How to Become a BODYCOMBAT Instructor

Learning how to become a BODYCOMBAT instructor with Les Mills takes time and dedication. We’re going to walk you through this qualification process, whilst also discussing how it differs from mainstream fitness roles. At OriGym we have created a definitive guide to tell you exactly how you can become employed in either of these sectors. 

But before we begin, if you have a passion for fitness then why not sign up for OriGym’s Personal Training Diploma, which is specifically designed to help take your first steps into the professional industry.

If this sounds enticing then why not download our FREE comprehensive prospectus, and learn more about all the courses we offer?

Contents:

• What is BODYCOMBAT?
• The Qualifications Needed to Become a BODYCOMBAT Instructor
• Where to Work as a BODYCOMBAT Instructor
• BodyCombat Instructor Salary
• Career Progression Routes For a Les Mills BODYCOMBAT Instructor
• What Skills Do You Need to Be a BODYCOMBAT Instructor?
• FAQ

What is BODYCOMBAT?

‘BODYCOMBAT’ is a class created and trademarked by the Les Mills fitness company. It incorporates high-energy martial arts-inspired movements to create a completely contact-free workout. 

The purpose of BODYCOMBAT is to generate a steady-state of high-intensity exercise that will build your cardio endurance. This approach helps to generate the same fat-burning bodily responses as HIIT workouts. 

As an instructor, you will demonstrate movements to a class from a variety of practices such as taekwondo, boxing, kung fu, and muay Thai. This includes teaching movements such as hooks, jabs, uppercuts, kicks, and high knees.

The term ‘BODYCOMBAT’ is often mistaken as the holistic name of the class, but that is not the case. It’s actually just a trademarked term.

While many gym classes practice the same teachings as ‘BODYCOMBAT’ they cannot legally call it by the same name. This results in classes operated by fitness instructors under the name of something similar but legally different, such as ‘Combat’ or ‘Combat Fitness’.

The Qualifications Needed to Become a BODYCOMBAT Instructor

#1 - Level 2 Fitness Instructor Qualification

Whilst you will be certified to teach BODYCOMBAT following the completion of your Les Mills course you may struggle to find employment without a Level 2 Fitness Instructor Qualification. 

This sentiment is echoed by Les Mills (above), who states that this further qualification may be necessary should you wish to work in gyms or fitness centres. 

OriGym’s Level 2 Fitness Instructor course has been regulated by Ofqual, and endorsed by CIMSPA, certifying it as a professionally approved qualification. 

Once you have successfully enrolled with us, you will have the option to decide the way in which you will study. These choices range from full-time, online, and through blended 50/50 learning, meaning that you can learn in a way that best suits you and your schedule. 

Regardless of how you choose to study, every student will learn the same topics:

• How to motivate groups and individuals 
• Tailoring Training Systems 
• Human Anatomy & Physiology
• Principles of Exercise & Fitness
• Health, Safety, and Welfare 
• The Business Side of the Industry

Each module has been curated and designed to help optimise your future performance as a Fitness Instructor.  Once you have graduated you will be able to successfully teach a variety of classes in gyms or fitness centers, including BODYCOMBAT.

In order to complete this certification, you will need to complete 3 exams, which can differ slightly depending on how you choose to study with us. 

Full-time students will be assessed in the following ways:

• Multiple choice exam on anatomy and physiology - 70% required to pass
• Multiple choice exam on the principles of exercise and health - 70% required to pass
• Practical Assessment on delivering a gym-based induction -  Pass required 

Whilst part-time and online students will take the following exams:

• Multiple choice Open-Book online exam on anatomy and physiology - 70% required to pass
• Multiple choice Open-Book online exam on the principles of exercise and health - 70% required to pass
• Practical Assessment on delivering a gym-based induction -  Pass required 

Those who choose to study with us through these two methods must travel to the nearest OriGym venue in order to take their practical exam. For more information relating to how these study pathways differ check out our article on Level 2 Fitness Instructor Exams.

Once these exams are completed you will be able to successfully start applying for BODYCOMBAT instructor roles. Let’s take a closer look at the locations where you could be potentially operating these classes.

#2 - Les Mills BODYCOMBAT Qualification

If you’re interested in teaching Les Mills classes, you will first need a BODYCOMBAT qualification from the fitness company itself.

Through the completion of this course, you will be certified to teach BODYCOMBAT in any gyms that specifically conduct Les Mills classes. However, please be aware that many employers will also ask you to hold a Level 2 Fitness Instructor qualification. More on that in a moment.

