Focus on: Shockwave
I like to write Focus On posts for classes that aren’t available here, like a bit of a fitness daydream. Physique 57, Grit, Buti Fitness, etc. etc.
Anyone know of an awesome Shockwave class in San Diego?!
This is a class I had the opportunity to try once, and I’ve been thinking about it ever since. While we were recently in San Francisco, Julie and I hit up an Equinox before the day’s events -thank you for the guest pass, Lauren!- and there was a Shockwave class going on. I wanted to run in there so badly, but alas, I didn’t want to be the late girl who didn’t know what was going on.
I first had my taste of Shockwave at the IDEA conference:
Even better: the session was led by the two creators, Jay Blahnik (celebrity trainer and fitness expert) and Josh Crosby (world champion Ironman and ultra-endurance athlete).
(Source)
What is it?
Shockwave is a circuit training class utilizing every muscle in your body, plus an intense cardio blast from WaterRowing segments. (You can check out my Focus On post for the indoor rower here)
Here’s a video:
Participants move from each station in a circuit: one upper body, one core and one lower body (<– many of the exercises are compound movements, working multiple muscle groups at once), with a rowing station after completing the three strength rounds. For example, you may do a lunge with lateral raise, then plank on a medicine ball and a squat overhead press for the strength rounds before heading back to the rower.
Here’s the kicker: you can’t move to the next station until EVERYONE at the rowing station has completed their specified distance. For this reason, there’s a fun competition aspect. When you’re at the rowing station, you’re rowing as fast as you possibly can! The beauty of the rowing station is that each time you have to row, the distance is decreased. This gives a fun burst of energy to think that you don’t have to go as far as you did last time, and motivation to row even faster, even when you’re tired.
Pros:
-Always exciting. The stations change each time you take the class and by constantly rotating, there’s no time to get bored.
-Cardio from the rowing machine. I love the WaterRower for a thousand reasons, but especially enjoy the fact that I can get a killer workout while working the muscles in my arms, which can often be neglected in cardiovascular activities. The rower is also low-impact and is also fantastic for core strength.
(Source)
-Blended training at its best. When you’re blasting your heart rate through cardio intervals, this helps increase your calorie burn during the strength sets and even after class is over. This is caused by higher EPOC (excess post-exercise oxygen consumption), when the metabolism is revved to bring the body back to a recovery state.
-Team spirit, competition and camaraderie. Since the rowers have to finish their round before you can move to the next station, there’s a lot of support and cheering happening from all of the non-rowers (especially when you’re stuck in a plank and praying for it to be over). You feel like you’re in a team with your little circuit pod, and I think the team spirit can help push everyone to work a little harder. A little friendly competition at the rowing station is fun, too– at the IDEA conference they wrote the best rowing times on a white board and everyone in the room was trying to beat it.
Cons:
-You shouldn’t do it every day. Since the class includes high-intensity intervals as well as total-body strength, I’d recommend alternating it with recovery days or easy, steady state cardio. This will give your muscles (including your heart) the chance to rest and recover.
-It’s not offered everywhere! Womp wompppp. I can’t wait to take a class again.
Have you tried Shockwave? Does it sound like something you’d like?
How often do you do interval training or circuit-based workouts? I love them because you’re able to burn more calories in a short amount of time, and frequently changing the exercises keeps things exciting.
xoxo
Gina
ps. For this morning’s post, I forgot to add a giveaway end time. It will end Thursday night at midnight EST, and I’ll announce the winner this Friday!
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Love Shockwave! A new gym opened here in KC and offers this. I’ve taken it several times. So challenging but fun! I naively thought the owners had made up the format but pretty cool that we here in the Midwest are still ‘up’ on the trends. 🙂
Where about is KC? I would love to take it but figured we wouldn’t have anything like it in the Midwest for a while.
IN KC, not is. I know where KC is 🙂
I just googled this because I was curious too. Looks like it’s at 80th and State Line. So just a little bit north of Ward Parkway mall? I’m having trouble picturing what is at 80th….the QuickTrip?
I’m so sorry. I didn’t get notification of the response here, so no idea if you’ll see this, but it’s at Health House in KC – north of Ward Parkway Mall on State Line. 🙂
I am a certified ShockWave instructor and have been teaching Indo for a few years…. It is an amazing class way too much fun!! And what workout!! So glad you loved it!! It is a total addiction!!
that’s amazing! i’d love to get certified eventually
Oh it is so much fun….. you are presenting at IDEA right?? If so you can do it there with my buddies Josh and Doris. What do you teach now?
