As I walked in to teach PiYo this morning, (offered at CustomFit on Mondays at 5:30pm and Wednesdays at 7:00pm) my muscles were aching and I was wondering how on earth I was going to make it through leading the class. I’ve taught a few hard classes this week and have gotten back to my own workouts so the soreness today was a bit more than usual.
During the warm-up my legs screamed at me, on to heat building and I wasn’t sure I was going to be able to keep up with the lunges, but by the time I hit lower body I was in full stride for a great workout.
Try my PiYo class at CustomFit on Monday at 5:30pm or Wednesday at 7:00pm for FREE!
This got me thinking…I need to share the benefits of PiYo on my blog! Here’s why you should take the time to come to a PiYo class:
One: PiYo is a great compliment to other types of workouts
It doesn’t matter if you are a runner or a BootCamper, a weight lifter or a swimmer, PiYo offers an excellent workout to compliment what you are already doing. As I mentioned, I was very sore heading into this workout, however, the stretching helped me tremendously. By the time I left class I felt far less sore and my muscles were much less tight.
Many of us don’t take the proper time to stretch following a hard workout. Failing to stretch can lead to additional soreness, muscle tightness and increased inflexibility. PiYo is an excellent way to get in a great workout while stretching and toning your muscles.
Two: PiYo is an excellent full-body workout
If you are unfamiliar with PiYo you might think, how could it really be a tough workout? So let me tell you more about the format:
- Warm-Up – the warm up takes you through a few upper body and lower body moves to do just that – warm you up.
- Heat Building – this is where you really start moving; from chaturangas to lunges your heart rate increases and your entire body will be ready for the workout.
- Lower Body – can you say squats and lunges? But it’s all choreographed to fun music so before you know it you have really worked your legs and are ready to move on.
- Full Body Fusion – in this section you combine both upper and lower body exercises, maximizing your workout efforts. Between tricep push-ups and variations of downward dog you’re certain to be challenged.
- Power – this is the ‘cardio’ section of PiYo, and believe me your heart rate is going to rise! There are always low impact options for those who need them.
- Flow – this is my very favorite part of class. Everything slows down a bit and you get an opportunity to hold some really great stretches.
- Core and More – we all know what ‘core’ work is, but PiYo offers the ‘more.’ The moves are challenging and at times you won’t even be thinking about your abs because other muscle groups are being challenged just as much.
- Strength and Stretch – this portion of the workout incorporates deep stretching with a final strength move like push-ups.
- Cool Down – just like the warm-up you get the idea…we cool down and do some more stretching.
Believe me, PiYo is not a joke workout – it’s challenging, while giving your muscles a great stretch, strengthening your core and toning your body.
Three: There is a new routine every month
We do the same routine for a month. This offers you time to get to know the moves and become more comfortable with them which in turn helps to increase your strength and flexibility.
So that means if you start at the beginning of the month you are at the same level of everyone else – everyone is new to the routine. But every week we have newcomers so don’t feel intimidated if you miss the first week.
Rest assured I take time to preview moves when necessary so that no one feels lost in class.
Four: It’s FUN
Seriously one of my favorite formats to teach! I love the music and I love the choreography. Believe me, I am not your ‘dancy’ type instructor but I totally get the moves in PiYo. Everything is timed perfectly to the music (all hits you know) so before you know it you’ve made it through the entire hour.
Five: It’s offered twice a weeek
PiYo classes meet at 5:30pm on Mondays and 7:00pm on Wednesdays. Some of my class members attend once a week as a compliment to their BootCamp classes, while others come both days to maximize their work on toning and flexibility. Either way, you surely can make one of the classes work with your schedule.
Interested in giving PiYo a try? Contact me by emailing jenn@customfitpt.net. Your first class is FREE so you have nothing to lose!
Check out our full list of classes!
Personal Training by Jenn 