my first “body pump” class
Well, comrades, two of this week’s workouts were derailed by a nasty cold. Nonetheless, on today’s schedule was my very first "body pump" class, and as I believed I was no longer infectious, I went–shored up with Mucinex, Sudafed, grapefruit juice, and coffee.
I don’t do much in the way of high reps in my typical workouts, although for a time I subscribed to a 20-rep-per-set squat routine. (That was a long time ago.) Usually my sets consist of 7 or 8 reps minimum and 12 to 15 maximum.
The body pump concept seems to be this: using light weights, during an hourlong class, do about 100 reps total for most of the major muscle groups. High reps like this build muscular endurance–something I probably need.
I’m not about to give up my strength workouts, but I felt this would be a nice addition, and it probably will be.
That said, this workout alone isn’t a good substitute for what I usually do, because in 90 minutes I usually do a 10-minute treadmill warmup, 35 to 40 minutes of weight training, and 35 minutes on the elliptical trainer for cardio fitness. That leaves 5 to 10 minutes for fooling around, dressing, etc.
Body pump wouldn’t improve cardio fitness. I don’t think I breathed hard at any stage, I didn’t sweat much, and my heart rate was fairly low.
Here’s the (to me) interesting part: when we were doing upper-body work (bench press, curls, shoulder press, tricep extension), I felt as though I could go all day. Some of that is because I started cautiously, using very little weight on the bar.
During the squatting and lunging phase, though, I was really pushed, particularly during lunges. That tells me my legs are comparatively weak. I haven’t squatted with any kind of weight in years, mainly because it aggravates my lower back, and that makes me a wuss on the subject. I’ve been using machines for legs, with a few walking lunges thrown in, and obviously my legs are not keeping pace with my upper body.
When I work chest and back, I go all-out and enjoy doing it. Looks like I need to re-focus my attention on legs.
January 15th, 2005 at 1:12 pm
Interesting stuff. I’m still limited to one set of squats at a time, returning periodically throughout the day to my little step stool to do another set. And my “squats” are, I’m sure, of an entirely different animal that what you’re doing. Still, until I build up the strength in my legs, I’m not good for much else.
January 16th, 2005 at 6:46 am
Don’t minimize what you’re doing. A squat is a squat is a squat. Sure, you can take different stances; use bodyweight, dumbbells, or a barbell; and go more or less deep. But they’re all good.