DANCE! Equinox Class Review

• 0 • NYR 2017

This post is part of my 2017 New Year’s Resolution to try every group fitness class offered at my gym, The Equinox in Chestnut Hill. See the full list of reviews here.

Progress: 30 Classes Down, Approximately 13 To Go (class offerings sometimes change)

Class: DANCE! With Paula Fonseca

Class length: 45 minutes

Description from the Equinox: Equinox dance instructors teach you fun combinations to popular dance music. Styles may include jazz, modern, funk and hip hop.

What Class Was Like

Repeating dance sequences paired with music. With only 45 minutes of class, it’s not really long enough for the instructor to “teach” sequences. Instead, for each song students follow along while the instructor does repetitive and simple enough sequences that participants should be able to predict the pattern by the end of each song.

Some people in the class had no trouble nailing every move. I suspect that after a few classes learning the different patterns it’d be fairly easy and enjoyable to follow along. The first few times might feel a bit challenging in terms of following along real-time.

Very similar to Zumba, and did include some latin style Zumba for some of the songs. The major difference was a larger variety of music outside the Latin style, and some more hip-hop or pop style dance moves to go with them.

Who would love it?

If you love dancing and want an upbeat cardio workout, this class might be just your cup of tea. For me… I think I’d just as soon throw some music on and run. No worrying about what comes next or which way to turn.

Know before you go

Class was in the main studio and most people wore regular sneakers. Music volume is energizing, earplugs are available or you can always bring your own.

After class I took the kids (who made a HUGE fort in the playspace while I was at DANCE!) out for pizza at Oath. Oath has vegan cheese which is a great occasional treat for the kids who like theirs with olives on top. My pizza was a black bean base, spinach, roasted potatoes, mushrooms and olives with a balsamic glaze drizzle.

It was incredible BUT I have to say pizza tastes the best after swimming. I’ve invested some time into researching this, and nothing makes pizza taste better than swimming. Beer is best after running. I’ll keep you updated on future ideal pairings as they emerge.

 

Equinox Class Review: Lean Line – No Muscle Left Unburned

• 0 • NYR 2017, Uncategorized

This post is part of my 2017 New Year’s Resolution to try every group fitness class offered at my gym, The Equinox in Chestnut Hill. See the full list of reviews here.

Progress: 29 Classes Down, Approximately 14 To Go (class offerings sometimes change)

  

Lean Line is totally my style workout. The thing I love about barre classes is the way they isolate and work so many different muscles. I always feel a satisfying overall muscle awareness the next day without feeling too sore.

In barre classes the effort comes from repetition. A tendu, grand-plié or 2lb weight tricep curl isn’t hard for the first count of 8, or maybe even the second. But by the time you hit 32 everything is burning, you can’t believe your arms hurt just from holding them in second position, and you are SO not excited to hear the words “pulse, pulse, pulse”.

I know lifting heavier weights has benefits, but I feel like it’s much easier for me to get just the right amount of burn without taking it too far in a barre class. I take weight lifting classes so infrequently that I really don’t know what size weights to grab or how many days off I’ll need afterward.

Class: Lean Line with Melissa Jalali

Class length: 50 minutes

Description from the Equinox: Raise ballet to the next level with cardio, light weights and body-weight resistance for a full-body, high-energy workout.

What Class Was Like

A ballet inspired workout that included light weight work and mat work. Technically a barre class, but held in the yoga studio and not utilizing the barre.

Melissa also does a great job of providing details on posture and where you should feel the exercise so beginners should find it easy to follow along and get the most out of each sequence. (No ballet experience required!)

Sample Exercises

  • Grand pliés in second position, two counts up and two counts down ending with pulses
  • Ballet-inspired floor work including port de bras, tendu, plié and frappé sequences
  • Lifting light weights overhead, bicep curls, and tricep curls in a curtsy position
  • Planks with toe taps alternating with downward facing dog
  • Abdominal work on the mat using the ball or hoop
  • Light jumping sequences that could be easily modified for a non-impact workout
  • Modified push-ups

 

Who would love it?