Throughout your initial training, you will learn how to structure a class that conforms to the Les Mills model, as well as the foundations of their signature choreography. 

Les Mills typically operates initial training classes twice a month, with options to study either during the week or weekend. 

In order to properly prepare for your initial BODYCOMBAT training, Les Mills will send your class materials 10 days prior to the beginning of your training. This gives you plenty of time to rehearse the 2 proposed routines and plan for the course ahead. 

To ensure that your skills are as sharp as possible it is strongly advised that you shadow existing BODYCOMBAT instructors to see how they teach. 

This will help to improve your teaching method for your video assessment, ensuring that you come across in the best possible light. 

The grading process for this assessment will analysing your performance in the following areas: 

1. Choreography 
2. Technique 
3. Coaching

These grading requirements highlight why it's so important to use all of the material Les Mills provides you with. By studying the routines in-depth you will be able to master all three areas and earn yourself a strong grade. 

Where to Work as a BODYCOMBAT Instructor

Once you have earned your Les Mills BODYCOMBAT and Level 2 Fitness Instructor qualifications you will be able to successfully start applying for instructor job roles, such as the one featured above. 

Typically, employers such as the one featured in the Indeed ad will look for instructors who can teach more than one class. This is why it’s so important to earn both of the aforementioned qualifications, as this will open the door to more career opportunities.

The best thing about earning these qualifications is that you’ll never be short of employment opportunities, as gyms and fitness centers across the entire world are always looking to hire instructors for Les Mills classes. 

Les Mills themselves reported that over 20,000 fitness clubs and gyms across the world adhere to their licensed teaching methods. This means that even if you emigrate to other countries, you will still be able to find employment teaching Les Mills classes.

But let’s think more locally. Les Mills classes operate across the UK and Ireland, with some cities and towns even having multiple locations to choose from.

Take Liverpool, for example, where OriGym’s head offices are based.

Just from the screenshot provided above, we can see that there is no shortage of locations for BODYCOMBAT instructors to teach from. 

Furthermore, these classes are immensely popular and are regularly packed with students who are willing and eager to learn. However, deciding what type of location you wish to work from is a factor that is entirely subjective from one instructor to the other.

Those of you who are located outside of city centers may choose to pursue employment within your local fitness center. If this is the case you may find that the application process is less competitive, as there will typically be fewer applicants.

Whilst others may prefer to work in large scale gyms located in city centers. The benefit of choosing this option is the possibility of earning a higher salary, as these locations are always in demand for fitness instructors.

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If you’re enjoying this article dissecting How to Become a BODYCOMBAT Instructor, we think you may be interested in these articles.

• How to Become a Les Mills Instructor
• How to Become a Group Fitness Instructor
• Les Mills Salary

BodyCombat Instructor Salary

Whilst on the topic of salary, you may be curious to learn how much a BODYCOMBAT Instructor earns per year. 

Naturally, your salary is dependent on how many hours you work, but the positive thing about working as a BODYCOMBAT instructor is that the role can be flexible to your schedule. 

#1 - Part-Time BODYCOMBAT Instructor’s Salary

Only teaching BODYCOMBAT classes on a part-time schedule can be a great way to earn extra money, which could benefit instructors who are studying or working in different fields full time.

According to Glassdoor the average salary of a BODYCOMBAT instructor in the UK is £17-19.00 per hour. 

However, it’s important to remember that these figures can be somewhat distorted, as sites such as Glassdoor can only calculate an average salary depending on the information uploaded to their site.

It fails to take into consideration other factors outside the typical salary, which may influence how much an instructor earns. For example, more experienced instructors could potentially negotiate for a higher salary before signing up to teach the class, and will thus earn more than £17-19.00 per hour. 

Let’s use Glassdoor’s estimate to help demonstrate how much money you could potentially earn as a part-time BODYCOMBAT instructor. Whilst the example below is for BODYATTACK classes we can still use it as an example of how part-time Les Mills can expect to earn.

If the average Les Mills class ran for 2 hours, twice a week, then you potentially earn up to £76.00 a week. As stated above, this is a great way for instructors with busy schedules to teach their passion and earn extra money from doing so. 

Additionally, you won’t have to confine yourself to just one location either. This means that you could potentially teach multiple BODYCOMBAT classes at various locations to increase your earning potential.

