Group cardio classes have populated Manila and we're now spoilt for choice if we want to work out a sweat with friends in a hip studio sporting a fun, club-like vibe. This week, a new fitness sutdio opens in BGC, and it's probably one where you can easily convince your boyfriend to join in — just tell him it's LeBron approved (and make him experience how killer this cardio class is afterward).
Rise Nation brings their popular group workout to the Philippines, with its first studio opening in BGC. Here, they feature a climbing cardio class — it's zero-impact (good on your knees) but totally hardcore, a fitness regimen that Hollywood A-Listers and athletes swear by.
The concept of climbing with a machine is a real challenge, especially when you mix it up with different speeds, rhythms, and resistances — think combinations of sprints and long strides where you climb to the beat of different upbeat tracks. The class format may not be too different for fitness enthusiasts that frequent group indoor cycling and rowing classes, wherein the playlist will shuffle back and forth from high-intensity effort to recovery tracks, but the big diference really is the machine.
The VersaClimber is a vertical climber machine that will test your endurance and strength as early as the first three minutes into the class — think rhythmic climbing combined with pulsating lights and loud music. It will feel a little bit foreign at first, stepping foot onto the footholders and climbing, as if you're going up a never-ending ladder and stepping to the beat. Another big difference here is that the VersaClimber also targets your upper body, your arms doing pushes and pulls while your legs get working (and your booty too, of course).
The climbing movement in proper form is said to promote a healthy spine alignment and improve your coordination and balance. And because this machine will work harder on you whenever you do (it's not like a treadmill where it will run on its own), it activates your major muscle groups to effectively burn calories — all within 30 minutes, saving time for those who need to squeeze in a workout within their busy schedules.
First timers can avail of the First Time Rise class package (5 Sessions for P1,500 or P300 per class, expires in 14 days). Other Class Packages (1 session, 5 sessions, 10 sessions, 30 sessions, 50 sessions) are also available. The studio recommends newcomers to arrive 10 to 15 minutes before the start of class, so their team can set you up on the VersaClimber and explain the machine.
Rise Nation opens this September 12, and is located at Level 2, Tower 1, High Street South Corporate Plaza, 26th street corner 9th Avenue, BGC, Taguig. For more information, visit risenation.ph, call +632 795 4256, and follow Rise Nation PH on Facebook (/RNMANILABGC) and Instagram (@risenationph).
