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Which fitness class is right for me [Article]

Posted by Pascal Landshoeft

Jan 4, 2018 10:00:00 AM

Which fitness class is right for me

 

This article will outline some of the most popular group classes in fitness. You will learn why it matters to choose the right class for you. The article will show what impact choosing the wrong class has on you. After reading this article you will know more about different classes. This will help you to prioritize which classes to test and stick with.

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Why is picking the right class important

 

Picking the right fitness class for your needs is essential. Your risk of quitting and not forming a new habit is highest in the first few sessions. You can increase your chances by choosing something you like. The easier it is for you to stay active the better. This includes picking the right fitness class. Picking right will set you up for success. Being sloppy undermines your plans.

 

Questions to ask yourself

 

Based on the most popular fitness quizzes here are the questions you should ask yourself

How would your ideal workout look like?

  • How do you feel after a workout?
  • How do you feel when you miss a class?
  • How do you describe your attitude towards exercise?
  • What do you like to do on vacation?
  • Whose fitness plan would you like to learn about?
  • What is your main fitness goal?
  • What kind of fitness gear do you like to use?
  • What motivates you to keep going?
  • Which part of your body do you want to improve most?
  • How often do you want to workout?
  • Where do you want to do your fitness?
  • How do you feel about lifting weight?
  • How strong are you?How fit are you?
  • What are your typical weekend plans?
  • What would you eat for lunch?
  • What did you like most about physical education?
  • Do you like to do activities by yourself?
  • Do you want to be in a group?

 

These are questions from BuzzFeed, self, playbuzz and fix. See the resources at the end of the post to take the tests.

 

Copy these into a word document. Answer them in writing and in detail. Put your answers at the end of this post or send them to your local gym and ask for a recommendation. Reflecting on what your goal is and how you want to achieve it puts you in a better position for success. Putting no effort in your decision will set you up for failure. Avoid this pitfall.

 

Classes you can do

 

This is an overview of the classes you can do. Your local gym/gyms have their schedule online most times for you to check. The first time to try is usually free. If it's not, ask and try to get it for free. Smart businesses will offer you a taster.

 

Zumba

According to their website, about 15 million people take weekly Z.mba classes. There are 200.000 Zumba locations in 180 countries. Zumba incorporates hip-hop, soca, samba, salsa, merengue, and mambo. You will also do squats and lunges to tone your glutes. the Colombian dancer and cyclist Alberto Perez Zumba invented it in the 1990s. One more thing to know is that Zumba does not mean anything. It is a made up brand name.

CrossFit

Workout of the day or WoD, in short, is the type of circuit training you will do for a particular day. Your instructor will choose the WoD. You will follow together with your group or do it by yourself. Most WoDs are performed against the clock and you try to beat your time. Some WoDs are measured for repetitions. The ladies are considered the WoDs for beginners. The hero workouts are named after fallen soldiers, policemen, and firemen. These workouts are usually harder than the ladies.

HIIT

High-intensity interval training (HIIT) has been on the rise lately. The intense work periods range from 5 seconds to 8 minutes. The following recovery period as often the same length. The intense bouts are performed at 80% to 95% of a person' estimated heart rate. The recovery time will be done at 40% to 50% of your highest heart rate. HIIT training is beneficial for

  • Aerobic and anaerobic fitness
  • blood pressure
  • cardiovascular health
  • insulin sensitivity
  • cholesterol profiles
  • abdominal fat

HIIT exercises got more famous as they increase the calories burned in EPOC by 6% to 15%. EPOC stands for excess postexercise oxygen consumption. It is a 2 hour period after your exercise in which the body restores itself to pre-exercise level. HIIT is not new and is interval training. Most Spinning, CrossFit, and bodypump already have intervals baked into their programming. HIIT usually refers to interval exercises which are circuit training. In circuit training, you use a variety of tools rather than one to create intervals. Interval training is most suited to people who have already built a base fitness. If you have not done anything for years avoid HIIT. Start with other exercises like walking or counting steps first.

 

Spinning

 

South African cyclist Johnny Goldberg and John Baudhuin created spinning in 1991. In 1994 the Rolling Stones magazine labeled Spinning as a "hot exercise". This boosted popularity further. In 2002 spinning makes its way over to Europe with the first class being held in the Netherlands.

Since then, Spinning keeps improving their certifications. The organization also sells new spinner machines to gyms all over the world. Besides Zumba, it is one of the more popular worldwide classes performed in many facilities.

Yoga

Yoga originated in India in 500 - 600 BCE. Its original form incorporates physical exercise and spiritualism. Buddhism, Hinduism, and Jainism use yoga in their teachings. The westernized approach to Yoga and its several spin-offs evolved in the 1980s. On December 1, 2016, yoga was listed by UNESCO as an Intangible cultural heritage.

The main goal of Yoga is moksha (liberation). This goal changes depending on which school of yoga and religion you follow. In fitness, Yoga is often used for beginners. If you do not like excessive group exercise, running or weightlifting, do yoga instead.

Bodypump

The father of Bodypump is New Zealand born Les Mills Snr. He is a four-time Oand gold medalist for discus in the commonwealth games in 1966. Bodypump started out as fitness classes to music in the first gym of Mr. Les MIlls which was opened in 1968. Today bodypump also uses barbells. These have been introduced to the routines in the 1990s. The name bodypump was branded onto the classes in 1997. Since then the Les MIls family has diversified. They have added Yoga, online courses and IMMERSIVE FITNESS to their portfolio.

