RickInOz

So here we are yet again. Time for a new release, and I have come straight from the gym to share all about BodyPump 71. It’s also time to add another review to the series with the usual track list. So let’s go:

Warmup:
It’s very much back to basics this release, with the track following the old tried and tested format. The only real “variation” is a short set of underhand rows towards the back end of the track. The music this time is truly original – Magnetized by James Sampson – a Danish singer and co-incidentally also a BodyPump instructor. While that choice is a nice touch, it’s a shame that it isn’t a particularly motivating track.

Squats:
Now the real work begins. Be warned, this is a tough track by comparison to some of the previous releases. It starts with a simple warm-up round, then a very short rest stop before getting to the challenge. This release features a lot of bottom halves, with two 4x sets followed by an 8x set for the latter 3 rounds. So be prepared to burn by the end especially if you do all 48 bottom-halves at a proper depth. You should still be able to lift usual weight though, so no slacking! Music is a cheesy cover of Bryan Adams’s Summer Of ’69 by Mega Mania. Combatters will remember this from release 37.

Chest:
This is another hard chest track and not one to go heavier on. The supine work is all in fours. Four rounds with four reps each of 2:2s, 3:1s, top-half singles, full-range singles, bottom-half pulses. The track is quite long overall, so you will need to pace yourself to get to the end without fatigue. As if this wasn’t enough there is a sting in the tail – push-ups. Fortunately there aren’t that many of them and you should be aiming to do all of them on-toes. Music covers Dead & Alive’s You Spin Me Round, badly, by Flo Rida. Combatters and Attackers will recognise this track as it features in the latest releases for those programs too.

Back:
This is actually the easiest track of the whole release, and certainly one of the least challenging Back tracks for some time. It comprises 3 identical rounds with a very typical format. You’ll all be pleased to hear that this track sees a welcome return of the consecutive clean-and-press. The pace of the track is fairly quick, so you have to be on the ball to get the bar up and down in time with the beat. However since it is a fairly short track, there is no reason not to do usual weight. Music: When Love Becomes A Lie – Liz Kay.

Triceps:
After the relief of the Back track it’s back to business again with a relatively tough triceps track. This isn’t the hardest ever, but it’s by no means easy. We start on the box with 2 rounds of overhead extensions and presses. The chore is very reminiscent of California with alternating 2:2 and 3:1 extensions interspersed with presses. Then to finish we get standing extensions with free weights/plates. Music: Black Fingernails, Red Wine – Eskimo Joe.

Biceps:
This track will force regulars to make a hard choice. You can try this one with usual weight and accept you won’t be able to do all the reps, or drop weight if your pride will allow. The reason behind this imposition is the fast beat-rate to the music. It results in the singles being very quick, so even usual weight will lead to swinging. Especially since there are an awful lot of singles, both full-range and bottom-halves. A short break towards the tail of the track will help somewhat, but the sheer number and pace of singles makes this a tough proposition to keep technique all the way through. Music is a facsimile cover of Linkin Park’s What I’ve Done by Hiroshi Free.

Lunges:
As if our legs hadn’t been battered enough in the squats track, this lunge track is a big ask of leg endurance. This track is similar to 66 and 67 with static then dynamic lunges on one leg before switching to the other. Nothing exciting in the static lunges, but there is there an option to use the box (minus risers of course). Then it all hots up for the dynamic lunges, with a couple of slow reps, before moving onto 2:2s and then singles. The advanced option for the singles is to do a Step-style knee lift while coming up on each rep. The music beat rate is very quick and this makes it difficult to get up and down for those singles, let alone get the knee up as well, while maintaining balance all the time on fatigued legs. I think this is an innovation too far by the program directors, and people are going to get injured, especially if new to Pump. The knee lift works well on slower tracks, and I’ve done it as an option on many in the past including 62, but this track is far too fast to make it safe. Music: Doesn’t Matter – Mamad Voltek.

Shoulders:
After 70s over-reliance on lat raises, this track returns to the smorgasbord approach. Unusually we start with bar work with some overhead presses. Then it’s down to the floor for 2 rounds of push-ups, rear-deltoid-raises and lateral raises. The transitions are very quick, so you will need to keep plates very close to avoid missing reps. Then we finish with more overhead presses including singles just to finish off the shoulders and upper back. A nice little twist is a lull in the music very close to the end that makes you think it’s finished, but we still have 5 singles presses to go just when your shoulders want to give up. It all makes for a nicely paced track with the alternating work preventing fatigue setting in too early. Music is a remix of a track that sampled New Order’s Confusion – Operation Blade ’09 – Public Domain. Long term Pumpers will remember the original featured in release 39.

Abs:
Very unusually we require the box for this track, so woe betide the people who usually put theirs away after Triceps. The new innovation is the full-range reverse crunch. The reason for needing the box (minus risers) is we need to hold onto the box behind your head to stabilise the upper body. Ideally you should get the lower back well off the box and can curl up to your heart’s content, obviously depending on back injuries. The format of the track is 3 rounds alternating these reverse-crunches with normal crunches (with the option to hold a plate or two for additional resistance). Then we finish with a hover, only this time done with feet on the box. Obviously you have to do the plank on toes to get the true benefit, and it certainly does feel different from a standard one. Option is to do a forward/backward moving hover as we had in 65. Music is the rather insipid Circus by Britney Spears which lacks a strong beat – always a useful feature when we can’t watch the instructor easily – so we have to count carefully.

Warmdown:
As usual there’s little I can say about this. It’s a stretch track and that’s what we do! I will however niggle at the choice of music – Sober – P!nk – which also crops up in the latest RPM release – it’s quite a rocky track and doesn’t really inspire relaxation. However the intensity of the preceding tracks is good enough reason to unwind regardless.

Overall Impressions:
This is an interesting release. Certainly it is one of the tougher overall we’ve had recently with Squats, Chest, Triceps, Biceps and Lunges all being high intensity tracks guaranteed to get the heart rate up. Very unusually Back felt like light relief perhaps as a result of some of the tough tracks in recent releases, especially from a forearm fatigue perspective. So this makes for a challenging release which I will look forward to repeating over the next 3 weeks.

Pity then that the music didn’t do the workout justice. The warmup music was pleasant enough, but not really motivating enough to get us gee’d up for the work to come. Then the strange choice of warmdown that didn’t really seem to belong. In fact I reckon the two could be comfortably swapped! The rest of the tracks were nothing special but I found the Back track music did the job and carried the chore well.

So, this won’t go down as one of the all-time greats but if you’re looking to work hard and sweat buckets, then BodyPump 71 fits the job well. As usual, you’re all welcome to throw your 2 pence in by commenting below.