#2 - Full-Time BODYCOMBAT Instructor Salary

When working in a full-time position you will typically be classified as a Fitness Instructor who will be required to teach multiple classes, rather than just BODYCOMBAT specifically.

According to the Glassdoor statistics displayed above, the average fitness instructor salary is £22,000 a year. 

Remember, these sites fail to recognise the complexities of a Fitness Instructor's salary, which can be influenced by a variety of factors. 

We have already touched upon these influences in the previous section dedicated to where BODYCOMBAT instructors can work. The location and size of your place of employment can greatly influence your yearly salary.

For example, the average Fitness instructor salary for Liverpool gyms is £27,000 a year, and those who operate in London can potentially earn up to £38,000.

This is because Gyms located in larger cities will have a greater client uptake, and the demand for instructors will be significantly higher. Please be aware that more clients may also require instructors to take on more classes and responsibilities, in order to balance the workload. 

#3 - BODYCOMBAT Instructor Expenses 

In the interest of learning about a BODYCOMBAT instructor's salary, you should be made aware of the additional expenses that go hand in hand with this role. 

Every 3 months Les Mills sends their instructors 2 new routines to learn and incorporate into their classes. This is not a free service and requires you to pay an additional subscription fee of £30.00 every quarter. 

This means you will pay an additional £120.00 every year in subscription fees. This service will also apply to every Les Mills class you are qualified to teach. 

For example, if you’re qualified to teach BODYCOMBAT and BODYATTACK you will have to pay for both of these services. Effectively, this will double your quarterly payments, meaning that you’ll pay £240.00 a year.

Career Progression Routes For a Les Mills BODYCOMBAT Instructor

Now that you know how to become a Les Mills BODYCOMBAT instructor you may be questioning what happens next. 

Instructors who solely teach Les Mills classes will typically only be hired for freelance roles, we’d advise keeping this in mind when looking for employment opportunities. If working on a freelance basis isn’t ideal, then you could host your own classes in fitness centers or online. 

Alternatively, if you’d like to pursue full-time employment you should work as a fitness instructor in gyms and studios. This will require you to teach multiple different classes, some of which won’t fall under the Les Mills umbrella such as Indoor Cycling, HIIT, and Aerobics. 

However, there are other Les Mills careers that you can choose to pursue including the job role of a Presenter or Assessor.

A Les Mills Presenter will deliver the classes and seminars that provide instructors with the new quarterly material, whereas an Assessor will analyse the work of aspiring instructors in order to determine who passes their respective courses. 

Another choice for Les Mills employees is to act as a brand representative. In this role you’ll uphold the Les Mills brand at all times, helping to recruit others for roles within the wider company. 

Due to the fact that Les Mills only hires internally, it’s difficult to provide a clear indication of a potential salary for these roles. However, given the fact that the company only promotes instructors who truly excel, it’s safe to assume that you’ll be paid a competitive amount.

What Skills Do You Need to Be a BODYCOMBAT Instructor?

#1 - Motivating Others

This is arguably one of the most important skills required in order to become a BODYCOMBAT Instructor. 

It’s so important to keep motivation levels high during classes in order to ensure that every client remains inspired to reach their goals. 

When these motivation levels are kept at a consistent high your clients will attend every session with the drive to succeed. 

However, if you fail to develop this skill you simply won’t last long as a BODYCOMBAT instructor. No client is going to want to pay to work with you if they don’t feel motivated or inspired by the classes you teach!

#2 - Passion For Fitness 

As stated in the introductory section of this article, a BODYCOMBAT instructor will guide their students through movements such as taekwondo, kung fu, boxing, and muay Thai. 

Therefore, as an instructor, you’re going to need a passion for physical fitness in order to perform these intense workout classes. 

By having a fitness-related passion demonstrating classes will come naturally to you. Clients will be able to pick up on your energy and excitement to teach these movements, and in turn, they will feel more motivated too. 

Instructors who lack this skill will notice that their clients will mimic their behaviour back to them, also showing a clear lack of drive and determination. This is because during any workout session clients feed off the energy of the person training them, so if you don’t care why should they?

One way to feed this passion is to constantly build upon it. This can be achieved by developing your existing knowledge with new academic and practical material.

For example, if you’re already working in the industry as a BODYCOMBAT instructor with a Level 2 Fitness Instructor qualification, why not push that further and earn your  Level 3 Personal Trainer certificate? 

Throughout this course, you will learn how to advance your existing knowledge, which can be put into practice during both group classes and one-to-one sessions. 

