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Equinox Shockwave

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

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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.

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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: 

Boston News, Weather, Sports | FOX 25 | MyFoxBoston

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!

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Pure Yoga’s Figure 4 Class

Wednesday evening, I had the opportunity to enjoy Pure Yoga West’s newest class addition, Figure 4. The class is an exclusive new program designed by Kate Albarelli, an alum of both Physique 57 and Exhale. I was excited to try the class based on Dori’s review she posted a few weeks ago and all the wonderful things I’ve heard about the instructor.

IMG_2242 (640x478) Well+Good NYC has offered some amazing class opportunities in their year of existence and therefore I new this would be a wonderful experience. In addition, the Pure Yoga experience is beautiful and a spa event just based on the atmosphere and space. Every corner, even the locker rooms, have a warm glow greeting the clients. Even the rain boots and wet umbrellas couldn’t take away from the peaceful and welcoming atmosphere!

IMG_2225 (640x478)The event was even more fun as I met some of my friendliest readers before the class started. Ellen, who also happened to be my guest post on Wednesday, was taking the class as well and it was great meeting and chatting with she and Melissa before the class started.

IMG_2240 (478x640)Since I was expecting this class to be an exact clone of other bar classes, I was surprised to see in the welcome email that we didn’t need socks. In addition, as soon as we walked in the classroom, we were greeted by different tools than normal.

Each of the 30 mat setups included a mat, pilates ring, square foam cushion, and three weights, two heavier weights of either 3 or 4 pounds, and one lighter weight. IMG_2226 (640x478)IMG_2228 (640x478)

I was excited to see we were going to use new tools and my interest was immediately piqued as I now knew that this class would be unique and different.

As soon as our gorgeous and vivacious red headed host entered the room, the energy rose! Her energy was contagious as was her huge smile. She welcomed us whole-heartedly and reinforced the primary reason we were there; to sweat and work our muscles in a new way. She then explained that unlike most bar classes we’d start at the bar, working our leg muscles, since they are the largest muscle group. Starting the workout with the legs gets the metabolism revved up and ready to go.

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The leg work included lots of squats, plies, and calf raises each of which left me panting and legs burning. The biggest change was that they started slowly and then were rapid fire towards the end of each set.

IMG_2236 (640x478) My legs were killing me by the end especially due to the race the night before and my morning personal training session.

The next part was arms, back at the mat. This is where I saw the biggest improvement based on my personal training. I used 4 pound weights the entire arm section and never felt too much pain. We did lots of lateral raises, hammer curls, and tricep work combined with squats and lunges which worked both body parts.

The best part was that Kate wouldn’t let any of us slack off by not going low enough or staying in the comfortable position where “we could stay all day.”

The next section was the biggest variation from Exhale or Physique 57. We spent a few painful minutes down on the mat with the pilates ring. HOLY HELL! Clearly my inner thighs are a weak area because this exercise brought tears to my eyes.

IMG_2235 (640x478) IMG_2234 (640x478) After fun with the ring we finished with some tricep dip pushups before heading back to the bar for more seat work followed by a final ab sequence on the mat.

I really can’t describe my love for this class! Her energy and music choices truly made the class, which led me to actually request her class playlist after the workout.

It is a great addition to New York City’s bar classes, incorporating great thigh and leg work with a more challenging arm and ab routine than other classes. In addition, the Pure Yoga space is the nicest yoga and workout space I’ve experienced in New York. The warm walls, helpful and considerate staff, and gorgeous class rooms make for a wonderful, sweaty experience!

Thank you Well+Good and Pure Yoga for a wonderful experience! I will definitely be back soon Kate for more of your torture treatment served with a smile and great music!

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