RickInOz

Finally I’ve had a chance to do the new release! It was launched at LesMills Auckland on the 18th, so we’re not doing too badly to have it this soon. You’ll have to let me know if you’ve all done it too, but given the slack nature of Fitness First I am going to assume you haven’t.

Anyway here goes – my impressions:

1. Warm-up: This is a good warm-up track compared to 60. The pace isn’t hurried and they haven’t put too much emphasis on shoulder work. The most noticeable feature is about 30 seconds of squat singles, which is a good way to get the heart rate up and the legs warm in preparation for the following track. The music is the catchy Love Changes (Everything) by Musikk.
2. Squats: With the legs warmed up and a little fatigued from warm-up I found this moderately hard. It was fairly standard fare for a squats track with plenty of bottom-halfs in the final round. They have introduced a new bottom-half pulse before the bottom-halfs come in properly, which I haven’t done before. Music: Walk On Water – Milk Inc
3. Chest: This was a typical repetitive track. It has three rounds with a break after the second. That break is very welcome as it comes right after a set of singles followed by a set of bottom-halfs. As an alternative choreography they have included a lot of slow 4/4s, which did burn my chest out a bit. Music is I’m Not Dead by Pink – not bad but I preferred the music she did for triceps in 60.
4. Back track: 4 rounds of fast-paced choreography here. The first round is with an under-hand grip and there are breaks between each round. The second and third rounds have lots of wide rows. The final round is 6 clean-and-presses just when you are expecting 4 as in the previous rounds. The music is the uplifting Miracle by Cascada.
5. Triceps: This is a comparatively easy track. It starts with 6 push-ups before going about 3 minutes of kickbacks. The final minute is a mix of overhead extensions and presses on the box. I would recommend adding at least another yellow to what you normally do, as I did my usual 2 reds and wasn’t that puffed by the end. During the class I didn’t realise the music is Sexyback – Justin Timberlake, so don’t let its inclusion put you off.
6. Biceps: This is a short track by the usual BodyPump standards. It’s three rounds with a break after the second. They have carried over emphasis on bottom-half pulses from previous releases. In the final round the pulses lead straight into full-range singles to really burn the muscles before the end. I didn’t find it too hard and was able to do my usual red/blue/yellow without too much difficulty. I would recommend a minimum 2 reds to you guys (including Mark F) but The Machine and Rich could well manage an extra yellow on top. Music: Audioslave – Original Fire
7. Lunges: Be warned – this is not an easy track. It’s not the most difficult one we’ve ever done, but don’t expect to get through without shedding a fair bit of sweat. It starts with backward dynamic lunges. I don’t like these at the best of times, which may have been why I didn’t enjoy this track. Also I carried a red and a blue in each hand and regretted it. Then it’s a load of static lunges with singles and bottom-halfs at the end. You might think this is standard stuff, but since the muscle is already fatigued from doing the dynamic lunges I really noticed the burn. Music is: Somebody’s Watching Me – BeatFreakz, which goes well with the choreography and, since it is a good singalong track, helps distract from the pain.
8. Shoulders: Our friends the Mac-Raises are back – remember 59? That move with a front raise with one arm and a lateral raise with the other simultaneously? I’m sure it will come flooding back. Before them there are some press-ups, then a lot of rear-deltoid raises, and lateral raises. That meant my shoulders were really aching when it came to doing the mac-raise singles. You don’t need the bar at all as there are no upright rows or shoulder presses. Instead it finishes with more press-ups. Music: Uprocking Beats – Bomfunk MCs.
9. Abs: Up until this point I had been enjoying the music and how well the choreography fitted. Unfortunately their song choice for the abs track is very poor: Déjà vu – Beyonce feat Jay Z. It has no strong beat, so you have no idea of how to time the 2/2s or 3/1s. Fortunately the choice of moves is good and it starts with a lot of side twists and holds. At the end is the bit I know Mark F will absolutely hate! It is a plank hold (so far so good right?) but in this release you not only have to lift one leg off the ground, but also pulse it sideways as well. I didn’t find it too bad, but you really need a strong core to get it right. There is a lot of temptation to let your bum rise to make balancing easier, so you’ll have to watch each other to make sure this doesn’t happen.
10. Warm-down: A standard track here including most of the important muscle groups. I had a major endorphin buzz, from working hard, and I love Chasing Cars by Snow Patrol. It works very well and rounded off the class to a tee.

So overall impressions? There were a few new features like the pulse in squats and the leg raises during abs, but for the most it was good honest BodyPump. Perhaps I had a good night tonight, but with the exception of lunges, I didn’t find any of the tracks particularly difficult. I certainly wouldn’t recommend dropping weight like some of you (hint hint!) like to do with a new release! The instructor and I had a long chat afterwards about what we thought of it. If I get on good enough terms with her I’ll ask to borrow the CD and make it available to you. However I suspect Amin will already have a copy!

Let me know whether you agree with my summary once you’ve all had a go too. Kia Kaha!