Body4Me

**UPDATE**: I’ve got a preview/review of the new BodyPump 66 release right here 

Wow, how time flies. It feels like only a few weeks ago that were were previewing BodyPump 65 and now 66 is on its way already.

The Les Mills site has the new Revolution magazine available for download and they give some hints on the upcoming BodyPump 66:

Transform yourself with BODYPUMP® 66.
This release delivers a challenging workout with some tough sequences and functional innovations. Body-weight exercises are a focus and they bring intensity by increasing the recruitment of stabilizers and the power muscle groups. So watch out for Pushups in the Chest and Shoulders Tracks, dips in the Triceps, Stepping Lunges on the bench and the Side Plank Roll in the Abdominals Track. This move challenges the core and shoulder stabilizers and really hits the obliques — hard!
The Modified Arnold Press is put into reverse for a new combination in the Shoulders Track. Working both ways gives the shoulders a complete workout, mixing the direction of eccentric and concentric phases of training. And it’s tough — great for really isolating and chiseling the shoulders into shape.
The music is huge! Be motivated by some big powerful songs from Technotronic and Cascada, sing along to On Your Way To The Disco and Show Me Heaven and enjoy remixes of the huge Rock songs Time After Time and Livin’ On A Prayer.

BODYPUMP® 66 is a truly memorable group fitness experience.

Also, I hear that this may be our warmup track.

Sounds like another awesome release!

Oh boy… i can see it already… During the “Livin On A Prayer” track, every instructor in the world is going to be singing ‘Whooah, were half way there..’ on every chorus. I promise to you right now that I will only ever sing it once we’re actually half way there :)

The moves look fantastic though, all my favourites. The Arnold Press is a great move that makes a very welcome return with its fantastic range of motion. More Dips in the triceps, very good. Side Plank Roll… Can’t wait to see that one.
Looks like the choreography team is really turning up the heat in these new releases. Well done again Glen.

If you’re an instructor in Australia, make sure you come along to the Super Workshop in Sydney in April. Glen Ostergaard (program head choreographer) is going to be there too!
If you’re not in Australia, maybe it’s time for a holiday :)

PS: Congratulations to Susan Tolj and husband Steve on the birth of their daughter Grace. Susan is the head trainer for BodyPump and has been one of the main presenters on the DVD instructor kits for some time. Her energy and enthusiasm are second to none and I wish them all the best in their life and with the new baby.

Hey you, participant near the back of the room.. Yes you know who I’m talking about.. The one that’s been coming to the BodyPump classes for the past year, using the same one or two kilo weights every week and hardly breaks a sweat when we’re done. As Dr Phil would Say : Time to get real!

This morning, I tried something different. What I like to call High Performance Body Pump. Same music, same choreography… different mindset!

You see, it’s very easy for us to get in a bit of a rut whenever we do something for a long time. You see it at work, home life, food, everything. Exercise is no different. I could pick many people on the gym floor that are doing the same thing day after day and never get any real results. When I chose to become an instructor I decided that that was not going to be good enough for me anymore. I want to make a difference in people’s life. An actual real visible difference.

Now, I’m a high-intensity instructor at the best of times. If I make the mistake and have a coffee too late in the afternoon, evening classes look out :) People come to my classes for the high intensity and energy. Admittedly, I’ve lost a few participants along the way that just wanted to turn up and go through the motion, but that’s ok… More room for the people that want to make a difference.

So, this morning, I thought I would really focus on the mindset of coming to a group exercise class (or exercising in general). Yes, form and weight selection are very important, but what really matters is… Why Are You Here ?
The funny thing is, when I asked that question, quite a lot of people gave me a blank look that simply said ‘Because it’s 7am on a Wednesday, and that’s what we do…’. Most of the participants were not really thinking about what their outcome of this was, and that’s quite understandable with our busy lives. Sometimes you just want to turn off and follow along.

Very quickly after that, we made a conscious effort before the class to realign our goals and reasons for doing this. Why did you first chose to come here ? How do you feel when you leave ? What are you here to achieve ? How will your life be different when you achieve when what you came here for ?

Suffice it to say that a few light bulbs got turned on this morning. We had one of the best workouts ever. The form was better, the range of motion was better, the squats were deeper, the look of anguish was more intense and the sheer fire in people’s eyes was plainly visible. No one quit. No one took the easy option. People that would always do the pushups on their knees get up on their toes. We were a team with a common goal.

Everything you do is different when your purpose is clear. Work. Life. Exercise.

So, next time you ’step into my office’, maybe ask yourself.. Why Am I Here ? Why did I make the decision to do this rather than just take a half hour walk on the treadmill ?

