Les Mills BODYATTACK 90 group fitness review

As an instructor, it takes a lot of time to prepare and debut a brand new Les Mills BODYATTACK group fitness release, but it’s always worth it — that’s for sure. In October, I launched the latest Les Mills BODYATTACK release 90 in my classes around the San Francisco Bay Area, and it’s finally time to talk about the moves and the music. These reviews are for instructors, participants and anyone interested in good workout songs and exercises, so please enjoy …

Background on the BODYATTACK program

First, here are a few things you may want to know about BODYATTACK:

• It’s a one-hour choreographed sports-cardio class set to tunes
• It’s created by Les Mills, a company based in New Zealand, which boasts a community of more than 100,000 instructors and even more participants, enjoying 18 programs like BODYPUMP, CXWORX and more around the world each day
• No matter your fitness level, you can do BODYATTACK, because there are tons of options and modifications 
• It’s only available in gyms that pay for a license from the Les Mills company and cannot be done at home or by video (unless you’re a certified instructor who receives the educational videos for learning)
• I have been certified in the program for more than two years
• People become obsessed with Les Mills BODYATTACK and there’s a reason why — the energy, the music and the workout high you get from it can be addicting 

For the nitty-gritty on BODYATTACK, head on over to my post on BODYATTACK tips for first-timers, or check this out straight from the folks at Les Mills:

BODYATTACK^™ is a high-energy fitness class with moves that cater for total beginners to total addicts. We combine athletic movements like running, lunging and jumping with strength exercises such as push-ups and squats. A LES MILLS^™ instructor will pump out energizing tunes and lead you through the workout – challenging your limits in a good way, burning up to 730 calories and leaving you with a sense of achievement. 

BODYATTACK release 90 review

Overall, my thoughts on BODYATTACK 90:

• This release has a variety of beats and styles on the soundtrack with songs ranging from popular to obscure.
• The strength tracks in this release are perhaps the best yet. The athletic conditioning track in the middle of the class is long and tough, and the core conditioning track has a great line-up of moves. I’m a big fan of both.
• There are no major new innovations or changes in this release from the last one, however there are quite a few new combinations of existing moves throughout. Especially the tricky combination in a huge second cardio peak during track nine.
• This is a strong overall BODYATTACK class, but not my favorite to date, with a couple of tracks being less-than-stellar.

And now for a track-by-track breakdown, with links to some of the music. (However, not all are exact versions of the songs used in the release.)

