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I've been doing weights resistance training for strength and fitness on and off for the last twelve or thirteen years, almost exclusively in gym classes.
The specific class I attend is the Les Mills' Body Pump class where one performs repetitions of muscle-strengthening exercises to music during an hour-long class.
It works the entire body through a series of 10 tracks - warm-up, squats (quad/thighs and butt), chest (pecs), back, triceps, biceps, lunges (calves, inner thighs and butt), shoulders, abdominals, and cool down. Each track lasts around 5 minutes and focuses on a specific muscle group, with the exception of the warm-up and the cool-down tracks, which work/stretch all of them.
In Body Pump classes, most weights resistance uses adjustable weights on a bar, so the individual can set them as light or as heavy as they wish. Reps are usually done in sets of eight, with each rep being timed with beats of the music. The format of 10 tracks gives a structure to the workout, and the music tracks change every three months with a new 'release'.
Personally, it's easier for me to attend a class than to do freestyle weights, because:
One of the things I like about the Body Pump series is that it doesn't require that much co-ordination to do. It's not a 'dance' class like Body Jam (funk/jazz/hip-hop), or a highly choregraphed class like Body Combat (psuedo-kickboxing moves), Body Attack (traditional aerobics), or Body Step (step aerobics). Yes, there are moves to learn in Pump, but it's not too different to learning how to use the weights machines and the moves don't change from release to release - a row is a row is a row, a squat is a squat is a squat...once you know, just go!
Regarding embarrassment and self-consciousness, in my experience, the people who go to the classes at the gym are there to improve their own fitness, not to show off as people in the main gym areas can sometimes be. So they're more focused on themselves than on other people. (Plus, when your muscles are screaming at you, you don't really have the concentration to notice what other people are doing: you're too focused on getting through the next rep.)
Ultimately, I feel that strength training is not about looking good while working out - it's about working out. So my perspective is if I need to adjust my weights so I don't strain something, then I'll stop and adjust my weights. If I'm slower than the rest of the class, then I'll go slower and do it right. If everyone else is stretching right and I'm stretching left, then as long as I give both sides a good stretch, does it matter?
If you've got questions about pump classes specifically or gym classes generally, I'm happy to answer as I can, just keep in mind that my experience is from an Australian point-of-view and that the way things work here may not be the same in the US or Europe.
The specific class I attend is the Les Mills' Body Pump class where one performs repetitions of muscle-strengthening exercises to music during an hour-long class.
It works the entire body through a series of 10 tracks - warm-up, squats (quad/thighs and butt), chest (pecs), back, triceps, biceps, lunges (calves, inner thighs and butt), shoulders, abdominals, and cool down. Each track lasts around 5 minutes and focuses on a specific muscle group, with the exception of the warm-up and the cool-down tracks, which work/stretch all of them.
In Body Pump classes, most weights resistance uses adjustable weights on a bar, so the individual can set them as light or as heavy as they wish. Reps are usually done in sets of eight, with each rep being timed with beats of the music. The format of 10 tracks gives a structure to the workout, and the music tracks change every three months with a new 'release'.
Personally, it's easier for me to attend a class than to do freestyle weights, because:
- I give up too easily when it's just me;
- the routine is comforting - quads are followed by chest are followed by back is followed by triceps... every week, without fail;
- the structure makes it easier for me to remember what I was pumping last time in the same track (quads last week, 10kg; quads this week, 13kg) and consequently, easier for me to work my way up the weights
- because it's you lifting the weights and not the machine, you're working your whole body, even when you're focusing on one muscle group
- I like singing to the music. (What? I like music! I like singing! I like dancing to the music!)
- reducing body fat
- increasing muscle strength
- improved metabolism
- better core strength
- feeling good about myself and my general health
One of the things I like about the Body Pump series is that it doesn't require that much co-ordination to do. It's not a 'dance' class like Body Jam (funk/jazz/hip-hop), or a highly choregraphed class like Body Combat (psuedo-kickboxing moves), Body Attack (traditional aerobics), or Body Step (step aerobics). Yes, there are moves to learn in Pump, but it's not too different to learning how to use the weights machines and the moves don't change from release to release - a row is a row is a row, a squat is a squat is a squat...once you know, just go!
Regarding embarrassment and self-consciousness, in my experience, the people who go to the classes at the gym are there to improve their own fitness, not to show off as people in the main gym areas can sometimes be. So they're more focused on themselves than on other people. (Plus, when your muscles are screaming at you, you don't really have the concentration to notice what other people are doing: you're too focused on getting through the next rep.)
Ultimately, I feel that strength training is not about looking good while working out - it's about working out. So my perspective is if I need to adjust my weights so I don't strain something, then I'll stop and adjust my weights. If I'm slower than the rest of the class, then I'll go slower and do it right. If everyone else is stretching right and I'm stretching left, then as long as I give both sides a good stretch, does it matter?
If you've got questions about pump classes specifically or gym classes generally, I'm happy to answer as I can, just keep in mind that my experience is from an Australian point-of-view and that the way things work here may not be the same in the US or Europe.