This isn’t just for those of us who did ballet as kids (though that did make it extra enjoyable). It’s a great workout for targeting a large number of muscles without overworking any of them, while also getting a little cardio fix during the jumping and movement sequences.

Melissa is one of my favorite instructors at the Equinox (I’m starting to have a lot of favorites, I get that, but go ahead and ask my kids their favorite dessert or color). She consistently provided modifications to make jump sequences low impact, to set down the weights if needed, or to adjust the difficulty of some of the ab workouts by telling us to shift the angle of the legs or keep our head down if our necks were straining.

That level of instruction and attention to detail makes this class accessible for multiple levels even though it’s a full and challenging workout.

Know before you go

Take your shoes off before entering the yoga studio. Class can be done barefoot or in socks but socks might be slippery if you’re doing work off the mat. Equipment may vary, but for this class we used the mat, light weights (2 or 3 pounds), a workout ball and a hoop.

Aqua Strength: Equinox Class Review

• 0 • NYR 2017

This post is part of my 2017 New Year’s Resolution to try every group fitness class offered at my gym, The Equinox in Chestnut Hill. See the full list of reviews here.

Progress: 28 Classes Down, Approximately 15 To Go (class offerings sometimes change)

It was great to see my swim coach Brittany! I haven’t seen her since before the summer and it was fun to take a class from her.

I swam pool lengths for about 15 minutes after class before hitting the steam room (best part of the day so far) and then heading to school pick-up and the dentist for the kids. I told my kids if they left the plastic toy rewards offered by the dentist’s office they could have a little extra time playing Minecraft.

They’re building a world together and have somehow “trapped pet ducks” into a house they built. I don’t know much about Minecraft, but we checked it out on Common Sense Media first and put them in creative mode so there aren’t any zombies and then connected them only to each other.

They really didn’t mind skipping the plastic goody bags of toothpaste (which they always refuse to use because it’s not their normal flavor) and the little plastic toys. 10 minutes of building together instead was a no-brainer for them. And for me, because I reduced our carbon/waste footprint ever so slightly and got an extra 10 minutes to write this blog post.

 

Today’s Class: Aqua Strength with Brittany Roman-Green

Class length: 45 minutes

Description from the Equinox: Harness more water power in a fully aquatic strength-training and conditioning class. Push, pull and press against the natural resistance of water, and then add equipment to take your power to the next level.

What Class Was Like

Very similar to Aquasport but perhaps with a little more strength work added to the aerobic conditioning. Aquasport had a slightly different description and used to be offered at the same time but is no longer on the calendar. Not sure if the class was tweaked and renamed, but if you liked Aquasport you’ll probably enjoy Aqua Strength. You get out what you put into this class; the more you can work against the water’s resistance the stronger you’ll get.

Sample Exercises

  • Pool deck pull-ups (three different sets, I did about 20 in each set, so a decent arm workout!)
  • Holding barbells out to the side and then down to float the body and then moving legs without touching pool floor
  • Using the barbells like parallel bars and then moving the body from a feet extended forward position to a feet extended back position
  • jogging in place, high knees, butt kicks

 

Who would love it?

Anyone looking for low impact cardio with some strength mixed in.

Know before you go

Wear a comfortable bathing suit and remember to shower before you hit the pool. Barbells were provided on the pool deck. There is a pool chair that lowers people into the pool if they’re not able to use the pool ladder. Music wasn’t too loud, it was easy to hear the instructor.

Alignment Flow Yoga: Equinox Class Review

• 2 • NYR 2017

This post is part of my 2017 New Year’s Resolution to try every group fitness class offered at my gym, The Equinox in Chestnut Hill. Full list of class reviews here.

I sent my mom this picture of my yoga mat because she left me a voicemail while I was in class that said “I bet you’re doing something muscular right now, but I thought I’d call…” And I WAS. I was doing something muscular. Still sort of amazes me that I have this reputation and it’s accurate.

