Opinions on "BodyPump"

[G8RBob]

I have been doing Les Mills BodyPump for about three years. I have lost about 35 pounds and four inches off the waist. I have had a significant decrease in BMI and percentage of body fat. For me, at age 68, it has worked well. My question is, am I missing something? Should I also be working with heavier weights on regular basis, in addition to the BodyPump.

In case you are not familiar with BodyPump, it a one hour fitness class with 10 different exercises, biceps, triceps, lunges, etc., each with about 80 repetitions. I typically will use an average of 25 to 30 pounds per rep. I have counted that we do somewhere between 8 and 9 hundred reps per hour.

Your thoughts would be appreciated.

Thanks,

Gator Bob

[Dreamliner]

Bob, thanks for dropping in. First, congrats on your tremendous progress to date! Second, how do you do all those repetitions, at your age, and stave off tendonitis ? I'm 55 and half that number of reps would do me in.

But since you asked, yes, I'm certainly biased towards heavier weights. There is no shortage of research which suggests that older folks in particular should be using more challenging levels of resistance.

[rburnett]

Originally Posted by G8RBob

I have been doing Les Mills BodyPump for about three years.

I read this several times thinking it said Les Miles...

For your question, its obviously working for you and if it meets your goals, then keep at it. At your age I wouldn't think gaining a ton of muscle via strength training would be something you would seriously want to consider... but I'm not you. I would think doing these full body workouts would improve your cardio and overall physical strength better than what most 68 year olds are doing! I hope I'm able to keep up with you.

[Dreamliner]

I don't think gaining a lot of muscle is in view. I'm of the opinion that improving absolute strength has its advantages. Bob is to be greatly commended for doing what he's doing, even if it is a Les Miles program. It's just that strength doesn't much accrue from muscular endurance. But I suspect that he realizes that, hence the question.

One thing that Bob might consider is incorporating a brief, strength component into his training. The pump work would be supplementary. And based on the results he's gotten to date, I suspect he can afford to cut back a bit on the pumping.

[G8RBob]

Thanks for the kind comments. I manage to stave off tendonitis and terminal soreness by adding three sessions a week of BodyFlow. This is a combination of ti chi, pilates, yoga and a lot of stretching. I also do an hour a week of hard core core work. Planks, etc.

I do wonder how many more years I will be able to keep this up. But there's a lady in our classes who was in graduate school at Florida when I was a freshman. So there is hope.

Bob

[halsgator]

Just saying, I am 76, had a 5 by-pass 13 years ago. I do have heart damage so I must be patient at what I can do and can't do. I work out three times each week. My cardiologist has often said my workouts have prolonged my quality of life.

Some advice I received two years ago has helped me tremendously. This is for us older folks, but it was suggested I cut my weights in half and double my reps. I feel a heck of a lot better and my quality of life is much improved. Prior to this change, I was tired and had very little energy to do other things. Now I pretty much do what I want as long as I take my time and perhaps rest during my projects.

Believe it or not your appetite does slow down some as you age, IMO. Now I eat one midday meal and a lite snack at night. I have lost 15 pounds the last 5 months. I will admit that I eat a full dinner on occasion if we have guest or we go out to dinner.

Thanks for giving me the opportunity to share my story. I hope it encourages others.

[Dreamliner]

Whereas I'm aware that the standard recommendation for heart patients is high reps, low weight, I'm still biased in the other direction: the older you get, the more you should pursue strength. Not gut-busting resistance, mind you, challenging resistance.

HOWEVER, I can't argue with your experience and I'm glad that the recent years have been kind to you.

Whatever the case, strength training of some sort is my default recommendation for the elderly and the obese. One reason is because unlike other activities which they might be prone to try, like jogging (why ?), strength training is relatively low impact.

And I hear you on the appetite. It's surely not a bad thing. My 81-year old uncle's appetite recently began to diminish and he's lost 40 pounds. He's looking and feeling better than he has in years. He even SPEAKS with more authority. Prior to the weight-loss he was becoming quite feeble.

[Dreamliner]

Originally Posted by G8RBob

Thanks for the kind comments. I manage to stave off tendonitis and terminal soreness by adding three sessions a week of BodyFlow. This is a combination of ti chi, pilates, yoga and a lot of stretching. I also do an hour a week of hard core core work. Planks, etc.

I do wonder how many more years I will be able to keep this up. But there's a lady in our classes who was in graduate school at Florida when I was a freshman. So there is hope.

Bob

Bob, I admire your dedication. To the question "how many more years", I can't say for sure. I can tell you this: I have my older clients working to recapture very basic movement patterns that they've lost over the years, but took for granted when they were younger.

Accordingly, I have them doing things like deep squats, lunges and picking up heavy (for them) objects. Then I telll them, having recaptured these movements, NEVER surrender them again!

[Dreamliner]

Further thoughts: I just think that it is a major mistake to give in to encroaching frailty. Therefore, since the subject has been posed, I'd say that halving one's weights might not be a bad idea ... but I wouldn't then precede to just pump out. Rather, I'd S-L-O-W down the movement. That way you've lowered the impact but maintained the intensity.

Win-win!