#3 - Good Memory 

When investigating how to become a combat instructor in the UK many aspiring instructors fail to realise that leading classes requires you to have a good memory.

When working for Les Mills, you will be required to remember detailed routines that have been approved by the brand. 

This includes learning how the steps connect to the music playing, and how each movement will flow together. Additionally, you will have to remember key information relating to how each movement benefits clients.

Failure to learn these routines could result in immediate termination from your job role.

Gyms that are hiring Les Mills BODYCOMBAT instructors will expect you to know all the latest routines. Repeating the same material could depict you as a lazy and unprofessional employee.

Not only that but repeating the same routine over and over again could result in clients dropping out of the class due to boredom. If this occurs on a larger scale, the gym may begin to question your teaching method, before eventually looking for alternative employees. 

In order to stay up-to-date with these routines, you will need to subscribe to the quarterly £30.00 payment fees with Les Mills upon graduation. 

This may seem like an unnecessary additional fee but without it, your career could become seriously hindered. 

#4 - Communication Skills

When trying to lead and engage an entire class of clients you’re going to need to develop strong communication skills.

Throughout the BODYCOMBAT class, the instructor should be clearly demonstrating each movement both verbally and physically. 

A good instructor will be able to demonstrate and explain even the most complicated of routines. 

Without these communication skills a newcomer or inexperienced client could easily become lost in the fast-paced environment, so be sure to break down each movement carefully.

Communication isn’t just about talking to clients - listening to their queries and feedback is equally as important. 

For example, if someone comes to you worried that the class is too hard, be sure to offer reassurance and guidance that could help them to improve their confidence and technique.

Communication skills are absolutely essential for just about any job in the fitness industry. You can see this is implemented in other roles by checking out our article on the 11 skills required to be a personal trainer.

FAQ

Do BODYCOMBAT Instructors Need Insurance? 

As a BODYCOMBAT instructor, you will certainly need legal coverage in order to protect yourself and your practice. 

Les Mills actually provides their own insurance for instructors and personal trainers. For just £51.88 a month, you can receive £10,000,000 in public liability coverage.

Public liability is a type of business insurance that can cover compensation and legal costs if a member of the general public sues you or your business, for reasons such as injury or damaged property. 

Alternatively, you can choose to insure yourself through sites such as Insure4Sport. Through this method, you can legally cover yourself for public liability, personal accident, and personal income insurance.

This type of insurance provided by Insure4Sport will protect you if any of the following situations occur. 

• A specific action is brought into question if a client is injured 
• You become injured and have to miss work
• You require physio treatment for a severe injury
• Your equipment is stolen or damaged by clients 

Simply select what career path you choose to follow, be it personal training or fitness instructing, and select a payment program that works for you. Once this is done you’ll make monthly payments to receive this legal coverage. 

How much you pay for this insurance is affected by the amount of coverage you think you’ll need. For example, if you own and are incorporating expensive equipment into your class you may wish to insure yourself at a higher price.

Additionally, it’s important to note that this type of insurance doesn’t work like car insurance - as it’s not affected by your level of experience. You can be a beginner and be paying the same price as someone with years worth of experience. 

Whilst many instructors choose to purchase Les Mills coverage as it is competitively priced, we’d advise you to look at third-party providers before making your final decision. This will allow you to provide yourself with the best possible coverage should the worst happen. 

Failure to insure yourself can result in even professional consequences such as a loss of earnings if the equipment is stolen, expensive legal proceedings if an injured client takes action, or becoming banned from the entire fitness industry. 

Are BODYCOMBAT Classes The Same Every Week?

As discussed in this article, Les Mills BODYCOMBAT classes operate on a cycle of routines. Therefore, we can say that classes may be the same for a few weeks before changing to follow a new routine.

For example, 2 routines will run in three-month increments. However, to stop clients from getting bored with repetitive classes, the routines will then change following the quarterly payment and two new ones will begin. 

Remember, this payment scheme is applicable for every class you’re qualified to teach, so if you hold 3 Les Mills qualifications you will be paying a total of £90.00.

Before You Go!

We hope that this article has provided you with insight into how to become a BODYCOMBAT instructor in the UK. 

Remember, there are multiple different routes one can take to pursue this career professionally. Be sure to find the right method for you, as this will ultimately lead to future success in the industry.

Before you go, remember to enrol in our OriGym’s Personal Training Diploma if you’re interested in launching a career in the fitness industry. 

Alternatively, download our FREE comprehensive prospectus to find the perfect OriGym course for you.