There is no other factor that takes more of a fitness instructors’ time than building a playlist for class. Granted, it is one of the most enjoyable things we do, but I’d like to give you a couple of shortcuts that may help save you time and frustration. Enjoy!
And don’t hesitate to ask if I can help make your crossover job as a DJ any easier!
- FREE. You can join Spotify for free, listen all you want, build playlists, and share music with your friends and other instructors. There are a couple of catches. You will have to hear ads periodically, and you have to have an internet connection. This makes it less than ideal for use in teaching.
- $4.99 a month. With this subscription you can skip the ads. But you still have to have internet to access your music.
- $9.99 a month. This is what I do. For ten dollars a month, I have access to millions of songs, many of them unavailable on iTunes, and I can take all of my music ‘offline’ when I teach. I can share playlists, and subscribe to playlists from other instructors. I highly recommend going this way. I haven’t paid iTunes $1.29 for a song in over two years!
Organize your iTunes. Set up folders for types of music. Here are a few of the folders I use frequently:
- cycle warm ups
- cycle cool downs
- cycle hills
- cycle intervals
- cycle flats
- yoga-active/power
- yoga-Savasana
- yoga-acoustic
- yoga-slow flow
- step-130 bpm
- boot camp times intervals
- cardio warm up
- cardio cool downs
You get the idea, just organize your folders so all you have to do is drag and drop.
Pre-Party Tunes
Keep a current playlist on you iPod for what I call ‘pre-party’ tunes. Play music as your students are coming into the room. Select music that sets the tone for the type of class you’re teaching, and the vibe you want to set for class.
Get Free Music
There are several DJs who are offering free mashups and mixes on their sites. A couple of my favorites for fitness and cycle classes:
For Yoga:
sign up to receive a free download each week whiteswanrecords.com
Spiritvoyage.com has a free download page with some really nice yoga tunes