Better Late Than Never is Exactly Right!

Eleanore had asked me to write a post about a new gym (technically a fitness studio) I recently joined called Orangetheory Fitness (OTF). They are based out of Florida, but have become a franchise and locations are slowly popping up all over the US and Canada.

I was very excited to join OTF as I have been teaching people the benefits of high intensity exercise for over a year now. This particular type of exercise creates excess post-exercise oxygen consumption (or EPOC, for short). When you exercise strenuously at a high intensity it creates an oxygen deficit in your body (due to a buildup of lactic acid). Afterward, the body needs to use more oxygen to restore itself to resting state (EPOC). The body needs a lot of fuel in order to do this, and it gets this fuel from your fat! Which is why high intensity exercise has been proven over and over again to be the most effective for weight loss (as well as general overall HEALTH)! Some studies have shown that the body can continue to burn fat for up to 36 hours following this type of exercise!

The OTF workout is 1 hour in a group setting (up to 26 people per class). Half the class will start on treadmills, while the other half will start out on the strength training floor. Halfway through the class, everyone switches.

On the treadmill, you will choose whether you are a power walker, jogger, or runner. You then adjust your incline and speed accordingly and the trainer will tell you when to turn things up or down. As people become more accustomed to the workouts, they start integrating rowing along with the treadmills. For example, last night we did 0.2 run followed by a 200 meter row, then 0.1 run followed by a 100 meter row, and continue through. Their rowing machines actually have water in them, so you have the feel of rowing through water. The strength training floor has lots of different elements – free weights, TRX bands, Bosu balls, ab dolly’s, etc… The trainer will show everyone each exercise, the correct technique, how to adjust the exercise to make it easier or harder, and then away you go. There is a TV screen which will tell you what exercises you should be performing and how many reps of each you should be doing. You continue to keep doing these until the trainer tells you to stop.

You wear a heart rate monitor for the duration of the class, which helps you to keep track of just how intensely you are working out. The monitors are hooked up to large TV’s so you can see your heart rate, which heart rate zone you are in, and the number of calories you have burned.

There are 5 heart rate zones, based off a percentage of your maximal heart rate. Your max heart rate can roughly be calculated using the equation 220-age. At OTF, the heart rate zones are broken down by color accordingly:

Grey ~50-60% of max – very easy for breathing and muscles
Blue ~60-70% of max – comfortable, easy breathing, low muscle load, light sweating (warm-up)
Green ~70-80% of max – light muscular fatigue, easy breathing, moderate sweating
Orange ~80-90% - muscular fatigue and heavy breathing
Red ~90-100% - very exhausting for breathing and muscles

Of course, the benefits happen when you are in the orange and red zone. So, do you need to be in those zones for an entire hour? Absolutely not. More is not always better. With this type of exercise, if you spend TOO long in the orange and red zones, your body will begin to breakdown muscle for fuel. Therefore, to get the best results you want to spend about 12-20 minutes in the orange and the red zones. The majority of your class time should be spent in the green zone.

The OTF I joined literally just opened a few weeks ago, and already people have been noticing the effects it’s been having on my body! The trainers are awesome and keep you motivated and looking forward to your next workout. If there is an OTF in your area, your first class is always free, so I encourage you to check them out!