Fitness Class A-Z

So, you have made the decision to get in better shape through exercise and like the idea of doing so in a group environment or fitness class. The camaraderie of a fitness class – along with the motivation, instruction and expertise of the instructor – can help to ensure you get the most out of your workout. With options including different forms of aerobics through to circuit training, boxercise, dance and yoga, you're sure to find a fitness class to suit you.

A. is for Aerobics

Aerobics is one of the earliest forms of class fitness, doing pretty much what is says on the label; engaging your aerobic system. It involves the repetition of movements to music, getting the calories burnt and the heart pumping. Whether you prefer a more dance and choreography based class or just a simple workout, aerobics varies from class to class and is all about what you prefer and what intensity you desire. 

CV fitness rating	High
Strength rating	Low
Flexibility rating	Moderate
Complexity	Ranges between classes
Benefits	CV improvement, weight loss, increased bone density

B. is for Bodypump

The great thing about Bodypump and other resistance classes is that it's a great way to add some weight training, working the whole body, and burning a decent amount of calories- around 600 for a 1hour class. Set to music, the class involves doing weighted reps to varying beats and speeds, working legs, back, arms, triceps and abs. If you increase the weight, bodypump is great to push you strength and improve fitness and resistance ability, more so than simple body conditioning classes. Its also a great place to start if you've never weight trained before, as you can learn new exercises and establish good technique - very important for weight training! 

CV fitness rating	Low
Strength rating	High
Flexibility rating	Moderate
Complexity	Low
Benefits	Improves strength and muscle definition, weight loss, great place to start for weight/resistance training

C. is for Crossfit

If you're looking for a challenging new class to push your limits then crossfit is for you, combining a mix of exercises including olympic weightlifting, calisthenics, cardio and interval training. Crossfit definitely gets your heart pumping and muscles working hard. This class if definitely not for the faint-hearted, but is a great way to get fit quick! Crossfit improves nearly all areas of exercise due to the spectrum of exercises involved including; fitness, mobility, strength, balance, endurance, flexibility and so on. You won't be feeling bored after a few classes of this, due is expansive inclusion of different exercises and equipment, crossfit targets a variety of muscles whilst making you work hard and keeping you on your toes.

CV fitness rating	High
Strength rating	High
Flexibility rating	Moderate
Complexity	Moderate
Benefits	Works nearly every area of fitness, high in cardio and resistance training, improves endurance, flexibility, balance and so on.

D. is for Dancercise

Dance can be one of the best exercises to tone your body and strip you of fat, without feeling like you're slaving away in the gym. Great for toning up those abs and building glutes and leg muscles, dancercise is a great way to add a bit of fun and variety into your normal cardio training. You wont turn into the next dancer on the west end, but you will certainly feel the benefits of burning some calories and injecting some fun through popular music routines. Dance classes are a lot of fun and tend to be very sociable – plus the high concentration factor means you’ll hardly be aware that you are doing a ‘workout’. That said, there are so many different types of dance to try that you are sure to get the hang of one of them.

CV fitness rating	High
Strength rating	Low
Flexibility rating	Moderate
Complexity	High
Benefits	Improves coordination and rhythm whilst working the cardiovascular system

E. is for Extend

Is perfect for the older generation and those with disabilities to have some fun and add a bit of exercise to their routine, without the hard impact of regular fitness classes. Extend is a great way to include the benefits of a fitness class without the strain of regular classes. Carried out in a chair, you may think that a workout sitting down isn't much of a workout, but even those with good fitness levels can work hard and feel that burn whilst sitting down. 

CV fitness rating	Moderate
Strength rating	Low-Moderate
Flexibility rating	Moderate
Complexity	Low
Benefits	Helps relieve symptoms of age and disabilities, whilst a good addition of fitness and exercise.

F. is for Fusion

Getting bored of your bog standard spin or yoga class, then fusion is the answer for you, fusing two or more types of exercise together to make you work twice as hard. The combinations of different fitness classes means you get double the benefits, anywhere from fitness and endurance to flexibility and mobility, anything and everything involved in exercise is improved in some way by fusion’s combinatory nature. Anything from Hydroride, Piloxing and Disco yoga, the combinations are endless, it's just about finding a class that appeals and works best for you.

CV fitness rating	Moderate-high
Strength rating	Dependent on the type of class
Flexibility rating	Dependent on the type of class
Complexity	Moderate
Benefits	Multiple benefits from the varied forms of exercise, including fitness, strength, duration

G. is for Gymnastics

Dont worry, were not expecting you to embark upon an olympic career after joining a gymnastics class, but gymnastics can be great to gain overall body strength, flexibility and balance. Unlike weight training, gymnastics is a great way to gain overall body strength in one session, as you're not just using the one or two muscles with resistance, instead you are fully engaging entire body strength, particularly working that core. Gymnastics is a great way to sculpt and tone your body, burning those calories with calisthenic exercises, whilst limbering you up and helping you into the splits in no time! 

CV fitness rating	Low
Strength rating	High
Flexibility rating	High
Complexity	Moderate
Benefits	Flexibility, strength -particularly core- and balance

H. is for HIIT

HIIT, or high-intensity interval training, is a popular exercise amongst many athletes and gym-goers, burning up a crazy amount of calories for such short periods of exercise. Putting your body in anaerobic mode, whilst strengthening and working muscles and the cardio system. As a great all body workout and perfect for short gym sessions, HIIT is great for those who are stuck for time to exercise. 20 minutes of HIIT, three times a week, showed a significant increase of body fat than those doing longer periods of steady-paced cardio. 

