Virtual will not take the place of live instructors. And yes; Virtual can coexist with live classes! Based on more than 2,000 answers from people who do virtual classes, we know that 90% prefer a live instructor, so I am very sure virtual classes will not take the place of live instruction. Virtual classes do, however, hold great potential; members appreciate virtual classes as this allows them to do group exercise whenever they want to – and for clubs it’s highly appreciated when live classes do not make sense, typically due to a low number of participants – and virtual classes even as an enhancement of live classes. For cycling we can do race-simulation with footage from the greatest pro cycling events worldwide (the Sufferfest), take the participants road-tripping across the world with beautiful scenery videos (Virtual Active). We can even offer heart rate feed-back (MYZONE). Additionally, I think that virtual classes might be a great way of rethinking beginner classes, and make virtual and live coexist; if all participants in a beginner class are watching some of the best instructors in the world on the screen, the local instructor can focus on helping and correcting the students.
By Rasmus Ingerslev