Body pump is aerobics training combined with a barbell. It uses Interval training, stretching and barbell exercises to keep you fit. If you want to cover strength gains and go a bit harder than with yoga bodypump might be for you.

Pilates

Pilates was developed in the early 20th century by Joseph Pilates. It is marketed as alleviating back pain, with easy back exercises. In 2005 there were eleven million people doing Pilates. There are over 14.000 registered in the US.

The core book about Pilates is Return to life through Contrology. The book describes how the core powerhouse of the body. If taken proper care of, this improves general fitness.

Pilates and Yoga are very similar intensity and movement patterns. If you are a beginner who does not want to strain themselves too much this is a place to start.

Barre

A Barre is a stationary handrail which is used in various types of exercises. Most known in ballet for beginners and warm-ups it has also made its way in the world of gyms as an exercising tool.

Barre work is present for all levels of dancers in ballet. New positions and are first introduced with the support of the handrail. AT later stages they are performed with less and less support. Partner work is also simulated with the barre.

Barre for general fitness draws from yoga, pilates, and ballet to form a core-focused workout. If you want to move like ballerina, stretch and build strength in an elegant way, barre might be for you. Tai Chi Tai chi is the short version of t'ai chi ch'üan. Tai chi is a Chinese martial art form practiced for its defense training and health benefits. The term refers to yin and yang and has thus also deeper philosophical meaning. The schools of Tai chi are Chen, Yang, Wu (Hao), Wu and Sun. All these originated in the Chen village. Tai Chi might be for you if you do not like to crawl around the floor that much and want to move like a fighter, not like a dancer. The slow movements are well suited to beginners of all ages. In China, Tai chi is very popular among the elderly to keep fit.

 

Kettlebell

 

Kettlebells are an old Russian fitness tool. Its Russian name was girya and they were used to weigh crops in the 18th century. Circus strongmen started to use these weights for displays of strength in the 19th century. The beginnings of competitive sports around kettlebells was in 1885. This was the founding year of the "Circle of Amateur Athletics".

Kettlebells have been popularised in the west by Pavel Tsatsoulin. He created two certification programs and several fitness DVDs and videos using kettlebells. His character and deadpan delivery of the instructions helped to further the sport.

The most central and special movement to kettlebells is the kettlebell swing. Another popular exercise is the Turkish get up. Kettlebell training is somewhere between heavy interval and barbell training. I find it especially well suited to women who want to get stronger but are reluctant to use a barbell.

 

Classes that I did

 

To help you choose here are some of my personal experiences with fitness classes. In CrossFit,i have done all the ladies and some of the hero workouts. I did not perform any heavy Olympic lifts as I did not go through the proper training. CrossFit is great as it has the right kind of intensity to make people push beyond their limits. The back draw is that CrossFit is not for beginners. Too intense, too complex and too high of an injury risk as you do too much too soon.

Yoga is part of my weekends for a year now. I use it to stretch and relax after the heavy lifting form the week. Yoga is very beginner friendly. I also find it to be very challenging to my core and versatile. The disadvantages of yoga are not working your cardiovascular system and building muscle. There is not enough of a stressor to stimulate hypertrophy. Same goes for adaptations of your heart muscle. Lung capacity is also trained less compared to long distance running and weightlifting. For anyone eating to he generally fit and healthy yoga is a great option based on my experience.

HIIT training has become very popular in recent years. Programs like lean in 15 and bikini body mommy help beginners to start. I did the courses together with my wife. You will be active somewhere between 30 seconds to two minutes followed by the same amount of rest. As you are trying to beat your own scores, you can adapt to your needs. The big advantage of this is that you can do it from home. The disadvantage is that it is easy to overdo it. The result was a hurting knee after too many squats.

Kettlebell training is one of my personal favorites. You can combine the positive influence of cardio and strength training. The investment for time and money is minimal. I currently do two sessions of kettlebell training a week. I row afterward. The routine I do includes 100 swings and 10 Turkish get-ups. A good book on the topic is simple and sinister.

Spinning are classes which unused to do in my teenage years. This is the most fun in a group and with a good instructor who helps you to push yourself. John Reed, a fitness brand in Germany, made a big push with cyberobics to digitalize this kind of training. What I dislike about spinning is that you can do the same activity outdoors. This is also why I am not a big fan of treadmills. Does choosing a particular class make a difference It does not make a huge difference which class you pick when your goal is general fitness.

The main point is to stay active as opposed to slouching on the couch. Based on this it is important that you choose something which you will stick with. That is the main criteria and everything else is second to that. Once you get into a regular routine of exercising you can look into going more extreme. Crossfit, bodypump, and spinning might be for you. If you are already very fit to do something which gets you out of your comfort zone. If your family smirks when you tell them that you are doing yoga, you are probably doing the right thing. Conclusion Ask you some questions and dig deep. Once you know what you want to do for fitness, why you do it and how often, take the next step. Try as many classes as you can which fit your criteria. Write down your impressions and discuss them with others. Once done, stick with a class for a month and measure your progress. If you do not get the results you expected to question your commitment and intensity.

There is more selection than ever before to get fit. If that is your desire, not finding the right "fit" is no excuse.

Further reading


Resources

Topics: Fitness