Disclaimer: I am not a certified fitness trainer and I am
posting this review based on my own personal research and experience. I write this in hopes of helping spread
knowledge and information about this topic, as I receive a number of questions
about it.
I am
starting a new practice from my usual food posts to talk about something a
little different…exercise! Specifically, I’m going to share an Orangetheory
review with you. I’ve been going regularly for the past 6 months and wanted to
share my experience since I know they’re popping up everywhere and a lot of
people are wondering whether to try it and what the deal is.
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| A sweaty selfie after working out in Webster, Texas. |
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| I love this quote, from Wayne, PA! |
Background (Skip
this Section if you Already Know the Workout)
Orangetheory workouts are all about heart rate-based
interval training that combines cardiovascular and strength work. You wear a heart rate monitor during the
class, and a large screen displays your data along with everyone else in
class. You have a tile that will show up
in one of 5 colored zones:
·
Gray: <60% max heart rate
·
Blue: 61-70% max heart rate
·
Green: 71-83% max heart rate
·
Orange: 84-91% max heart rate
·
Red: 92%+ max heart rate
The goal is to hit 12 “splat” points or “splats”, which
corresponds to minutes in that Orange zone.
If you achieve this, you get what they call the calorie “afterburn”
effect, known as Excess Post-Exercise Oxygen Consumption (EPOC). To get
these splats, the workouts are designed to push you for short periods of time
and then allowing for a brief rest before ramping intensity up again.
The classes are split into different “blocks”. Part of the class will start on the treadmill
for the cardio style block, and part will start on the strength floor (after
first warming up on the rowers). You switch at some point, or several times
depending on the day. Music is blasting,
lights are orange (of course), and the workout is led by a trainer.
Programming is global. This means that every Orangetheory
gym across the world does the same workout on a given day. The workouts each
day vary between several different types:
·
Strength: more inclines on the treadmill,
heavier weights on the floor.
·
Power: more explosive movements on the floor,
quick and fast paces on the treadmill/rower.
·
Endurance: higher reps on the floor, and longer
distances for running/rowing.
·
ESP: all 3 rolled together! Consider this a smorgasbord.
Typically classes are scheduled for 60 minutes. There are also signature workout days and
some studios offer 90 minute classes, 45 minute classes, and other styles of
class known as 3G or Tornado. I don’t
want to get too far in the weeds, so on to my review!
10 Great Things
about Orangetheory
I will start my review by telling you that I am totally
biased in favor of Orangetheory. Feel
free to log off if that is enough for you to know! But seriously, it is a combination of liking
the workout and then also respecting this business and how it is run. Ready to read on? Here is what makes Orangetheory awesome.
1.
The price
is right for a reason. Orangetheory
establishes an extra layer of accountability by their business model design,
which I find brilliant. There are
different levels of membership, and while the cost is not cheap, it is what
keeps me coming back. Knowing that I
have paid a given amount each month, I want to maximize my investment. Thus, I show up for classes and I even back
calculate how much I am paying per class based on my attendance. I know other gyms may charge less, but when
you are only tossing, say, $10 a month for a membership, it truly becomes
easier to phone it in and not bother walking in the door.
2.
Policies are
strict for a good reason. For
example, studios have cancellation policies.
Some are 8 hours or 12 hours in length.
If you do not cancel by that time, you are charged. I know this may seem harsh, but it goes back
to my previous point. There are days I
wanted to not go, but knowing that I would pay a cancellation fee got me in the
door. I know things happen and people
get sick, and hopefully in those oddball cases something else can work itself
out. I will also mention something
really cool that my original home studio does is they take all the cancellation
money and donate to charity at the end of the month. Another policy is that if you are new, you
have to come to class 30 minutes early.
This is in order to fill out paperwork, get set up with your heart rate
monitor, and have the trainer walk you through all the stations so that you are
prepared. I can’t get over how many
negative yelp reviews that I have read about folks showing up 15 minutes or
less before class as a newbie and not getting in to the class. You truly need the time for proper
orientation. Your first class is free so
if you are late, at least you can reschedule without any penalty.
3.
They care
about safety. The first 3-5 minutes
of a workout are warm up. Nobody is allowed
in to class after warm up time. This may
be due to a number of reasons, but the one I have been told and agree with is
that your risk of injury is increased if you walk in without an adequate
warmup. There is research that static
stretching may actually increase your risk of injury prior to an athletic
event, and that dynamic stretching (ie a jog on the tread or a light row!) does
not. Another great safety feature is
when there are events that require participation, such as the annual
Transformation Challenge, you are not allowed to count more than one class a
day for your participation. I have been
told at my studio that this is for safety reasons, and again for good
reason! I once did a challenge at a
non-Orangethory studio that allowed for multiple classes and there was a prize
by week for who attended the most classes.
I went to FIVE classes in one day.
I woke up in the middle of the night hot and sweaty. I thought I was dehydrated but I discovered
that what actually happened was that I threw my body in to fight or flight
mode. It knocked my hormones
out of whack. Never
again! There is such a thing as too much
exercise. Orangetheory classes are
designed to be intense and though I do hear of some folks doing 2 classes in a
day, typically they at least space them out in the day and don’t make it a
daily habit. That can almost be like
disordered eating, to have disordered exercise.
4.
