You Don't Have to Be Fit to Start

Here's a sentence that shouldn't make sense but somehow does: "I can't go to a fitness class because I'm not fit enough."

Read that back. It's a bit of a paradox - like saying you can't go to a restaurant because you're hungry. And yet it's one of the most common reasons people give for not trying a dance fitness class. Possibly for not trying any fitness class, ever.

I get it, honestly. The fear isn't irrational, it's just based on the wrong picture of what a fitness class actually is.

Where the fear comes from

Fitness culture has spent decades making movement feel like it's for a specific type of person. The marketing is full of people who already look like they work out — impossibly coordinated, not a hair out of place, glowing rather than sweating. The implication is clear: this is for people who've already got it together. Come back when you do.

It's an understandable assumption - but it's the wrong one.

But it sticks. So people convince themselves they'll start "once I'm a bit fitter." Which means, for a lot of people, never.

What actually happens when you show up

Let me tell you what a Groove Fitness class actually looks like from the inside, because I think it'll surprise you.

You walk in. People are chatting. The music's already on - classic disco, probably Chic or something from Earth Wind & Fire. Nobody clocks your entrance or does a quick assessment of your fitness level. They're too busy catching up with each other or quietly working out which foot comes first.

The class starts. I show you a sequence - a handful of moves that repeat throughout the song. Some people follow it closely. Some follow the general idea. Some are basically freestyling. All of that is fine. The sequences are guidelines, not rules. If you're moving and having fun, you're doing it right.

Nobody is being corrected. Nobody is being watched.

At the end, you'll have worked up a sweat (the music tends to take care of that without you noticing), and you'll probably feel considerably better than when you arrived. That's it. That's the whole thing.

What "not fit enough" usually actually means

In my experience, when people say they're not fit enough for a class, what they usually mean is one of three things:

"I'll slow everyone down." You won't. Dance fitness isn't a relay race. Everyone is doing their own version of the same thing, at their own pace.

"I won't be able to keep up." The sequences are simple by design. And if you lose the thread entirely, you just keep moving — nobody will know or care.

"I'll look silly." Almost certainly yes, at some point. Same as everyone else. This is disco. Looking a bit silly is part of the deal.

None of these are fitness problems. They're nerves. Completely understandable nerves, but nerves all the same.

Joy is the only performance metric

Here's what makes Groove genuinely different: the goal isn't fitness. It's fun.

That sounds simple, but it changes everything about how the class feels. When you're not chasing a target, you stop monitoring yourself. You stop worrying about whether you're doing it right. The music pulls you in, the sequences give you something to follow, and somewhere in the middle of a song you realise you've completely stopped thinking about how you look and you're just... dancing.

That moment — that switch from self-conscious to just moving — is the whole point. It happens for almost everyone, usually within the first song or two. And it's hard to explain until you've felt it yourself.

There's no progress tracking, no before-and-after photos (not our thing), no fitness metrics. The only question at the end of class is: did you enjoy yourself? If yes - you did it right, whatever "it" looked like.

One last thing

If you've been putting off trying a class because you're worried you're not fit enough — this is your permission slip to stop waiting.

Your first Groove Fitness class is free. No commitment, no pressure, no fitness test at the door. Just classic disco, simple sequences, and a room full of people who are too busy having fun to notice what your left foot is doing.

[Book your free trial class here and come see if it's your thing.

Richard, Chief Groove Officer 🪩