Video: 10-Day Fitness Challenge
New year, new goals…I visited the top ten workout locations in NYC, featuring strength training, cardio, flexibility exercises, and more. From cycling classes to treadmill marathons to dance sessions, the following ten fitness hot spots not just increased sweat but simultaneously boosted self-confidence.
Day 1: 305 Fitness is a dance cardio workout that burns up to 900 calories per 44-55-minute session. With music led by a live DJ, attendees engage in jumping jacks, jazz squares, and more heart-pumping exercises. Classes include Cardio Theme (signature cardio), Cardio Advanced (advanced cardio for those who have taken 10+ classes), Cardio Basics (specifically for beginners), 305 FLX (a flexibility class with active stretching), and 305 PWR (a small conditioning session focused on toning abdominals and glutes).
Day 2: SoulCycle encourages bikers to look within to garner the strength to persevere. As instructors constantly encourage the class with motivational words, attendees are fearless in sprinting out of the saddle, climbing with optimal resistance, “tapping it back,” and ultimately racing toward the finish line. Plus, certain studios feature SoulBeat, a post-ride recap that calculates your beat match, power, distance, and “rode home to” song from the 45-minute session.
Day 3: Rumble Boxing is a 10-round, 45-minute class capable of shattering any signs of anxiety. The first three rounds are spent doing signature punches (i.e. jabs and crosses) on a water bag, the next three lifting heavy weights on the floor, then two more doing boxing combinations and freestyle punches, and the last two toning the abdominals and engaging in cardio until the final second.
Day 4: Founded by celebrity trainer Anna Kayser, AKT is a one-hour, full-body workout that combines dance intervals and cardio. The most coveted “Dance” class alternates between choreographed dance sections, which are repeated to achieve the ultimate burn-out, and short strength training sections. The studio also offers “Bands” (sports-based exercises with bands and a box), “Tone” (a strength-focused session), and “Circuit” (full-body exercises featuring weights) classes as well.
Day 5: Tone House is a team-based fitness studio with a dedication to “bringing out your inner athlete.” Each one-hour session is competitive yet supportive, featuring sports conditioning exercises including weighted sleds across the Turf, box jumps, and a variety of pull-up drills. The class concludes with sprints across the floor, where athletes run from one side of the room to the other in a tag-team-like fashion.
Day 6: Although it appears to be a gym at first glance, Orange Theory is far more advanced. Backed by science and founded upon technology (a heart rate monitor calculates your heart rate, calories burned, and more throughout the workout), the one-hour class alternates between treadmill runs, weights drills, and abdominal exercises. It is concentrated on three zones: green (“challenging but doable”), orange (“uncomfortable”), and red (“all our effort”), and for each minute spent in orange or red, one receives a “splat point” on the leaderboard inside the studio.
Day 7: Ideal for dancers, Pure Barre is centered around the ballet barre, focusing on low-impact, high-intensity movements that strengthen, lengthen, and tone the body in the form of a ‘slow burn.’ Classes include “Foundations” (a 50-minute introduction session), “Classic” (50 minutes of strength training and technique), “Empower” (45 minutes of cardio and ankle weights), and “Reform” (focusing on resistance bands and sliders).
Day 8: In just 57 minutes, participants of Physique 57 feel stronger, leaner, and more empowered. The class requires one to use bodyweight as resistance, targeting arms, abdominals, legs, and glutes to the point of exhaustion thanks to a medicine ball, resistance band, hand weights, and more tools. In between difficult intervals, the coach also leads the class through a series of stretches to improve flexibility.
Day 9: Flywheel is focused on high-interval training, located in a stadium setting where attendees view their status on the leaderboard throughout the course of the ride. Classes—which range from 45 to 60 minutes—include “Method” (the signature ride mixing hills and sprints), “Power” (boasting longer races and steeper hills), and “Tempo” (rhythm-based riding).
Day 10: Barry’s Boot Camp brings out the inner beast in every attendee. With high-speed treadmill runs, heavy weights, and resistance band exercises, each class is challenging yet highly rewarding. In one hour, one achieves optimal fat loss, calorie burn (as high as 1,000 calories), and an increased metabolic rate (up to 15%).