Big demand for yoga, pilates and barre teaching courses

Workers are throwing in their corporate careers to become yoga, pilates and barre instructors in their pursuit for happiness.

Workers are leaving the office and heading to the barre, with Zen jobs the hot new career choice.

They are throwing in their corporate careers to become yoga, pilates and barre instructors.

Shyamala Benakovic, chief executive of Yoga Australia, said the number of people training for a career in yoga had roughly doubled in the past three years.

About 2000 teachers undertook training in Yoga Australia-registered courses in the past year and about 600 teachers were registered with the peak industry body.

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Ms Benakovic said yoga was being applied in new areas, with corporations introducing wellbeing programs and schools hiring instructors specifically trained to teach yoga to children.

“We are also seeing the therapeutic application of yoga — post-surgery yoga, post-cancer yoga, yoga for mental health,” she said.

“In aged care centres as well, yoga is becoming more prevalent because you can do it at any age and adapt it to anyone, even if they can’t walk or have disabilities.”

Zen jobs are in demand as workers search for happiness and purpose at work. Picture: iStock

Barre Body managing director Matt Kane said enrolments in his barre and pilates instructor training courses increased by about 200 per cent in the past six months.

“It’s definitely growing in popularity,” he said.

“People want to do something positive where they feel they are contributing to something in people’s life and in a beautiful environment with like-minded people and they want to wake up looking forward to the day.”

Mr Kane said a lot of instructors came from the corporate work environment and just taught a couple of classes after work or on weekends.

“We employ people who are psychologists or accountants or consultants or in retail,” he said.

“They are getting paid to stay fit, which is great.”

Corporate workers are taking on second jobs instructing pilates, yoga and barre. Picture: iStock

Mr Kane said these jobs also attracted people in the health and wellness sector, such as nutritionists or naturopaths, who wanted to add to their repertoire.

“Demand (for pilates and barre) is growing not only in city centres but other places like Geelong and Toowoomba and Ballarat — places that are outside the cities but they have the population,” Mr Kane said.

“We see people in mining towns wanting to train and practice reformer pilates.”

PayScale Australia reported pilates instructors earned an average salary of $58,000 a year.

In the fitness sector more broadly, the number of instructors increased by about 45 per cent in the five years to November, 2017, figures from the Department of Jobs and Small Business revealed.

About 11,200 extra roles were created for workers including yoga, pilates and barre instructors as well as personal trainers.

Between 2018 and 2023, about 5800 new positions were forecast — a 19 per cent increase.

Recruitment officer-turned-yoga instructor Amy Kreminski. Picture: Matt Loxton

Amy Kreminski began her career as a recruitment consultant but swapped her heels for yoga pants after happening upon Bikram yoga in her quest to de-stress.

From that moment on, her whole life changed.

“The idea of sitting in an office nine to five was not me any more,” she said.

“Spending an hour every morning getting ready wasn’t appealing.”

Ms Kreminski, 45, said people were increasingly drawn to Zen jobs as younger generations wanted more out of their career than just money.

“We are now looking for happiness, we are looking inside,” she said.

“I don’t think the materialistic stuff makes us happy so much any more and we are becoming aware of that.”

She travelled to Los Angeles to complete her teacher training and in 2004 opened Bikram Hot Yoga Adelaide.

Since then, she has also trained in hot pilates in Las Vegas and become qualified to coach and judge in international yoga championships.

“Now, because there are so many (yoga instructors) you have to be really skilled,” she said. “You can’t just do your course and start working and expect to be fabulous.

“Lukewarm isn’t good enough, you have to love it.”

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