There is
always something new. Speaking of
challenges – the business does a great job of there always being something to
do or look forward to. In the 6 months
that I have been attending, one month there was a social media sort of
challenge and if you had all the punches on your card, you won a blender
bottle; one month was the Orangetheory dry tri, which I understand happens
twice a year, in October we had Hell Week, which was one month of brutal
workouts, in November there was an Orange Voyage, which was a rowing challenge,
in December there was a 12 Days of Christmas themed special, and coming up with
the new year is the Transformational Challenge.
Some challenges you have to pay for and many challenges have a hat or
shirt giveaway, which may sound lame but is actually really the little things
that give you that extra spark. In
short, there is always something to do or to look forward to.
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| Our dri tri crew! |
5.
They care
about people. As mentioned above, my
original studio donates all of the class cancellation money that they get every
month, and they always mention where the funds went in their monthly member
email. It sure makes the sting of losing
that money a little lighter when you know that it is going to a good
cause. A notable cause that the Houston
area studios sponsor every December is the Torture
the Trainer Event to raise funds for the Make a Wish
Foundation. Every dollar you could
assign your favorite trainer an exercise such as a burpee (what fun!). Then you got to watch all the area coaches
actually do the exercises, which was a combination of fun and brutal to watch
them suffer. I really appreciated how
every coach I talked to afterwards, even though they looked like they wanted
to die, all said the same thing: that this was for a good cause, and it was
totally ok to them to kill themselves for it.
6.
Numbers
are power. What I like about the
heart rate based monitoring is that I have validation throughout the class, in
real time, of my status. If I don’t feel
that I am pushing myself, I typically can confirm that feeling by looking at
the screen. After the class, I receive an email with my
statistics for the class. I can see how
many minutes I spent in each zone and also how many splat points I had, as well
as my average heart rate and calories burned.
It is instant feedback, as I receive the email in a matter of minutes
after the workout. Then the bottom of
the email summarizes totals for the month and year as well. It is fun to track the data over time – well,
at least for me and my engineering mind.
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| My engineering mind loves numbers. |
7.
Speaking
of modifications – this workout can work for anyone. I have seen a pregnant woman in class who the
coach begged to not deliver the baby during the workout, grandparents,
teenagers (you have to be at least 14 years old!), and everyone in between in
all shapes and sizes. Modifications are
provided for all strength floor workouts.
If you cannot use a treadmill, a bike and a strider are available. If you are not a runner, you can be a power
walker on the treadmill. Paces on the
treadmill for runners and inclines for power walkers are based on you. It truly is a class of you versus you!
8.
It’s
travel friendly. I travel quite a
bit, both for business and personal reasons.
One of the big draws for me joining was knowing that pretty much
wherever I go, I can find an Orangetheory studio, and I am allowed to use it. I have attended 11 different studios in 6
different states. I only missed out on
the NYC and Philly studios in my travels, because I didn’t feel like paying the
city upcharge that the studios there have – that is one point to be aware
of! This fee was $20 when I was quoted,
despite my membership status. I guess
the big cities have to charge more. In
retrospect, I wish I had at least tried out the studio in Manhattan just to say
I was there. Like McDonald’s giving you
the same burger every time, I pretty much receive the same service every studio
that I attend. This includes welcoming
front desk staff, encouraging coaches, motivating music, the same workout that
everyone is getting that day, the same basic setup of the workout room
(equipment/lighting), same amenities (bathrooms/shower/some cubbies or
lockers). Usually the coaches make a
point of asking if someone is new or I have even had instructors walk straight
up to me to shake my hand and introduce themselves because they don’t recognize
me. It’s really great to feel welcome as
part of the Orangetheory family. I even
once asked for a picture with the coach at a studio I visited over the course
of 4 days, and they posted the picture on their Facebook page with a thank you
for visiting us message.
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| Thanks from Scottsdale, AZ! |
9.
It’s a
community. I know of the great Cross
Fit community, and there is also a Peleton community out there. I am here to tell you that Orangetheory is a
community too. I don’t know if it is as
much of a community feel as other tribes, but again, I feel that it is what you
make of it. I have really gotten to know
the coaches and the other members at the studio that I attend most routinely. In addition, I have connected with members at
other studios around the world thanks to the power of social media. Because the workout is the same globally, it
is pretty cool to be able to discuss the workouts and other aspects of
Orangetheory with members around the world in the virtual social media world.
10.
This is a
no shame zone. I like how the
coaches will encourage but never push.
You will never be shamed for being in the green zone, for example. I have only ever received positive praise for
the pace I am achieving on the treadmill, wattage on the rower, or weights
lifted. At the same time, if I am overdoing
it on something, I am corrected – which initially I tended to take personally
but honestly, the trainers just want to make sure that you do not overexert
yourself. Ultimately, I am so
appreciative of the great trainers and their ability to somehow orchestrate the
entire series of blocks, multiple people, and scan everyone for proper form all
at the same time! Hats off to all you
awesome peeps!
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| Thanks, Head Coach Mike! |
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| I finished Hell Week on my birthday! Thanks Coach Luke! |
And there you have it!
Your comprehensive Orangetheory business and workout review, from the
perspective of an ongoing member. I hope
that you found this information helpful to glean a little more (orange) light
into what Orangetheory is about. Your
first class at your local studio is free, so it sure is worth your while to
give it a go and see what you think.
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