Question: “What you think of Orangetheory?”
Long Answer:
Orangetheory fitnesses have been popping up a lot. I’ve been asked about them a few times, so I thought I’d type out a thorough response to the question.
First, I’ll share what it is. Basically, Orangetheory conducts an hour-long workout class focused on keeping your heart rate in the “orange zone,” which is what they consider to be the optimal heart rate for exercise. This is monitored via a heart rate monitor that you buy from them, which links to monitors in the room that you can watch (just wanted to see how many ways I could use the word “monitor” in that sentence). Every Orangetheory location in the world does the same workout each day, which is actually a pretty cool feature if the workouts are good, which I will get to shortly.
Here’s my take. I’m going to do pros first so you don’t think I’m just bashing them, but overall I’m not a fan and the cons will be more long-winded.
Pros:
-I like anything that gets someone from doing nothing to something workout wise, and they seem quite effective at that.
-Coaches are present.
-Community aspect helps with accountability and pushing yourself.
-Cool, organized, high-tech environment and vibe with printouts showing your stats after each workout.
-Orange is my favorite color so bonus points.
Cons:
-I think the reliance on heart rate monitoring is unnecessary and shouldn’t be such a main focus. It also doesn’t make a lot of sense, especially in the strength sessions, because you will most likely experience muscular fatigue long before you get into the target heart rate. They also seem to put a lot of focus on calories burned, which is a better measurement of a good cardiovascular workout despite not being their main “theory.”
-While there is a coach present, there is little to no coaching on an individual level. This allows for very poor form going unchecked after the exercise is demonstrated once. This is a huge hangup for me.
-I would argue that it does not offer everything you need. I won’t elaborate here about why strength is so important because I have and will continue to do that in many other places, but you will not get strong on this. Calling some of these seasons strength workouts is deceptive as they are mostly high-rep accessory movements.Your cardio will improve, and your muscular endurance will improve some as well, but you are not going to get strong or build a lot of muscle, nor will you receive the benefits that come with that (increased metabolic rate to burn more calories, being able to lift things in daily life, increased bone density, much more. Guess I couldn’t help myself on elaborating).
-The “muscle confusion” aspect is a fitness myth. Your body doesn’t need to be confused, it needs to get good and strong on the movements that matter and that translate to daily life, not be constantly introduced to something new. If you want variety, let it happen in your accessory movements, not the core ones.
-The circuit training style and short rest times would inhibit efficient strength improvement and muscle growth even if exercise selection was better.
-Focus on “different” takes away from consistently getting better at the exercise that matter most. This was my biggest qualm with CrossFit and is the main reason I stopped doing it, although some CrossFit gyms handle this much better than I did at the time.
-The price is pretty high for something that doesn’t have an individual aspect, and I’ve heard that they have a tendency to do some questionable things regarding billing.
Summary
If you have an Orangetheory so close to your house you can hear the music and aren’t doing anything fitness related now, it could be a good step. If you have a friend who’s into this, they’re your only friend who will workout with you, and you know you’ll only workout with a partner, it could be a good fit. If you’ve already paid for it, then give this month your all. Otherwise, my opinion is that your time and money would be better spent on a coach who will individualize things for you, a gym with a full range of equipment, or a combination of the two.
Message me with your questions!
Picture from clubindustry.com
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