CV fitness rating	High
Strength rating	High
Flexibility rating	Low
Complexity	Low
Benefits	Fat and weight loss, improving fitness considerably and strengthening the muscles

I. is for Insanity

Combining cardio, resistance and circuit training, using no gym equipment but purely bodyweight resistance, insanity does what it says on the label, work you body to insane levels. As one of the hardest workouts, insanity pushes your body to the max in set routines over weeks, using three-minute intervals and 30 second recovery periods. Insanity increases your cardio and strength intensity with high-impact exercises and demanding interval programs. Perfect for those who have limited schedules and cannot find time to go the gym, insanity is perfect for working the body hard without the time or money commitment. 

CV fitness rating	High
Strength rating	High
Flexibility rating	Low
Complexity	Moderate
Benefits	Burns a high number of calories, and builds fitness and muscle strength

J. is for Jumping®

Jumping® is the crazy new fitness class that involves a high cardio workout of basic choreographed jumping around on an individual trampoline to fast paced music. As an exciting new form of fitness. Jumping is a great way to increase your cardio whilst working the legs and bum. Any youtube video will show a high energy leg workout as the class does some fast paced jumps whilst holding on the handles. Guaranteed to burn those calories whilst working those muscles. 

CV fitness rating	High
Strength rating	Moderate
Flexibility rating	Low
Complexity	Low
Benefits	Has a high cardio yield whilst engaging muscle tone and strength

K. is for Kickboxercise

Boxercise and kickboxercise are derivatives of boxing and kickboxing and use the drills and techniques of their respective sports in a non-contact setting, usually in the form of a circuit. For example, you might find yourself shadow boxing, skipping, using punch bags or teaming up with a partner to punch or kick focus pads. Both are considered one of the best all-round high intensity exercise classes to get you in great shape. One study found that people felt more calm, more focused and less anxious after a kickboxing class. Taking out all that aggression on a punch bag can therefore be a great stress reliever!

CV fitness rating	High
Strength rating	High
Flexibility rating	Moderate
Complexity	Moderate
Benefits	Improves technique, fitness and muscle strength. Plus punching out your built-up stress or anxiety

L. is for LBT (Legs, Bum, Tum)

LBT is great if you have certain areas to improve, instead of a general fitness improvement or weight loss aims. As a fully toning class, this is not ideal if you are looking for a high cardio class, as this works you hard, but is focused on area improvement instead of a general workout. Including a variety of exercises such as crunches and squats, these conditioning classes are great for trimming up any problem areas. But don't worry, these classes will still push you hard, working those muscles and burning those calories, brilliant for weight loss when combined with a cardio exercise. 

CV fitness rating	Moderate
Strength rating	High
Flexibility rating	Moderate
Complexity	Low
Benefits	Ideal to teach you technique and additional exercises, muscle conditioning and strength

M. is for Metcon

Metabolic Conditioning, or Metcon for short, is similar to HIIT and Insanity, involving short, fast-paced interval training, aimed at increasing your metabolism and cardiovascular capacity. Metcon involves a full body workout of exercises such as push-ups and squats followed by shuttle runs and high knees. The combination of body resistance training with high-paced cardio training makes for a full cardio and weight training workout at high intensity, hitting every area of the body. Stuck for time and need a class that will work every area of your body? Then Metcon is perfect for those of us who have limiting schedules. 

CV fitness rating	High
Strength rating	High
Flexibility rating	Low
Complexity	Low
Benefits	Weight loss, muscle tone and strength, increased fitness and stamina

N. is for Nia technique

Nia is a new form of exercise thats ideal form of low-impact dance exercise, engaging both the mind and body through cardio movements and strength training. Concerning 52 dance movements, inspired by a variety of dance forms, including modern, tai chi and taekwondo to a multitude of music genres, whilst mixing it up with a bit of yoga. If you're getting bored of the standard dance classes, nia-technique is a less impactive and alternative version of regular dance exercise, whilst still engaging the cardio and strength forms of exercise. 

CV fitness rating	Moderate
Strength rating	Moderate
Flexibility rating	High
Complexity	Moderate
Benefits	Strength increase, less intense cv improvement and increased flexibility and balance

O. is for Outdoor Bootcamp

Perfect thing about outdoor bootcamp is its a high intensity workout, but you still get to enjoy some fresh air and the outdoors. Most fitness centres will offer some form of a bootcamp, as one of the first fitness classes, demanding a high intensity cardio and muscle workout. Improving both your fitness and stamina, whilst helping you gain strength and muscle definition. If you like a tough trainer encouraging you to power through the elements and your workout, then bootcamp is perfect to go military style and get your body working. 

CV fitness rating	High
Strength rating	High
Flexibility rating	Low
Complexity	Low
Benefits	Increases stamina and fitness, improves strength and muscle definition.

P. is for Pilates

Similar to yoga, Pilates uses controlled movements, calming the mind, but demandng more of your muscles and control than the balance centred yoga moves. Pilates usually involves alternating and repeating movements whilst holding your body and core still and controlled. This exercise is perfect for cooling down after some cardio, yet still engaging your muscles for a hard workout, whilst clearing the mind and learning good breath control. If you're getting bored of resistance training, pilates is a great alternative to really engage your muscles and improve core strength and stability. 

CV fitness rating	Low
Strength rating	High
Flexibility rating	High
Complexity	Moderate
Benefits