My Top 10 Favorite Workout Instructors

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Over the last five (5) years I must have tried over 30 studios in the GTA, sometimes bumping into the same instructor teaching a different fitness style at a different studio. In the last two years or so I’ve also seen a bunch of new successful studios who have migrated from the US to the great city of Toronto, giving us even more choice to help us meet our fitness needs. Yes “Health is Wealth” as can be seen in the overall boom being realized in the fitness industry.

I recently saw a statistic that outlined the four (4) provinces & territories that have the greatest percentages of gyms and health & fitness clubs in Canada:

1. Ontario = 38.1 % of the total industry establishment

2. Quebec = 22.7% of the total industry establishment

3. British Columbia = 14.5% of the total industry establishment

4. Alberta = 11.1% of the total industry establishment

Trending continues to show that with all the buzz circulating around health campaigns, that are focused on the need to fight obesity related health concerns and the importance of staying healthy; we will continue to see the millennials and baby boomers purchase gym memberships.

As a health and fitness enthusiast I’m always looking to try out new workout studios and instructors. If you are like me, you want a studio that offers a variety of instructor styles, differing levels of intensity and a wide schedule to meet your busy lifestyle. In my travels, I began to realize that it’s the instructors who truly make a studio. I mean there have been instances where I put up with leaking roofs and the poor maintenance of a studio space just to work out with a particular instructor. What I also realized is I like variety in my workouts, be it a boot camp style of drills, kickboxing or spinning or intense yoga, running or weights; my workouts needed to have an array of choice. But, choice began to get very expensive for me because I was carrying, at one point, four (4) gym memberships just to satisfy the variety I craved. That is until I discovered www.classpass.com

Class Pass was my saving grace, as this system allowed me to either pick 5 or 10 work out classes a month for a nominal monthly fee. I picked the 5-class option on a promotion and so for my first three months I paid $32.00/month to work out at some of the top gyms in Toronto. It was through this variety of workouts that I was able to solidify my top 10 favourite Workout Instructors.

In no particular order, here they are:

Studio/ Instructor/ Studio Website

Hourglass Workout - Lyzabeth Lopez www.hourglassworkout.com

Studio KO Boxfit - Todd Stoute www.studioko.ca

Big Hit Studio - Eddyu Bucardo www.bighit.ca

Studio Lagree - Jeffrey Ford www.studiolagree.com

Big Hit Studio - Gilbert Alfonso www.bighit.ca

Eat Train Live - Lonie Murdock www.eattrainlive.ca

Track Fitness - Larry Track www.trackfitness.com

Myodetox Performance - Alvin Diaz www.myodetoxperformance.com

All Day Fit - Cassie Day www.cassieday.ca

Studio Lagree - Bianca Gross www.studiolagree.com

Each of these instructors embodied professionalism, cared about my form and was guaranteed to give me a workout that pushed my body to its potential; wanting me to only come back for more to experience their Shades of Influence in my fitness life!