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How to Stream Fitness Classes

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As a fitness coach, you may be wondering how you can reach more people, help your clients at home, and increase your business. Whether you need to work at home or you wish to, this post will cover what you need to have to set up your platform at home. 

Online Fitness Class Platforms

The first thing you will need to do is determine which live-streaming website to which you will want to broadcast your fitness class: 

  • Facebook – if you already have a Facebook page for your clients, streaming live makes it easy to reach all of your viewers at once. 
  • YouTube – if you want to make fitness videos in addition to your live-streams, streaming on YouTube will help you grow a larger following and possibly bring in new clients. 
  • Zoom – since the 2020 pandemic, many people have learned to use Zoom to interact with their coworkers, classmates, family, and friends. It is a good way to stream privately to a few clients. You are limited (on the free version) to 40 minute streams. 
  • Twitch – originally created for gamers, Twitch has expanded its categories to include fitness, art, music, and more. While organic growth can be difficult on the platform, the patrons can be enthusiastic and generous. 
  • Discord – if you want to stream one-on-one with clients and build a community that supports each other, look into Discord. You can set up custom channels for anything and your clients can remain anonymous to other clients by choosing usernames. 

Software for Streaming Fitness Classes

Melon by Streamlabs was created in 2020 after the platform saw an obvious need for a browser software that was easy for professionals to set up and use. As many traditionally in-person jobs are now being done online, more people are learning how to communicate over the internet. 

Melon allows you to easily set up a branded stream that you can broadcast to several different platforms. You even have the option to multi stream to several at once, allowing you to reach a greater audience. The program is more intuitive than most of the best streaming software and can be set up in a matter of minutes. 

You can also invite others to join your stream. This means you can host another fitness instructor with you or even bring on clients to work with in front of an audience. Melon allows you to invite 1 person to your stream under their basic program or up to 6 people with their pro subscription. 

Equipment Requirements for Instructors

As Melon is run on your browser, you won’t have to have too much CPU to run smooth streams, but you should try to maximize your audio and video quality for your viewers. 

Don’t rely on your laptop (or desktop) microphone to pick up your sound. You will be moving all over the screen and will still need to communicate with your viewers. You can either use a headset that won’t fall off during your activity or set up microphones closer to your workout area. Here are some options you can consider:

Blue Snowball

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  • Comfortable
  • Moisture Repellent
  • Flexible

HyperX QuadCast

hyperx quadcast
  • Tap to Mute Censor
  • Shock Mount
  • 4 Polar Patterns

Blue Yeti

blue yeti
  • Zero Latency
  • Multiple Pattern Selection
  • Mute Button

You should also consider investing in a camera that can film high quality than your typical laptop webcam. Your audience will want to scrutinize your every move so that they can do their best to replicate it. Either use a high end webcam or a digital camera with video capabilities. Here are a few options:

Logitech C922

logitech c922
  • HD 1080p Resolution
  • Brighter Images
  • 72° Field of View

Razer Kiyo

razer kiyo
  • Built-in Ring Light
  • HD 1080p Resolution
  • Foldable Design

Sony Alpha a6000

sony alpha a6000
  • 1920×1080 video
  • Hybrid AF
  • Clear Video Quality

If you are in a darker space, you will want to light it up so that everything is visible for your viewers. Figure out how to place your lighting to brighten your area substantially. Here are a few lights that we recommend:

Neewer Bi-Color

Neewer bicolor 1
  • 3200 – 5600 K
  • 360° Rotation
  • Lightweight

Neewer Super Slim

neewer super slim
  • Energy Saving
  • Low Heat
  • 3200-5600 K

Elgato Key Light

Elgato key light 1
  • 2800 Lumens, Fully Dimmable
  • Glare-Free Diffusion
  • App-Controlled

Set Up Your Fitness Area

Once you have your camera set up, aim it in the direction where you will be moving throughout the stream. Make sure you have plenty of room to move around, but take note of where you won’t be visible. Consider taping the floor at the edges of the point of view so that you don’t forget to stay within the frame. 

Bring any equipment you will use into the frame and make sure that it is visible. Don’t forget that you will also need to show the floor on your stream so that people can watch the whole workout without you adjusting the camera. 

When everything is set up, film a 5-10 minute test run to ensure that your camera, lighting, sound is all working and that your viewers will be able to see every action you make.

Find Royalty-Free Music for Your Fitness Class

When streaming to an online platform, you do have to be aware of DMCA claims. You could have your channel banned or videos muted or deleted if you play copyrighted music throughout your workout. 

In order to avoid this, you will need to create playlists of royalty-free music. While you can find some on YouTube, it isn’t always easy to locate and content creators can change their mind at any time. 

Instead, look into a platform like Epidemic Sound. Epidemic Sound has thousands of songs in every genre that are royalty-free and streamer friendly. You can download and create playlists of energetic music that will keep you and your viewer’s heart rates going. 

Epidemic Sound frequently adds new music each week and you don’t have to worry about them making claims. In fact, even if you stop using their service, they won’t claim anything you made while you worked with them. 

Go Live With Your Fitness Stream

When you’re ready, go live with your Fitness Stream. Reach out to your audience ahead of time to let them know when you will broadcast so that they know where to find you and can be logged on in time. 

After each stream, ask for feedback on what can be improved for the next time so that you can refine the process to get better over time. 

Conclusion

Whether you are limited to streaming a fitness class or are split between that and teaching a gym, you may find that you really enjoy broadcasting and reaching a greater audience.

About the Author

Luci

Luci is a novelist, freelance writer, and active blogger. A journalist at heart, she loves nothing more than interviewing the outliers of the gaming community who are blazing a trail with entertaining original content. When she’s not penning an article, coffee in hand, she can be found gearing her shieldmaiden or playing with her son at the beach.

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