I appreciate every single one of you that comes to my classes. I appreciate and respect the time that you are entrusting me with. I do my best to coach you through the most effective workout I can. Are you ready to challenge yourself ? When you walk through those doors, is your mindset ready for you very own personal High Performance BodyPump class ?

Patrick.

PS: Naturally, i used BodyPump 50 (One of the toughest releases…ever) to help us along today. If your local instructor has it, do yourself a favour and request it. High energy, lots of fun and the choreography team seem to have forgotten to put breaks into the triceps, biceps, lunge and shoulder tracks :)

Ahh… Just finished the first full day of BodyPump 65 release classes. As we all expected, it went absolutely awesome.

The Squat track really hit the spot right from the word go and the new choreography really makes sure your legs are pre-fatigued nice and early. As we were getting towards the last 20 seconds and the class started to get idea of what was ahead, I started to get the most beautiful looks of pain and disbelief. It was a struggle to do the stretches at the end.

I think i had the biggest reaction i’ve ever had out of a chest track. The lack of a break and the many many bottom halves really bites at the end. My classes, located right in the heart of the Melbourne CBD, are always quite reserved and not very vocal. This time though, groans, moans and a quiet expletive from one of my usually very well mannered front row ladies. What more could you ask for…

The rest of the class went equally as well. Massive energy in the Back track, more looks of hard work during the triceps and biceps. Love the Lunge and Shoulder tracks. Fun songs, great vibe and a massive workout.

After that shoudler track, the Abs were a killer. Moving hover, side plank, crunches, twists… arggh.. Love it. Good use of options from the Choreography team to really let everyone get to the end.

As i’ve said before, it’s an awesome release, get to a club as soon as you can and give it a try.

Also, over the enxt few weeks, i’ll be giving pointers on all the major BodyPump moves. I want you to get the best workout possible by targetting the correct muscle group for each song and executing it the best way you can. I spend as much time as i can during the class coaching the right technique and i would like to share it with you here too.

I’ve just come back from the BodyPump workshop for Release 65. What a day, what an atmosphere! There’s nothing quite like doing a new release in a massive room with what seemed like 200+ other instructors and proper LOUD music. The bass was shaking the floor.

Ok, first impressions… Love it! Mind you, I’m fairly biased towards dance music, so this release is right up my alley. A lot of dance beats, a lot of funky grooves and some awesome rock thrown in for good measure. Overall a very happy, energetic and powerful release.

I love the way every release has a slightly different focus. this time around, there’s no doubt it’s all about endurance. The tracks are nice and challenging. The whole feel of the class goes back to some of the earlier releases in the 20’s and 30’s that just felt a little harder.

The official rundown by Les Mills Program Choreographer Glen Ostergaard can be found here.

(Update 18/05/2008) Now that we are well and truly into the release, here are the tracks for BodyPump 65:

01. Way Of Life - Slinkee Minx
02. Just Like Paradise (Skitz Clubb Mixx) - Nick Skitz
03. Breakaway (Chris Fraser Radio Edit) - Inaya Day
04. Wanna Be Free - Paradise
05. Get Down Feat. Stush - Groove Armada
05. Too Much, Too Young, Too Fast 0 Airbourne
07. Blinded By The Light - Michael Mind feat. Manfred Mann’s Earth Band
08. Meet Her At The Love Parade 2007 (Club Mix) - DJ Aligator
09. Stronger (Radio Edit) - Kanye West
10. Like The Sun  - RyanDan

Here is a track-by-track preview of what you can expect:

Warmup: Happy, energising song with just the right music to release yourself into the workout. I really like this warm-up track because it gets right into with a really nice beat. You just can’t help but get excited about the workout when you get into this one.

Legs (Squats): Ahh yeah, the work begins. You’ll definitely know this song. As Glen mentioned, this gets you right from the word go. There are some interesting changes to the choreography that make sure the legs get hit hard from start to finish. By the time you get to the break, you’ll be screaming for it. Oh, and keep some fuel in the tank for the finish… You’ll need it.

Chest: We keep it moving with a nice funky beat. This one just keep on going and going and going. You want a break?… Bah! Here’s another set of bottom halves just for thinking about it. Hah! This one goes back to the basics of endurance, strength and determination while giving you an awesome chest workout. The beat just carries you along right to the finish.

Back: As always, one of our peak tracks. You can expect the usual heavy techno beat here with lots of Clean & Presses, Rows and Deadlifts. Nice fast track with awesome little build-ups before the power phases. Plenty of opportunities to go hard on this one, so get ready to unleash.

Triceps: Another familiar song. Funky, groovy, great pace. Definite foot-tapper. We even have a new move here. Everything is nice and slow to really get deep into the muscles. Remember the seated overhead extensions from 64 ? Get ready to grab a big plate and hang on.

