Does "body pump" count as heavy lifting?

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iris8pie
iris8pie Posts: 224 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I see a lot of people here raving about the results they get from "lifting heavy" and my interest is piqued... Hiugh im totally intimidated by that section of the gym...I'm wondring if the "body pump" class they offer at the gym ( many gyms offer this typenof class inthink?) is in any way considered heavy lifting? it includes lot of weight work ie: dead lifts bicept curls squats and lunges etc

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  • iris8pie
    iris8pie Posts: 224 Member
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    Woah sorry about all the typos. I'm posting from my phone lol
  • phjorg1
    phjorg1 Posts: 642 Member
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    Heavy lifting is 5 reps or less before muscle failure.
  • amwoidyla
    amwoidyla Posts: 257 Member
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    I just started going to pump and I personally wouldn't say it's heavy lifting, simply because you're using a lower weight than you do if you were only doing sets of 8-12 reps. Pump is hard in a different way than heavy lifting, because you have to have endurance to do squats or bicep curls for 5-7 minutes (which KILLS me). Plus there is a cardio aspect too.

    Happy Pumping!
  • jrompola
    jrompola Posts: 153 Member
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    I see a lot of people here raving about the results they get from "lifting heavy" and my interest is piqued... Hiugh im totally intimidated by that section of the gym...I'm wondring if the "body pump" class they offer at the gym ( many gyms offer this typenof class inthink?) is in any way considered heavy lifting? it includes lot of weight work ie: dead lifts bicept curls squats and lunges etc

    I don't think it would be considered "heavy" in the sense some people refer to on here. It is certainly resistance training and you can get those sculpted muscles doing body pump just like you could with other methods.
  • Dragonwolf
    Dragonwolf Posts: 5,600 Member
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    From the website - "perform 70-100 repetitions per body part...", so no, not really. That's more endurance than raw power. It's cardio with a barbell, basically.

    Want heavy lifting? Check out Strong Lifts 5x5 (don't mind his bro-oriented marketing, the program is sound), Starting Strength, or New Rules of Lifting.

    Lifting heavy entails somewhere between 3-8 reps per set, with the last couple of reps being difficult to finish.
  • iris8pie
    iris8pie Posts: 224 Member
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    Makes sense. Thanks y'all
  • Gwyn1969
    Gwyn1969 Posts: 181 Member
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    An easy reference for the strength ---> conditioning continuum:

    Rep ranges for acquisition of strength:

    sets of 1-5 (sets of 6 could go here too)

    Rep ranges for hypertropy:

    sets of 6-12 (maybe as high as 15 if you're a beast)

    Rep ranges for conditioning:

    12-20+

    These rep ranges are not set in stone, but meant to be used as a rough guide.

    And of course, if you're not adding weight to the bar (whether it's every time, or every week or every month), then you are not progressing.
  • Gwyn1969
    Gwyn1969 Posts: 181 Member
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    Also, if a few weeks of body pump helps you get over being too intimidated to use the barbell on your own, I say go for it. :-)
  • wareagle8706
    wareagle8706 Posts: 1,090 Member
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    I would say "heavy" is 5-8 reps. So if you decide you want to do 8 reps, then the weight needs to be heavy enough to make the last three reps very very difficult to complete with proper form. You should be "feeling the burn" during those reps pretty darn good.

    Body pump, if i remember correctly, is pretty low weight, high rep, but you are allowed to do your own thing by adjusting your weight and everything so.... do what you want!
  • Gwyn1969
    Gwyn1969 Posts: 181 Member
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    Just know that when you start a strength training program, if you've done something like body pump first, you may have to tweak your form a bit. There aren't very many folks who are qualified to teach the basic barbell lifts correctly. Fine if you're doing tons of reps at a light weight. Not so great if you want to get strong.
  • missADS1981
    missADS1981 Posts: 364 Member
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    If you want to get a bit more comfortable with tossing around weights then body pump can be a nice entry level. It will offer you more in the way of endurance/cardio though since the weights are not meant to be heavy. Usually in body pump the exercises get in the 20 rep range with little rest between the next exercise, your heart rate will be up but this is not "lifting heavy".
  • luckydays27
    luckydays27 Posts: 552 Member
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    like everyone said, its not heavy lifting but in my first incarnation as a fit person, I took a "Body Pump" class at Bally's way back in the day. I think it did wonders with my form and helping lose weight/get fit.

    While I was fit, I was not strong.

    It was a great way to learn form as all of the class leaders that I took the class with payed attention to the form of the participants. Plus after taking that class for a few months, I felt more confident to hit the weight room at the gym and lift heavier. But alas, life got in the way and I quit going.
  • sarajeanelles
    sarajeanelles Posts: 55 Member
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    I used to do it and it helped me get the confidence to start using the weights on the floor that I was scared of before. I still don't do free weights but when I did body pump I had definition everywhere and I looked great, especially my back and arms. My husband also did it with me (we were getting ready for our wedding) and he is a big boy 6 feet 4 , 260 lbs and he gained a lot of muscle doing it too. If you like it and it's working for you keep it up and don't worry about lifting 'heavy' :).

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