Body4Me

Welcome along. Has it been 3 months already ? Apparently so. It’s time for a new release of our favourite Les Mills programs.

Get Ready. get Set. it’s time for BodyPump 74.

 BodyPump 74 features 3 areas of core focus:

* Timing - We have new timings and tempos.

* Supersetting - Lots of exercises on top of each other to attack the muscles from every angle.

* Transitions - Super short to keep the heat in the muscles

 Let’s get straight into it. 

 First thing you’ll notice, if you’re in Australia, is that this is the first release of BodyPump with all cover versions of the songs. As you most likely know, the PPCA have pretty much succeeded in their bid to try to shut down group exercise classes in Australia by increasing their music fees by 1500%. To work around that, we are all now using cover versions to avoid the monstrous fees. If you are outside Australia, your music will still be a mix of covers and originals. Us Aussies get a separate CD wit non-PPCA versions.

The good news is that this current crop of cover versions is really quite good. I know a few people weren’t too happy with some of the covers in the last release, but all those concerns are gone now. Well done guys. It’s up to all of us now to show the greedy PPCA that we can do quite well without them.

What’s in store for us this release ? Let’s have a look:

Warmup: As usual, the warmup gets us in the mood for the work. This one gives us a nice slow start with a great windup. When we hit the first set of dead rows, the music rises and fills the room with energy. Nothing terribly new or unusual this time around in terms of moves. If anything, because the music is so uplifting, it feels like we’re flying through the song in no time.

Squats: Ok, we’ve seen a few tough squat tracks in the past few releases and this one does not let up. 5 Rounds. Short breaks. Extra weight. And a new, punishing tempo: 1 down, 1 hold and 2 up. We don’t even get the usual easy warmup round to get us going. Right from the word go, we’re straight into it. Huge singles in a massive chorus before we hit the bottom-hold move. Then, straight into round 2. Would like a quick break. Sure… How does just under 5 seconds sound ? No, i’m not kidding! Rounds 3 and 4 smack you in the face with more 2’s, 3’s, singles and bottom-holds before we get another measly 5 seconds to stuff our hearts back into our chest. Here’s a tip: suck in as much oxygen as you can in your break, you’re going to need it. The last round is only a minute long, but it drags every last bit of energy out of you. Just wait for the singles at the end. Ouch.

Chest: Ahh yeah, some great rocking sounds from Bon Jovi (cover) to push the chest. This one is once again about the timing and quick transitions. 4 Rounds with a quick break after the third. We get the usual assortment of 2’s, singles and bottom halves. I like how the rounds really flow into each other without missing a beat. By the time we get the break, your chest is on fire. As always, the last round is the hardest. Just when you think you’ve pushed through the last set of bottom halves, we still have another half a round to go.

Back: Oh man, what a great start to a back track. You know the song, that’s a guarantee. You’ve never heard it with that beat though. I don’t think we’ve ever started a back track so gently. The slow deadlift at the start makes those little hairs on the back of your neck stand up because you know what’s coming up. 3 simple but powerful rounds of clean and press combos, wide single rows and triple rows. Not much else I can say about it. We’ve done it a thousand times before. Doesn’t mean it’s any less fun though :) It’s the sort of sequencing that an instructor can learn with one listen to the song :) My only complaint about this one is that I think it could do with a little more ‘body’ in the clean and press phase. There’s a lot of bass, but not as much personality as we normally get.

 Triceps: Nothing better than a triceps track that hits the muscles from every angle. Today, we get 4 different exercises: Pushups, kickbacks, dips and seated overhead extensions. The best thing about the pushups in this release ? There is no knee option. That’s right, you’re on your toes the whole time. Before you get scared though, there’s only a few of them. You can do this, trust me. Once the pushups are out of the way, we go for some bench supported kickbacks. When you’re just getting used to them, it’s already time for the dips. The bench is a little lower today so we need to make sure we step out a lot further than usual to get the full effect. 20 dips later and it’s time for the extensions. Grab yourself a nice big plate and take a seat. Now, before I did this track for the first time, i thought that I could not get enough of a workout out of this one as each phase is less than a minute long. By the end of the first time doing it, I have definitely changed my mind :)

Biceps: Remember the mid-range pulse from the mid-sixties ? Awesome move and it’s back today along with some bicep rows. I know we have bicep rows and normally we would go heavier when they’re in the mix, but not today. If you’re an instructor, you’l know… during the workshops, everyone likes to show off and we all stick an extra kilo or two on their bar for the big tracks. This time around though, there was this quiet whisper that went out before the track started and everyone noticed that noone was going heavy for the bicep track…why ? Let me tell you why.. Because this is the bicep track from hell! That’s why. It’s only a bit over 4 minutes long but we don’t let up. When a track starts with bottom halves, you know you’re in trouble. Oh, and instead of a break, you’ll just get some bicep rows and maybe a shoulder roll if you’re lucky. Thank goodness the massive bass beat of Boom Bom Pow gets us through this one. The bottom halves and mid range pulses just don’t stop. I don’t think there is a single second in this track where the arms are not under tension. Oh, you know how normally the super-slows are 4 up and 4 down ? How about we finish up with 8 up and 8 down ? Ouch.

Lunges: What would a BodyPump release be without Cascada (or at least a good sounding cover version)… it’s time to get Dangerous. The title of the song should tell you something about the track. This is easily one of the most intense lunge tracks we have ever done. A couple slow moves before we hit a set of 32(!) singles delivered as a combination of full range, bottom pulses and bottom 8’s. at the end of those, there are still a whole set of 2’s and 3’s to go. And that’s only a quarter of the track. No kidding. How about some backward stepping alternating lunges off the bench. 24 you say ? Sure, why not. You didn’t really need that leg to walk with anyway…Uh oh, we forgot that we’re only half way there. Do the whole thing again on the other leg and then see if you can still stand. You may like to lean up against a wall at the end of the track when you do your stretches.

Shoulders: I love the supersetting and super short tansitions. We’ll be working for the whole duration of the track. Pushups to get moving before the rear delt raises take over. More pushups, side raises and more pushups to finish off the first phase. It’s not often that we get three sets of pushups in a single track. Make sure you keep your timing tight so that you don’t miss any. Next, grab your bar as quick as you can for upright rows, a short break and a whole heap of overhead presses.

 Abs: How do you make a grown man cry ? Make him do this Ab track with the correct posture. We start on the bench with a new move. It’s called a Lower Ab Alternating Leg Extension. What does that mean ? The deepest burn you’re going to feel in your abs for a long time. It works just like a normal leg extension, but this time we’re lifting our tail bone into the air at the same time. It’s feels like hovering in mid air and holding your whole body up with your abs. When you add that to the walking hover at the end, this is easily the hardest Ab track we have ever seen in BodyPump.

 Cooldown: After that workout, we need to cool down properly. No new moves or timing today, just time to relax and recover. Great duet from Guy Sebastian and Jordin Sparks to take us home.

  So what’s the verdict ? You’re probably sick of me saying this, but it’s another awesome workout from the Les Mills team. If I had to pick on anything, I would have liked a different mix for the back tracks with a bit more oomph in the power phase.

  Aside from that, I love this release and can’t wait to launch it. The beat is great, the moves are punishing and even the cover versions of the songs are great.

Well done.  

[…] Body 4  Me – 74 Review […]

Hi there,
I hope you don’t mind me linking my blog to yours. I just wanted to say that I find your blog extremely useful and your ‘How to become a BodyPump instructor’ article helped me a great deal.
Thanks so much for all of your reviews & tips. Looking forward to following you along.
Kia Kaha!
V.