Biceps: Now this is what I’m talking about! If the CD didn’t say otherwise, you’d swear this was AC/DC. Only two words needed to describe this: Raw Power! You want a break ?.. I don’t think so. Have a quick shoulder roll, grit your teeth and keep going. Awesome choreography to fit the song.

Lunges: Nice dance remix of an old classic. Happy song, great pace and awesome moves. I’m a big fan of the forward and backward stepping lunge. It has a fantastic range of motion and helps you work on balance as well as giving the legs a good blasting. The great music helps you forget the pain in your legs…

Shoulders: Oh Yeah. One of the all time classic dance anthems. Di di di dat dat daa daa… Trust me, you’ll know this one. I had a grin from ear to ear when i recognised the remix beat. You just can’t help but go all out on this one. The combination of moves targets every part of your shoulders with the Mac Raise making a very welcome return. I loved the shoulder track from 64 and this one is no different. It’s a high energy beat you would normally expect to find in a lunge track, but it totally works here. Grab your plates and bar and get ready to party.

Abs: The feel of this one is quite similar to the Justin Timberlake ab track from 62. Slow. Deliberate. Heavy. Awesome moves to really get in deep. Plenty of options to really push yourself harder than ever. Instantly one of my favourite Ab tracks.

Cooldown/Stretch: Very nice, slow song with good, long stretches. Very positive and inspirational lyrics too. By the time you’re finished here, you’ll be relaxed, refreshed and ready to start the rest of your day. I really like ‘bigness’ of the song. It feels like a sweeping, wide open space. Don’t worry, it’ll make sense once you’re there.

So, overall, another fantastic release that will really help you shape your body. Every track is full of energy and challenges. There is something for everyone here.

There’s a good reason that Les Mills classes are now taught in over 11,500 clubs around the world. They Rock!
Well done Glen and the whole team.

I hope you enjoy it as much as i did.

Please do leave a comment and let me know what you think of this release.

WooHoo! The BodyPump 65 workshop is on this weekend. I’ll be posting a (non-spoiler) review shortly after. Stay Tuned.

In the meantime, if you absolutely must see the tracklist, head over here. Of course, it’s not the official list, so I can’t vouch for it.

**UPDATE: I’ve just come back from the training workshop and have posted a preview of the new release here **The new release of Les Mills BodyPump 65 is coming to a gym near you soon.We have got our Quarterly training in Melbourne on the 9th of Feb, so I would expect that we will start teaching it about two weeks after that. I’ll be launching mine at a Fitness First in Melbourne, so come on by. I promise it will be an awesome workout.Some of the launch notes appearing on the net so far:

BODYPUMP® 65 is all about challenging strength endurance.Right from the word go Track 2, Just Like Paradise, is BIG. It has a driving beat that automatically hooks the class into BIG work mode.The hard work starts with a unique training effect in the Squats Track when the legs are hit by a reverse sequence of work.Don’t expect any breaks in the Chest Track but do look forward to lots of Bottom Halves!The slower-tempo choreography keeps the muscles engaged and moving under load with no time to rest.And there are no breaks in the Biceps Track either, so the intensity is maintained from start to finish.The Forward & Backward-Stepping Lunge is back after making its debut in BODYPUMP® 64, targeting the legs, glutes and hamstrings.The Seated Overhead Extension is also back in the Triceps Track, accompanied by funky tunes from Groove Armada.DJ Aligator and the Mac Raise both make a welcome return in the super intense Shoulders Track which is all about strong, controlled work. There’s loads of energizing music to help with the workout.Kanye West’s Stronger provides the inspiration needed to endure the new Moving Hover and Side Plank in the Abdominals Track.Airbourne’s Too Much, Too Young, Too Fast is massive and Breakaway will fill the room with intense energy.

No break in the Chest and Bicep Tracks… Ouch! Can’t wait for that one.Did you check out the Just Like Paradise video ? Wow! That one is absolutely going to rock.I’m guessing Airbourne’s track is going to be the bicep track. They sounds like AC/DC and this one is going to rock the house.I’m not sure how Glenn O (the program choreographer) is ever going to top release 64’s shoulder track (Good Charlotte - Keep Your Hands Of My Girl), my favourite shoulder track ever, but i’m also a big fan of the Mac Raise, so this should be good.Kanye West’s Stronger is going to be a wicked abs track. You may remember the side plank from release 62 (Justin Timberlake - My Love). The Moving Hover sounds like the hover option we had in 64 (Hotstepper) where you slowly move your shoulders in in front of your elbows to the music. I love all these new, subtle but fantastic little changes to the program. It keeps it fresh and stops your body from adapting to the same moves.I have spoken to a few trainers who were in NZ at the filming, and from all accounts, this is going to another AWESOME release.