I love this New Year’s Resolution but it’s hard to take classes that I love and wonder when I’ll be back. I have over 15 classes left to take in the next three months, so it’s not easy to repeat classes at this point! And Alignment Flow Yoga is worth repeating. Over time it would have a great impact on my ability to get the most out of various yoga poses by improving my alignment and precision in each pose.

Starting in January 2018 all classes will be fair game again! I’m looking forward to it.

Alignment Flow Yoga with Cheryl Bentsen

Class length: 1 hour

Description from the Equinox: This flowing structure includes sun salutations, standing poses, forward bends, twists, hip openers, backbends, and inversions balanced between the power of breath and the freedom of health that evolves from anatomical precision and alignment from Iyengar and Anusara Yoga.

What Class Was Like

A great class for someone slightly familiar with yoga who is interested in advancing the precision of their poses. Great attention was given to the “anatomical precision and alignment” piece, with the intent that a regular class participant over time would improve their knowledge of the purpose of each pose and how to do it correctly. Because part of the class intent is to focus on alignment, instructions were incredibly detailed in terms of body placement for each pose and sequence.

Class was a combination of held poses and flowing sequences.

Don’t be intimidated by the class description including “backbends and inversions”. Remember that Downward Facing Dog is technically a beginner’s inversion, and Cobra is a backbend. When I first read that description I was picturing headstands and pretzel-esque backbends. Not the case – and a good yoga instructor will always provide the “just right” modification for beginners (and this class is all levels welcome) if a class did include options for working on advanced poses.

I love Cheryl’s classes because she gives great detailed instructions for each pose and in her classes I always learn something new about correct form or the intent behind an exercise. This class feels like it was designed with her in mind because it requires a great instructor to rattle off the exact positions of feet and heels and hips and ribs for a full hour.

Who would love it?

Anyone who likes yoga and would like to gain precision and technique. Especially healthy for posture / hips / back flexibility. Absolute beginners might prefer a more restorative yoga class or a private introduction since some of the sequences were challenging (how long can your arms support downward dog?) even with Cheryl’s detailed guidance.

Know before you go

Yoga mats are provided. Don’t wear shoes into the yoga studio, leave them outside in the cubbies. Equinox cleans mats after use, look for a pile to add them to on the floor on your way out (don’t roll and return them). Water bottles welcome, but not a lot of time to drink between poses.

Best Abs Ever: Equinox Class Review

• 0 • NYR 2017

This post is part of my 2017 New Year’s Resolution to try every group fitness class offered at my gym, The Equinox in Chestnut Hill. Full list of class reviews here.


TClass: Best Abs Ever

Class length: 30 minutes

Description from the Equinox: Chisel your core and ignite your metabolism with a challenging, 30-minute six-pack of exercises that builds abdominal muscles and enhances total-body performance.

What Class Was Like

Quick and challenging. Using a mat, a resistance band and our own body weight we flew through two sets of seven (bonus!) different exercises with 50 seconds on and 10 seconds off. Add a quick warm-up and cool-down, and you’ve got an efficient add-on ab class to get your day started. Ok, or started and finished, I wouldn’t judge because this class was hard.

Great class if you’d like an efficient ab workout that can complement another activity. I wouldn’t recommend it for beginners. Remember to modify if you’re feeling pain in your lower back and as a prerequisite I recommend being able to hold a plank for 60 seconds and a side plank for 30 seconds.

Sample Exercises

  • bicycle crunches with resistance bands around the feet
  • walking planks with resistance bands
  • high plank bringing alternating legs to knees, crossing legs to knees, then holding
  • burpee then superman repeating combo
  • leg scissors with resistance bands

 

Who would love it?

A great class for someone with a fitness base who wants to power through some difficult ab work using the group for motivation and an instructor for guidance.

Know before you go

  • If you see people getting a ton of equipment, they might be staying for the next class. Check before you grab everything.
  • The blue resistance bands are harder than the green. There’s enough so you can probably take one of each if you’re uncertain.
  • All exercises with a resistance band can be done without one; get the exercise done, if the band isn’t working, ditch it.