredibly popular, and that has inspired us to start planning unique yoga retreat opportunities in Indonesia. For the solo traveller, a yoga retreat can be hit-and-miss, so our members are pleased to know we’ll be organising and quality-checking the retreat to ensure they have a beautiful experience.

We’re also immensely proud of our recent partnership with the Royal Children’s Hospital in Melbourne. We’re introducing fortnightly classes of gentle movement and mindfulness to the children and offering the parents access to our Kaya Health Club facilities during their child’s stay in hospital. We want to make sure these parents have somewhere to go and put some energy and care back into themselves if they need to. Whether it’s yoga or boxing, we’re proud to open the door for them and hopefully take a little of the strain off.

We have long focused on continuous improvement in our group fitness programme. We seek to implement a steady stream of change to keep the experience fresh and engaging. We find this helps us to improve our retention of members, which is now much better than industry averages.

In 2017, we plan to run a series of workshops for our instructors, facilitated by a qualified drama teacher. We hope to enhance our instructors’ delivery and add character and energy to their performance.

We will also look to supplement our core programmes with new content. This allows our members to continue to experiment and explore new concepts, while at the same time maintaining their progress in favourite classes such as BodyPump or our popular outdoor workout offerings.

Two new programmes we’re launching – the Metafit HIIT workout and the locally-developed ZUU workout – involve no equipment whatsoever, and link in with the current trends of bodyweight training and HIIT.