Bodypump

You can always swap the power press for regular clean and press - dead row combo when you're exhausted.

I often have that type of men - it's always men - coming to the class for the first time. Of course I explain the high rep concept and that it's different and they should start with low weights. 9 time out of 10, they look at me like 'Ah what do you know', load the bar up and die in about a minute into the squat track. I am always impressed when they come back next time though.

But saying that - obviously you'll never put 100's of pounds on the bar in Bodypump, but you will see the best and fastest results when you challenge and push yourself and are exhausted at the end of each track.

I love body pump. Am just getting back into it after a few years off - it takes time to get used to switching weights etc but it’s worth sticking with it.

Body pump and Pilates go really well together - they’re both all about the technique, and you'll get much more out of body pump if you focus on keeping your core strong

Seconded. I have done weights and can lift heavy. This is shorter reps and test between. Body Pump has no rest. You have to be able to keep your form. Use a challenging weight but not too much.

I always see blokes start body pump with massive weights on the bar. By the end of the reps they are on verge of collapse!

I meant to say...

Body Pump is low weight, high rep. There is zero shame in having a low weight.. It is what you are supposed to do!

My weights (all each end)
Warm up - 3.75kg
Squats- 8.75kg
Chest - 5kg
Back- 6.25kg
Triceps- 4kg
Biceps - 3.75kg
Lunges - 6.25kg
Shoulders - 3.75kg

That's after years. There is no need to go heavy.

I love clean and press. Makes me feel like an Olympic weight lifter 😆

I still don't like overheads 😄

I love bodypump. I now have 2.5kg each side of the bar for the warmup and triceps/ biceps, 5kg each side for squats, 3kg each side for chest track and 3kg each side for back track. I was lifting slightly more but getting covid knocked me back a few weeks and I had to go to lighter weights.

Listen to your body. Stick with low weights fir a few weeks then gradually increase your back track and squat track weights. These are big muscle groups so the easiest to increase first. If it's hurting stop, check your form and decrease weights.

I've never thought of having 2 bars on the go but that's a good idea. If you tip the smart bar upside down and release the red clips the plates fall off with gravity.

Weights are awesome. I did 60 mins cardio today which I enjoyed but tomorrow I'm doing bodypump. Lifting gives me a different feeling- its great being strong. Never do pump classes 2 days in a row.

I've been doing pump for years and sometimes struggle when there's a lot of power presses. I'll switch the bar out for a 5kg plate when it feels too much.

It definitely comes with time. It took me ages to work out the running order, now its second nature.

You can always use the bar with no weights for the lighter weight tracks whilst you get used to the movement.

Oh yes, you have to recruit your legs for the three in a row power presses. When my instructor started teaching a release with them in I just looked at her like “you gotta be kidding me”. Now I can do them all and I’ve recently add one kg either side, so you will get strong quickly.

With clean and press, a lot of people either bend their knees at the wrong time or swing the bar out as they lift it. You want to use the knee bend to power the upward press. Also, keep the bar close to your body - the change from lift to push should be kind of rotating your grip by pushing your elbows forward.

I just read that back and it’s hard to understand so I found a video:

We have a really good instructor who comes round checking people’s form but a lot don’t so it important to make sure you’re doing it right.

Hope you enjoyed it today @milkysmum

How did it go, @milkysmum? And how was it doing yoga afterwards? (I’m always really tired after Body Pump - not sure I’d be up for doing another class for the rest of the day!)

Good luck OP. Stick with it. BP is addictive! I have been going a year and do 3 classes a week. I don’t go heavy but have slowly built up the weights. It has changed my body shape and I’m so much stronger.

You will get used to the moves - it can take a little while but everyone's been a beginner.

A tip I was given with getting weights off the bar was to hold it vertically, with the bottom clip resting on the ground, then pull the red release tabs upwards. The weights will just fall out onto the floor. Flip the bar over and do the same with the other side. Much easier!

Go in the gym and play around with the weights to work out what suits you best then start by doing fewer reps and sets to help you build up.

Those are very decent weights, Cecily! Women often tend to be wary, especially if you are from the generation that was told never to touch any weights as apparently you will bulk up immediately (as if!). But you really get the best results if you challenge yourself.

I’ve been doing it a couple of years and it does take a while to get the hang of the quick changes! I absolutely love it though and do it four times a week.

I have built up to 5k for warm up, 15k for squats, 10k for chest, 12k for back then a single 5k plate for triceps, 5k plates for biceps/lunges.

Biceps, and triceps your lightest on the bar. Shoulders light as well as completing the movement correctly is more important than overloading with weight, shoulders are a complex muscle group.

Chest and back somewhere in the middle between squat weight and the others.

In terms of clipping on an off the weights, it's easiest to do when the middle slit is horizontal as per your photo - I used to find it easy to clip off the first side then harder on the second and discovered it was because the bar was flipping over so the slit was vertical and it's harder to take them off, so just make sure you roll your bar so the slit is horizontal each time you unclip.

With regards to your original question, I started in September on lightest weights and now warm up with 5s on each side, squat with tens on each side and chest and triceps around 6 on each side.

Lunges a single 5 plate weight.

Shoulders I use

Yes. The classes (the full 55min ones, there is also a 45 and 30 min format) always go:
warmup - lightest weight
squats - heaviest weight, at least double the warm up weight, advanced people go for 3-4 times the warm up weight
chest - half to 1/3 off squat weight
back - add a bit to chest weight
triceps - a little more than warm up weight
biceps - about same as triceps
lunges - depends, if it's all bar work then about back weight
shoulders - about same as biceps
abs
cool down.

I would recommend, take a little notepad or post-it and write down next time what weights you were using and how it felt, if you think you should go up or down. You'll get a hang of it soon, but it's 10 tracks so can be difficult to remember initially.

Not Katharina but the order in every pump class is, together with the weights I use:

• warm-up: use your default weight. I use one 2.5kg plate and one 1.25kg plate on each end of the bar.
• legs (i.e squats): the heaviest you want to go. I use 5kg each side.
• chest: default weight or a bit heavier.
• back: default weight.
• triceps: lightest you will go. I use a 2.5kg plate in each hand or one 5kg weight.
• biceps (often together with triceps): triceps weight or heavier. I often start heavier and drop down midway through the set.
• lunges: default weight. Depending on how knackered I am I use either a 2.5kg or 5kg hand weight when not using the bar.
• shoulders (sometimes together with lunges): 2.5kg or 1.25kg hand weights, depending how tired I am.
• abs/core: if we're using a hand weight I go with 2.5kg.
• stretching: no weights.

About half the people in the classes I go to use heavier weights than me and I used to go heavier when I did pump more regularly. Most people use about the same and new people go lighter. Nobody cares what other people are using. I take my own set of 2kg dumbbells along for when my arms get too tired for 2.5 plates but I don't have time to swap lower.

My instructors hate it when people thrust their hips and remind us to squeeze our bums a lot to stop that happening. They're also very hot on technique for press-ups.

The classes all follow the same format although 45 minute classes miss some tracks out.

An hours class would be:
Warm up, squats, chest, back, triceps, biceps, lunges, shoulders, core, cool down.

There are also combined tricep/bicep and lunges/shoulders tracks although some 45 minute classes miss out the arm tracks or the lunges and shoulder tracks - depends on the instructor.

Can normally go heavier on squats and back track and then lighter for others