Variety Show

I know that change comes in waves, but I’m getting tired of the same old group exercise choices. For the past 10 years, it’s been group cycling, group strength, mat Pilates, yoga, boot camp and Step. At least it has been at most fitness facilities, including the ones at which I have been a member. If there’s not going to be any fun in group exercise anymore, at least we could have some more variety.

Maybe the lack of variety these days is due to a lack of new products. Some interesting products have been developed, none of which I’ll name, but they were ones that you could just tell were going to be a fad, rather than the next new trend. The thing is, it’s not just up to the fitness industry suppliers to create products for use in group exercise classes. Our industry needs innovators in the fitness facility trenches, as well.

The good news is, we may be on the crest of a new wave. Recently, some interesting new products and programs have made it into the news, a few of which may just be worth a look:

This may be a little of a stretch, but with its success at the IDEA World Fitness Convention in Las Vegas last month, maybe not. The TRX Suspension Trainer, a 12-foot nylon strap with two buckles and a pair of loops for hands or feet, was developed by Randy Hetrick, a Navy SEAL-turned-entrepreneur. Apparently, the classes are offered in 5,000 fitness centers across the U.S. A video on YouTube shows a class in session, which will give you a good idea of what the product is and how it’s put to use in group exercise.

Upper-body cycles have been making a showing at trade shows in the past year or so. So, it’s not surprising that Johnny G (inventor of Spinning) developed a group exercise class around his Krankcycle called Kranking. On the Krankcycles, the foot pedals have been replaced with hand cranks. Kranking was recently introduced to the Roanoke Athletic Clubs in Virginia. Maybe we’ll see a two-part class evolving — half group cycling, half cranking — for the ultimate all-body workout? I just haven’t figured out the space issue yet.

And, here’s an innovative twist on the traditional Step class. At the Equinox Fitness Clubs in New York, a new class called Climb-Max transforms the flat Step into a 45-degree angled platform, around which 30 minutes of cardio and 30 minutes of strength training are performed. Tell me there are more programs like this!

It would be nice to see more fitness facilities offering innovative group exercise schedules. Maybe not to the level of that offered at Crunch, but at least a few new classes that would re-energize participants.