As I’ve mentioned a few times, Bo and I are trying to find ways to save money easily for the next few months. No, neither of us lost our job nor are we planning for a child. Instead, we’d just like to be able to put a bit more away in savings. One way in which I’m saving money is by cutting out a personal trainer for the two months that my personal trainer is on maternity leave and not paying for any fitness classes during the summer.

Since I’m a member of Equinox, the easiest way for me to do this is to take full advantage of the classes Equinox offers to its members.

There are a few things I look for in a class:

• Is the teacher qualified? Is he/she friendly and willing to assist students?
• Can I master the movements?
• Will it be worth my time?

Even though I took ballet and jazz from the age of 3-15, I’m not the most coordinated person and therefore classes which are highly choreographed or have fast transition time between movements tend to be tough. I would rather have slow movements where form isn’t compromised. So while I love 30/60/90 and MetCon3 for their sweat factor, sometimes I find my form suffers due to the speed.

Therefore, when I heard about a great new class that not only offered one of my favorite cardio machines, the rowing machine, but also only 3 other stations, I was intrigued. This rowing machine is different than the average as it actually uses WATER! The Indo-Row engages more than 80% of the body’s muscle mass with each stroke, using the water’s resistance

Upon doing some research, I really liked what I read about the class and was super excited to try it at Rockefeller Center Equinox on Wednesday night.

Extreme cross training at its best! This total body circuit challenge combines the Indo-Row machines for high-intensity calorie burn with dynamic, functional exercises using ViPR, Body Bars, BOSUs and Kettlebells to sculpt and transform the body! Max effort, and EXTREME results!

While each class is different, the concept remains the same.

• Class is approx. 45 minutes
• Class is divided into 4 groups upon entering
• There are 4 stations which each group rotates around during the class (arms, abs, legs, rowing)
• The team who is on the rowing machine sets the time of each station, depending how long it takes for everyone on their team to finish the distance (500, 400, 300, 200, 200)
• When everyone finishes rowing, teams rotate.

The stations for our day were right up my alley: rowing, stability ball planks, lunges with overhead weighted press, and pushups while passing back and forth a medicine ball.  Each of these movements are low impact and since you’re doing each one for at least 1 minute, you are able to focus on form.

The instructor, John, did a great job walking around the room to check people’s form and motivate the group. His music mix was upbeat and high energy which kept everyone moving. I personally loved the rowing segment as there was a great competitive spirit to see who would finish first. The team competition and social atmosphere was something I hadn’t experienced before in a group workout class.

To see the class in action, check out this video below: 

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When the 45 minutes were over I was sweating and my arms were still shaking from the more than 100 pushups I completed! This class is one that I’ll hopefully frequent during marathon training since the low impact didn’t push my body too hard but the circuits allowed me to focus on some weight training and core work. I’m curious to see how the stations change next week! Rumor has it this instructor also has some mean BOSU ball stations he’s incorporated historically!

Equinox Shockwave is currently offered in Boston, LA, Chicago, and New York. For locals, the class is offered at Columbus Circle, 17th and 10th, Wall Street, and Rockefeller Center Equinox locations.

Question: What do you look for in a group fitness class?

*Also, I am so sorry but just realized that I never chose a winner for the Athleta giveaway! Oops! The winner is: Christina! Please email me your mailing address!