I’m a huge fan of mixing things up when it comes to my workouts, so when the opportunity arose to pop into an Orangetheory class with my fellow Dallas Fitness Ambassadors, I jumped on the opportunity. Orangetheory offers heart rate monitored fitness classes that mix running on a treadmill with row sprints, weights, and resistance band exercises. I’ve never claimed to be much of a runner, so this class definitely had me panting!
Orangetheory gets your heart rate up, and keeps it up. For each class, you rent a heart rate monitor that projects your status {color coded based on % of max rate} on screens around the facility as you work out. It’s an easy indicator for whether you need to slow down in the active rest and when you need to push harder at different points in the workout. By the end of the workout, their system estimated that I burned about 600 calories. Not bad for a 50 minute workout!
The class was definitely geared towards repeat attendees. The class moves quickly through each of the three blocks, and each block has a variety of exercises in it. We were rowing a 200m sprint, then racing to the weight room for Bosu ball squats, back extensions, and ab work, then back to the rowers. If you missed the brief demo at the start of each block, you could check screens in the weight area to see both a short video overview of the exercise and a recap of how many rounds and reps – especially helpful if you’re gulping water and not paying attention as you swap around!
Long story short, Orangetheory provides a great alternative to weights and cardio for someone looking to mix a few classes into their monthly routine. Would I recommend it as your only regular source of exercise? Probably not. The weights were really light, and trying to mix a run with a full body circuit in 50 minutes {plus a few minutes of instruction and stretching} meant we didn’t spend much time in any one area. My two cents? Go with a group of girls {like we did}, then pop into Unit Skin Studio next door to pick up some high tea antioxidant pads. They let us try them out an oh, are they so refreshing post-workout!
Photos courtesy of the Dallas Fitness Ambassadors and Deep Fried Fit.