The advantages of training in small groups

In Articles by ardevio

»Birds fly, fish swim, humans run«. Emil Zatopek wanted to point out that running is natural to humans and they have been running since the beginning of time. Everybody can do it but let us focus on why a training in small groups is the key to your personal training success.

When searching the web for pros and cons on small groups, one can find quite a few case studies, which have been carried out in the field of education or business. The results are similar everywhere:

  • small groups give employees a sense of belonging within an organization
  • small groups can take large, complex projects and assign particular tasks to the group member who’s best skilled for it
  • small group learning activities often result in students teaching each other
  • students’ achievement motivation is often higher in small-group activities
  • small groups bring benefits of the positive social interaction that impacts many aspects of one’s personal and professional lives, etc.

Let me sum up for you, why running in small groups outdoes running in large groups?


Evidence shows that social support has a great impact on promoting physical activity. When joining a small group, you team up with the participants, and having someone running right beside you, can give you that extra push, you wouldn’t be able to muster up on your own.

Personal approach

Small groups consist of up to 7 participants. This makes it possible for the instructor to provide much more assistance than in larger groups, focusing on participants’ individual errors and providing suggestions for improvement. Instructors with lack of skills can hide in the trend of large boot camps. In a small group the fun part is still there, but doesn’t reduce the quality of the training.


Most one to one trainings are expensive. Small group training, however, fits your budget better and you still get enough personal attention.


With the individual approach your workouts will evolve as you progress and you will easily achieve your goals. The groups are organized according to your running experience and knowledge. Let our instructors guide you and provide valuable feedback. A good example of the importance of feedback is the famed UCLA basketball coach John Wooden, who was found to »provide over 2,000 acts of teaching during 30 total hours of practice, of which 75 percent pertained directly to skill instruction. This converts to more than one incidence of feedback for every minute of coaching activity!


In large groups there is often the lack of accountability and especially in classes with different instructors each session the drop in the number of participants is great. In small groups your friends will constantly remind you of your goals, so there will be no place for saboteurs.