1. Warm-up. “Blank Space (Jack Malavo Mix)” by Girls Only. Another 3-D warm-up to get the body ready for sports, aerobic and strength work, this one features the usual step touches, runs, side bounces, as well as a brand-new slow burpee with a tricep push-up, which I really like. Strong warm-up. I mean a Taylor Swift remix? I’m in. Thumbs up.
2. Mixed Impact. “Uptown Funk (HumanJive Remix)” by Power Music. Even though this song is a little bit played out at this point, the remix makes it much more enjoyable. This is a quick and fun track, with just the right amount of movement to get the cardio block going. There are step curls, gallops, runs, three-step runs as well as a side-step over, which reminds of the “pony” move. I totally like teaching and doing this happy track. Thumbs up.
3. Aerobics. “Real Love (Kritikal Mass Remix)” by Bank Rollerz. I love the song and the moves for this perfect aerobics track. There are single knees, runs, supermans, jacks and a few combinations, which makes the track interesting. While I’m not a huge fan of  the superman move, it’s a classic BODYATTACK element, so it’s fine to have it in there. This one is a crowd pleaser. Thumbs up.
4. Plyometrics. “Turn Up the Club” by Uberjak’d, Chardy & Kronic. This one is a bit different, as we have the class working in two groups doing two different moves at the same time. As an instructor, you spend a lot of the time out of the move, and as a participant, you’re given simple moves with a lot of chance to challenge yourself. There are shuffles, plyo lunges, runs, high-knee runs and a low tuck between the plyo lunges. I found that the low tuck is a bit awkward and prefer the high tuck. But this track is definitely a strong first peak to class, and the song is just okay. Thumbs up.
5. Athletic Strength. “Don’t Stop the Madness” by Hardwell & W&W feat. Fatman Scoop. This seems like the longest track ever for athletic strength. This song is fun, and there are four sets of work for the lower and upper body. The moves include lunges, lunge pulses, a new lunge-to-a-squat combination, tricep push-ups and chest push-ups. I think the moves go well with the music, the progression is smart, and I love the overhead arm reach with the squats, as that is a great strength and mobility move. Great track. Tough track! Major thumbs up!
6. Running. “Outside (Kritikal Mass Remix)” by Hollywood Hustlers. I’m not crazy about this track. The song is fine (although it’s just a remix of a popular song also used in BODYPUMP this release as the warm-up). The moves include runs, squats, burpees and more runs. However, there is a whole lot of counting to be done right off the bat with the six runs back into a sprinter’s start, and the four runs forward to a squat. The class participants are pretty tired after that tough athletic strength track, and although this track is not physically all that taxing, the mental part is. I would have liked something a bit more cruisey to work into the second peak without so much counting involved. Thumbs neutral.
7. Agility. “Ah Yeah So What (Radio Edit)” by Will Sparks feat. Wiley & Elen Levon. Agility is never my favorite track, although BODYATTACK 89 had perhaps the best one yet. The song for this particular track seven is just okay, and the moves are also just okay. There are side bounces, ladder runs and sprint forward squat-jump turns. I don’t like the squat-jump turn and feel like we repeat it too many times in this track. The challenge is there, but this track is too repetitive. Not a big fan. Thumbs down.
8. Intervals. “Blow Me Down (Nick Skitz & Technoposse Remix Edit)” by DJ Krypt. Track eight is usually my favorite track of the release, and this one is very strong. I love the music (has an Irish feel), as well as the way the moves fit with the tune. There are runs, side flicks, double flicks, kicks and an around-the-world 360 set of kicks, which is fun. This one has the right amount of challenge to save up for a big track nine, so I think it’s perfect. Thumbs up.
9. Power. “Lights and Thunder” by Limestone DJ. Wow. This track is so tough. While the music is good and the build-up is good, the combination is almost a little too much. There are two front jumps, two tuck jumps, two jump jacks and one air jack, which goes straight into a high-knee run, and boy it happens fast. I really do like the way it all flows, but I almost feel like it’s too much for the final peak of class, especially for a song that is six-minutes long. Once again, I prefer the simple moves that people can pick it up a bit easier. Thumbs neutral.
10. Core Conditioning. “State of Emergency (Radio Edit)” by Joel Fletcher. This core track features side hovers, side crunches, mountain climbers, sky divers and mountain climbers. While the last few releases have had less-than-exciting core tracks, this one is a winner. I love the fact that we focus on the back of the body with the sky diver and end in a classic pulse crunch. Good stuff from beginning to end, including the song. Thumbs up.
11. Cool-down. “Time of Our Lives” by Pitbull & Ne-Yo. This short cool-down mostly gets the job done, and the song is rather upbeat for the purpose, but actually works. I never end a BODYATTACK class without a smile, and it seems like this song pulls a smile out of all the participants as well. Great ending. Thumbs up.

For instructors …

There are a lot of tough combinations in this release, so you’ll need to be very clear with coaching. Also, make sure you give plenty of options in the first set of all of the moves, so everyone can be successful. I’d also recommend reading the “Track Focus” for each track and ensuring that you’re hitting what is suggested and not saying too much. For more tips, check out: Top 10 ways to grow your group fitness classes.

For participants …

BODYATTACK 90 moves quickly and there are a lot of combinations, so you’ll have to count and focus during the entire workout. Have fun with it and be sure to keep breathing, lift up your chest and land every single jump with soft knees. Enjoy it! For more tips, check out: How to get better results from group fitness classes.

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Questions of the day

Have you ever tried BODYATTACK?

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