01:25
Faizan
Participants come to your aerobics class for a good workout, motivation and challenging yet fun choreography. Often, it's the choreography that keeps them coming back for more. Keeping your low-impact movements full of energy and excitement can be challenging, but by using a variety of ways to link movements together, you'll create a fresh routine every week.
Low Impact
A low-impact aerobics class does not mean low energy. The requirement to label a low-impact class is that one foot always stays on the ground. Oppositely, a high-impact class contains jumping movements where both feet are off the ground. Low-impact movements include knee-lifts, butt-kicks, grapevines, v-steps, half-jacks, marching, front-kicks, side-kicks, step-touches, lunges, walking and sport-based movements such as shooting a basketball, kickboxing and tennis side-to-side shuffles.
32-Count Phrase
The musical selection sets the pace for low-impact choreography. Aerobic music is counted in beats of four, with eight patterns linked together for a 32-count phrase. Consider this 32-count pattern when you select your choreography so you end up on the correct foot to start your next pattern. For example, a knee-lift is a two-count movement. You count one beat when you lift your knee and one beat when your foot returns to the floor. Four knee-lifts are a total of eight counts. Count the beats of other movements such as a v-step, which takes four counts; two to make the ends of the v and two to make the point. Add two v-steps to your four knee-lifts, for a total of 16 counts. You could repeat these two exercises for a 32-count pattern, or include two grapevines and two double step-touches for a 32-count pattern. Repeat the pattern as many times as you like and then switch lead feet for an equal number of patterns on the opposite leg. You will begin and end on a beat when you use this 32-count phrasing for your routines.
Linking Movements
Another way to organize your choreography uses a structured approach that is based on a particular song. You'll still be able to use the 32-count musical phrasing, but you'll repeat certain patterns for the chorus of a song. Instead of repeating the choreography until your participants are bored, you move quickly through the patterns with the tempo of the song. This may leave some people confused as they try to figure out the fast-moving choreography but will challenge those who have good dance coordination.
Freestyle
Your low-impact choreography does not have to follow counts or patterns. This is a freestyle or spontaneous choreography plan. You can do your movements for time, such as, for example, one minute of knee-lifts followed by one minute of half-jacks. Or organize your class into a circle instead of a line for movement work such as giant step-walking, tip-toe walks, forward marching, or zigzag walks. You can also face your students to the center of the circle and march toward and away from each other.
Population
You have many options for how to organize the choreography for your low-impact classes. Pay attention to the population of your group and structure your class based on participants' needs. For example, if you have a younger class that wants a dance-based, high-energy class, use music and choreography to support that. Older classes may enjoy the freestyle choreography where patterns do not have to be memorized.
Low Impact
A low-impact aerobics class does not mean low energy. The requirement to label a low-impact class is that one foot always stays on the ground. Oppositely, a high-impact class contains jumping movements where both feet are off the ground. Low-impact movements include knee-lifts, butt-kicks, grapevines, v-steps, half-jacks, marching, front-kicks, side-kicks, step-touches, lunges, walking and sport-based movements such as shooting a basketball, kickboxing and tennis side-to-side shuffles.
32-Count Phrase
The musical selection sets the pace for low-impact choreography. Aerobic music is counted in beats of four, with eight patterns linked together for a 32-count phrase. Consider this 32-count pattern when you select your choreography so you end up on the correct foot to start your next pattern. For example, a knee-lift is a two-count movement. You count one beat when you lift your knee and one beat when your foot returns to the floor. Four knee-lifts are a total of eight counts. Count the beats of other movements such as a v-step, which takes four counts; two to make the ends of the v and two to make the point. Add two v-steps to your four knee-lifts, for a total of 16 counts. You could repeat these two exercises for a 32-count pattern, or include two grapevines and two double step-touches for a 32-count pattern. Repeat the pattern as many times as you like and then switch lead feet for an equal number of patterns on the opposite leg. You will begin and end on a beat when you use this 32-count phrasing for your routines.
Linking Movements
Another way to organize your choreography uses a structured approach that is based on a particular song. You'll still be able to use the 32-count musical phrasing, but you'll repeat certain patterns for the chorus of a song. Instead of repeating the choreography until your participants are bored, you move quickly through the patterns with the tempo of the song. This may leave some people confused as they try to figure out the fast-moving choreography but will challenge those who have good dance coordination.
Freestyle
Your low-impact choreography does not have to follow counts or patterns. This is a freestyle or spontaneous choreography plan. You can do your movements for time, such as, for example, one minute of knee-lifts followed by one minute of half-jacks. Or organize your class into a circle instead of a line for movement work such as giant step-walking, tip-toe walks, forward marching, or zigzag walks. You can also face your students to the center of the circle and march toward and away from each other.
Population
You have many options for how to organize the choreography for your low-impact classes. Pay attention to the population of your group and structure your class based on participants' needs. For example, if you have a younger class that wants a dance-based, high-energy class, use music and choreography to support that. Older classes may enjoy the freestyle choreography where patterns do not have to be memorized.
