Feedback on exercise classes - YouLookFab Forum

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Feedback on exercise classes

elpgal

Veteran

I am bored with my fitness routines and want to try something different. I have a long commute and have several options for exercise studios along the way.

My options are kickboxing, Crossfit-lite, Pure Barre/Bar Method, Corepower, Zengo and Orange theory. I plan to try the free introductory classes but realize it takes a while to understand the culture. So, I am looking for feedback from you all.

My criteria are - good for beginners and varied routines. Music is a bonus. My goals are to be distracted, feel good and exercise with people. Calorie-burning and weight-loss is not a priority.

I already do yoga and walk and while I enjoy them, I need something less solitary and more intense so I have less time to dwell on my thoughts. Ideally I would like a friend to join me, but that is not likely to happen.

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18 replies

Latest reply was from elpgal

Anonymous

I did barre for awhile a few years ago, and although I liked it , it's not a social atmosphere. Very quiet and you are very self-absorbed during the workout ....which you need to be . The one I did was not the Pure Barre franchise though.

MsMary

Veteran

I'm doing Orange Theory and I love/hate it. Hate doing it, love having done it. There are a lot of people but you don't really interact much although people seem to be receptive to chatting before and after class. There's a lot of cardio and you wear a heart rate monitor so it's distracting to look at the monitors displaying your heart rate. The workout changes every day so that would be a plus for you!

elpgal

Veteran

Timely article in NYT. Maybe I should just stick with my old-timey habits

"Young Fitness fogies ditch $40 classes for hoops, laps and jogs"

https://mobile.nytimes.com/201.....t-fit.html

Meredith

Veteran

Elpgal, if you search old threads for Orange Theory you’ll find one where Smittie and I discuss it. I love it, and it really could meet the criteria you listed, but YMMV. You can take a free class, so I’d recommend you at least give it a try.

gradfashionista

(website)

Veteran

What about acroyoga? I’ve never done it, but some of my friends love it. It seems pretty social because of the fact that you need to work in pairs.

elpgal

Veteran

Meredith, thank you.

GF - I am intrigued. A studio near me offers it. Have you tried it? Another studio offers pole-climbing and parkour .

gradfashionista

(website)

Veteran

I have not, but it’s not offered near me. I forgot to suggest that maybe instead of studios, you might want to check out league team sports—soccer/football, volleyball, dodgeball, etc. Climbing (bouldering and rock climbing) is also pretty social and fun.

UmmLila (Lisa)

Veteran

I've done an acro-yoga workshop. I got motion sickness. never again.

Anonymous

Yes, I do Orange Theory.
As msmary says, it’s fairly social pre and post class. During class it is not social, but there are a lot of distractions—-they switch things up a lot and there’s the screen with your heart rate on it. The environment is wonderful. Lots of nice equipment and non-fluorescent lighting.

Compared to hot yoga, there are far fewer pretty young girls doing it.
Also, not many men! We average maybe two a class out of 24.

There is a wide age range. Lots of 50+, lots of 40, 30 year olds, and a few 20 year olds.

Another nice thing: you don’t sit there and look at how good everyone else looks (which I am guilty of in yoga, because my mind wanders!). The equipment is positioned such that you are not looking at anybody else.

I have also done cross fit (twice and then i quit!) It is a great workout but It is geared more towards men who want big muscles. There is a culture of “do this till you drop”. The gym is “gritty” and dark, and they call it a “box”. No change rooms or showers. I saw very cut fitness-types of men and then very muscular women. It was actually pretty intimidating.

I have not tried barre.

I also joined a volleyball league for single people. That was a lot of fun, but I am so mentally tired at the end of the day that the socializing was hard. I need to rest!

I only do Orange theory twice a week and that is plenty. I can’t imagine doing more than that! Hats off to you MsMary.

elpgal

Veteran

Ummlila, that's good to know. I get motion-sickness with some activities when everybody else is just fine.

GF: a friend invited me to try out roller-derby and I would love to do it except it is too far for me to get to. Same with rock-climbing. It would have to be a weekend only activity.

Rambling Ann

(website)

Veteran

It's not on your list, but can't be hard to find a spinning class if you have so many choices. FWIW, in our tiny rural community we have a class taught by a couple of road racers. It's as social as I could want while sweating, music is on, and probably not all that authentic (the teachers use it in winter for their own cycling race training) but we have fun. Luckily, I like it since it's about the only option I could tolerate for 50 miles. And there's a great hamburger stand between the gym and home that will have my takeout order ready if I call on the way out of the gym, defeating the entire purpose of the class, LOL.

elpgal

Veteran

Ann, that's good to know. I enjoyed cycling outdoors but tend to get bored on treadmills/bikes in the gym. It might be more palatable with company and music. Zengo is one of those with dim lighting, a coach and loud music.

gradfashionista

(website)

Veteran

I had friends and former housemates who did roller derby. It looked like a lot of fun, and there is a very strong, supportive social aspect to it. Beware, though—unless you’re a referee, getting bones fractured and broken is part of the course. Some of the crashes are quite nasty, and it’s why derby members need to buy supplemental health insurance.

kellygirl

Veteran

Crossfit gyms vary and since they offer a "lite" class it's probably geared toward normal humans. Most of the hardcore people follow their own programming anyway during open gym. Crossfit workouts are different everyday--they usually incorporate a weightlifting segment and a metcon which stands for metabolic conditioning. Basically you lift heavy stuff and then you do something that makes your heart want to explode. The class atmosphere is very social since we're all complaining to one another. It's challenging but everything can be scaled--if you can't do box jumps you can do step ups, if you can;t do pull ups you can do ring rows, etc. It's a lot of fun.

Anonymous

Oh I missed the “lite” part in Cross-fit lite! I’ve never done that, and it does sound more friendly, Kelly.

elpgal

Veteran

So, I tried Corepower yoga this week. It is 60 minutes of non-stop yoga poses in a warm (level 1) or heated (level 2) environment with no breaks at all. No mumbo-jumbo, chanting or anything of that kind. It is a in and out type of thing. Facilities are super-clean and they claim to have the same type of studio and classes in all locations (they call themselves the 'starbucks' of yoga studios).

elpgal

Veteran

Glad to know about the injuries in roller-derby. The badass aspect of it is very appealing though.

Crossfit in our area has fallen out of favor and a lot of studios have closed down. I think crossfit-life is their way of making use of the same facilities to appeal to the masses.

elpgal

Veteran

I am trying a month of Pure Barre. It is a 50-60 minute workout. Loud music and an instructor with a mic. Fast paced, low reps but the routines and warmup are the same in every class. Lot of emphasis on alignment and small movements. Crowd tends to be younger and several have dance experience. The good thing is that they offer classes all day starting from very early in the morning to almost 8:30 pm so it is very compatible with full-time work and evening kid obligations. There is a Bar Method studio farther away that I I send to try after I am done with my initial month here.