I have never tried this but it seems interesting! I am extremely competitive so I think I would really enjoy this class, seems like the time would fly! I love doing circuit training/teaching circuit training classes. It makes the time move so much faster and it is fun in a group setting! One of my favorite classes I have ever taught was a circuit-based workout class.
this is right up your alley, then 🙂 and yes, it goes by so quickly! teaching circuit classes goes by quickly too 😉
Ahhh, it sounds so fun! I’m dying to try it after reading all that! 😀
And now I have a feeling the rowing machine might find its way into my cardio intervals tomorrow morning….
rowing is no joke 🙂
This isn’t about the shockwave class but I just started at a new gym in San Diego and they have such a great mix of classes and a really nice atmosphere. It’s Aire Urban Fitness. Just wanted to share!
awesome! i’ll check it out for sure- thank you!
You should try Orangetheory Fitness when you move to San Diego. It sounds really similar to an Orange class
my friend goes there! i’ll definitely check it out 🙂
Wow! That class sounds amazing. I live in San Diego and haven’t heard any of Shockwave classes, but I am going to keep my eyes peeled. When you move to San Diego you should try a Yoga Sculpt class at CorePower Yoga. I love the class because it combines yoga and strength training moves and gives you a killer workout.
i definitely will!! thank you for letting me know!
This sounds really interesting! I love circuit training, so I’d definitely like to give it a try sometime!
let me know if you do!!
This looks amazing! I just went to the website and saw that its exclusively at equinox here (a gym that I could never afford) but Ill figure out a way to try it!
you definitely should try it at least once!
Wow the class looks amazing! I Honestly have never heard of it until now but where we live there aren’t a whole lot of options and variety when it comes to fitness classes.
same! you think we’d have a lot since tucson is a fairly big city, but there are a lot of newer options we still don’t have
That looks like a blast!
it’s so much fun!
I recently tried Shockwave at our gym and I absolutely love it!!! I can’t afford to go to a Crossfit box, so this feels like a slight variation of that that’s part of my gym fee and is an awesome workout.
so happy you like it too! it is very similar, but i think i like the exercises in shockwave even more
I’ve never heard of Shockwave before but this sounds like an awesome fitness class! I just googled it to see if we have one in Omaha and all that came up was a softball team. haha Womp womp.
womp womppppp. nothing here either!
I keep hearing amazing things about Shockwave. I love HIIT classes. Did one yesterday and am so sore today! Definitely the best bang for your buck/time.
I just looked into Shockwave classes here in Brisbane, and a gym that’ll I’m about to partner with for my blog offers them, so I’ll definitely have the change to check it out. Looking forward.
PS- Why did you mention San Diego? Are you moving there?
yeah, i’m moving there this spring!
Oh wow!! You probably wrote about this, but I missed it!
San Diego is amazing. One of my favourite spots in the States, hands down!
This sounds EXACTLY like a rowing practice! It would be so fantastic to get back into doing this type of workout again… the team aspect makes everything so much better!
Wow. That class seriously looks amazing and right up my alley. I’d LOVE to try this and maybe bring it to our gym here! Love your Focus On Posts 🙂
This sounds awesome!
I love circuit workouts that get my heart rate up. I’d say that’s what most of my strength training workouts look like these days. I love the efficiency and have definitely noticed a difference from working out that way. I credit YOU for that, so thanks! 🙂
:)!!
My body doesn’t like high intensity. Bad things happen like throwing my back out. So if I’m alternating intensities I leave it to the treadmill or ellipitcal.
…another class that will NEVER ever make it to where i live! we just got “cycling” at our Y 3 years ago and the bikes are totally cruddy. the step class routine is the exact same class after class (for 5 years straight) and we have body pump but didn’t buy the equipment. they use body bars and call it “body bar.” yeah, we are WAY behind on fitness trends. so envious of you all because this seems like a class i would love. actually every “focus-on” post sounds like something i would love but ALAS, the curse of my location strikes again. happy to live vicariously through all of you….:)
I love Shockwave! It kills me (in a good way) every time. Rowing is a fantastic workout, but I don’t do it much on my own unless I go to class, so it’s great motivation to do something I normally wouldn’t.
Shockwave looks so cool! I’d never heard of it before reading this post, but the video made me want to sign up for one in my area. Unfortunately, all I could find was at super expensive gyms in my area. I’ll have to wait for a Groupon :-/