Former aerobics champ makes working out fun

If you're feeling like a workout after too much Christmas turkey and trifle, fitness instructor Erica Pinion is just what you need.

A former New Zealand aerobics champion, Erica is now a mum to two young children and a part-time instructor for Christchurch City Council’s Recreation and Sport. She teaches classes at Pioneer Recreation and Sport Centre, QEII Fitness at Parklands and Jellie Park Recreation and Sport Centre. 

Her classes include Pump, Boxfit, Stretch and Release, Spin and Step. She also teaches Core Moves 30, a shorter class that was introduced earlier this year to help people fit exercise into their busy schedules.

Success as a fitness instructor is about being a good motivator, she says. “People in your classes should aspire to move the way you move. You’re a role model. At the end of the day, I’m selling health and fitness so I need to show that it’s part of my lifestyle.”

Fitness instructor Erica Pinion teaching a class

She believes having excellent technique in the disciplines she teaches is important. “You need to be able to do it perfectly or you shouldn’t be teaching it, and I train very hard to be able to perform moves well.”

It’s important to connect with people in the class but Erica says in everyday life she is quite low key. When she steps on stage she turns into a different person because it’s like a performance.

She loves teaching and what she finds most satisfying is watching people improve as they come to classes regularly. She also enjoys the creativity of coming up with a routine and then seeing those in her classes learn and execute those moves.

Stretch and Release classes are helpful for people with mobility issues and she was recently told by an older man attending one of her classes that he was enjoying being able to put on his shoes and socks more easily. “Things like that, that a lot of people take for granted, they’re the special things that make it worthwhile.”

She has been teaching for nearly 20 years after starting as an instructor as a 15 year old. She spent 14 years living in Britain and taught at some exclusive gyms in London before returning to Christchurch last year.

Exercise trends have changed in the past decade, she says, with a move towards high intensity training. “People are adding short bursts of exercise into a lot of classes. Even 15 minutes of short, sharp interval training is really beneficial. Even if it’s a low impact abs class, getting the heart rate up and creating little spikes in the workout is valuable and creates a challenge for people.”

Erica Pinion in action

Group exercise is still incredibly popular. In the average week there are up to 4000 participations in fitness classes across the council’s four Recreation and Sport Centres.

Erica says her goal is to help people maintain regular exercise. “People need to feel safe in your hands and have fun so they want to come back. If you can make them keep coming back then you’re doing your job.”