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The hottest fitness trends from New York and LA
No better time than upcoming spring to look to our stateside sisters to see how they’re keeping in tip-top shape. So following in the footsteps of Beyonce, Rita Ora, Karlie Kloss and co, I tried and tested the fitness trends taking New York and LA by storm.
1. Soul Cycle
Picture bikram yoga, a dance party and a spin bike and you get the idea of this cult-like cycle class. Rita Ora and Alessandra Ambrosio are fans.
The real deal
Yellow bikes, blaring tunes, pumped instructors, SoulCycle has you dancing on the bike. Not to mention the push-ups, triceps bends, crunches, ‘tap backs’ and more – all while peddling. Five songs are followed by a track of hand weights before finishing with two final candle-lit tracks.
Verdict:
Excellent for cardio fitness, co-ordination and upper body tone.
More: Your skinny jeans workout
On Aussie shores:
Try spin in gyms and boutique cycling studios (eg Pelotone or Viscous Cycle). Or DIY on a stationary bike with the SoulCycle playlist on Spotify.
2. Barre
Why so hot right now?
With a mix of ballet bar routines, light weights and lengthening, toning exercises, barre studios are everywhere. Barre Core is a specialist abs-focus class and Barre Fusion and the NYC-based Physique 57 offer a mix of cardio and classic ballet-style moves for an all-round workout. Jennifer Aniston, Kirsten Dunst, and Anna Paquin love barre.
The real deal:
With bars, blocks, hand weights and mats, the class is broken into sections – arms, core, butt, legs. With enough reps, small exercises make light weights very heavy! Just as my legs burn from tiny leg circles, we switch to shoulder lifts then abs. This class is high on legs, light on abs, but each class varies.
Verdict:
Ouch. Tiny as they are, do enough plies, leg raises and teeny arm movements and you’ll be left with one aching bod. No cardio, which means no adrenaline-pumping endorphins.
On Aussie shores:
Find barre classes in gyms and specialist barre studios (such as Barre Body and XTend Barre). Also check out Physique 57’s online workouts.
More: Three easy moves for tight, toned arms
3. Treadmill running classes
Thanks to New York’s hottest cheekily-named new studio Mile High Club, indoor running is the class de jour. BFFs Karlie Kloss and Taylor Swift are reportedly fans.
More: How to start running without hurting yourself
The real deal:
We start out with a light jog then speed work (a mixture of 1 minute sprint followed by 2 minutes jog) then hills (with varying incline) and fartlek training (where we’re told to ramp up the speed and/or incline at random intervals). Sooner than expected we’re cooling down with a light jog to Taylor Swift and I’ve pushed myself far harder – and for longer – than I would if alone on the treadmill.
Verdict:
Fantastic for cardiovascular fitness and to supplement a running training program. The HITT principles help up the calorie burn.
On Aussie shores:
Put together a pre-set program (on your phone or try a laminated card propped on the treadmill) and push yourself (think of the ‘high’ at the end!) Try these programs as a start.
4. Barry’s Bootcamp
Not only a Beyonce fave, this mix of treadmill running and strength training, with mood lighting to boot, fits right in with all the Cross Fit fads of the moment. Ellie Goulding, Jake Gyllenhaal, Bradley Cooper, Katie Holmes, Jessica Biel and Amanda Seyfried all love it.
The real deal
Fifteen minutes of intervals on the treadmill go by quickly in the dimly lit room before we hit the floor for strength work (every class includes a different routine). Then we’re back on the treadmill for more cardio (tougher). The final segment is more strength work, including abs and finally stretching.
Verdict:
Tough stuff! Barry’s instructors say the alternation of cardio then weights then back again is a huge win for the metabolism.
On Aussie shores:
Look for indoor bootcamp classes. Or do your own version of Barry’s – run 2 mins on the treadmill (or outdoors), do 20 push-ups, repeat 10 times. The next day run 3 mins, do 20 triceps and 20 slow mountain climbers, repeat 10 times. Mix in abs and bicep curls, shoulder raises if you have access to dumbbells.
5. Indoor Rowing
Once the least popular piece of equipment, classes featuring water-propelled ergs are the ‘new spin’. A full-body workout, the rower burns serious calories without the impact.
The real deal
I try a ‘signature’ class at CityRow, which ‘combines rowing intervals on sexy, water-based rowing machines with dynamic sculpting exercises’. Six-minute intervals are cut with jumping off the rower to perform a variety of dumbbell and body-weight based strength moves (think planks, burpees, push-ups). It’s a killer. CityRow also has a signature ‘Row & Flow’ class that combines rowing intervals with vinyasa – a great combo of cardio and energising, more relaxing yoga.
Verdict
My entire body feels the burn the next day, but there’s none of the knee pain or hip soreness.
On Aussie shores:
Try your own –do a six-minute round of 20 second intervals followed by 40 seconds slow on the rower before hitting a mat for 20 burpees, 20 pushups, 20 situps, 20 triceps dips, 20 lunges, 20 bicep curls and 20 squats. Repeat.
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