Episode 454: Group Fitness Reality Check: Why F45 and Barry's Bootcamp Might Be Sabotaging Your Goals

0:01Hi, guys. It's Tony Robbins. You're listening to Habits & Hustle. Crush it. Hey friends, you're listening to Fitness Friday on the Habits and Hustle podcast, where myself and my friends share quick and very actionable advice for you becoming your healthiest self. So stay tuned and let me know how you leveled up.

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1:54All right, welcome to another edition of Fitness Friday. I have my friend Lerun. Hello. Hello. Joining me, which she does on the regular. We disband her back and forth and we pick a fitness topic. I'm always remiss to say this, but I really love feedback. I love comments. I love knowing what you guys want to have more of, less of. It really helps with the podcast. It really helps kind of guide who we have on the show, what we actually talk about. So please, any feedback is good feedback. Also, if you've not subscribed to this podcast, please hit the button because it makes a massive difference.

2:34It really helps with the algorithm. And I always forget to mention that. And I just want to make sure that we keep providing good information and the people can hear it. So if we don't have subscribers, it's really hard to kind of stay on the chart. So please, please, please, I beg you guys, if you haven't hit that button, please do so. All right. Without further ado. Without further ado. Here we are. Okay, Leroy, you know what I want to talk about today? What? The idea and group fitness overall, right? Because, you know, the F45s, the Orange Theory, the Barry's Bootcamp, because there is some controversy around if it's effective or not, especially when you're in middle age, right, for your hormones and all sorts of different things.

3:24The reason why I want to bring it up also is because I remember back when, not even that long ago, that was like the thing to do, right? Everybody wanted to do Barry's Bootcamp. If you went to Barry's Bootcamp, it was like the hardest workout in the world. You feel like you're sweating. It's super difficult. You feel like you've done so much. But I actually, and you're going to hate me because Leroy actually owns a group fitness gym, which is kind of ironic. We do a lot of things, but group fitness is a big part of it. Yeah, you do a lot of things. But group fitness is a big part of what you do.

3:57I want to know, the first question I have, have you seen an incline or a decline in popularity with group fitness? I think an incline and I think it will continue. Really? Yeah. I mean, I think it's great for the social aspect, the community aspect. But now this may be controversial, but I'm not necessarily sure that if you really want to like change your body composition and get next level fit, it's the greatest like mode of exercise and I'll tell you why I think because it's a lot of like running around aimlessly and you're not really doing heavy weight you're kind of doing this you know you're kind of just like a lot of times it goes so fast you're just trying to keep up and it's a lot of cardio at the end of the day even when because they're the whole goal is to like make to kill somebody basically and what I've had a lot of happen to me was I had a lot of injuries and I had my appetite went like through the roof after that class.

4:58So I ended up eating double or triple the amount that I would have otherwise had if I just kind of did more of a moderate workout or just did strength training and a walk. Go ahead. So I agree with both of the things you said. One, that group fitness is good for the social aspect. And two, that a lot of group fitness is kind of aimlessly running around like a blue ass fly, as we say in London. What do you say? A blue ass fly. I don't know where it comes from. It's a stupid phrase, but it works. For you, maybe, not for me. I wouldn't get away with it, but okay. Your accent, you can get away with anything.

5:39And I do. Yeah, so there is a lot of aimless running around in group fitness. So the thing I would point out is that the form of the group fitness is flexible, but the idea of group fitness, meaning people coming together for a shared goal, is awesome. And the form of it can be awesome and it can be crap. True. Okay, so I should have had that. I should have made that caveat, right? The idea of group fitness as a whole for the social aspect, great. Big picture. Big picture. And by the way, now you know, like people are now doing that, like they're kind of doing these like more fitness running clubs.

6:22Instead of going to meet at a bar, people are doing dates by doing coffee and chill, right? And just in terms of like all those things, I think for that aspect, it's amazing. But I'm talking about if you are somebody who has a particular fitness goal that you want to achieve, I don't think it's the best mode to get there. But if you're somebody who doesn't do anything and now you're doing something, now you're being active, it's amazing. Two different things though altogether. Yeah, for sure. I mean, there's definitely downsides to group fitness because a lot of times you're losing quality for quantity.

7:03So unless you have a very skilled instructor or you're tailoring the workout with great expertise, you get something very general. So you get like, I don't actually know about Barry's in the original series. I don't know much. You don't? I don't know. I'm not that interested in it, to be honest. Like I basically have the same feeling you have. Not to hate on him. It works for a lot of people and a lot of people love it, especially Barry's. I know people who love Barry's. So it works for them, but I don't know specifically what they do. I'll tell you what they do. Let me tell you what Barry's Bootcamp does.

7:34They make you run at an ungodly pace that is almost impossible. And then they say, now just put an incline at 15. And so now you're running so fast where like the fact, like if you're not going to sprain an ankle or like bust your knee in the process, you are very lucky. And then they go back and forth between doing a lower body strength training and then going back on the treadmill or upper body strength training, or they have the core days. But what I find is that it burns your adrenal glands, number one. You can't be doing that every single day. and like I said like you're like you're like dead at the end but and you feel good because I personally I love that feeling but like I said it was counterproductive because I was so hungry I was starving after doing and those classes that I want I would like I would eat anything and everything in sight which then like I said it's counterproductive counterproductive it's very very common I've heard that many times to do with cortisol and stress yes because that's your that's exactly it.

8:37Like if you're doing that once in a while, it's great. But to do that on a regular basis and like the, then you feel like guilted if you're not being, if you're not able to run at like 12 miles an hour at a 15 incline because the other person is. So I found it to be like, you know, like I just found it like, that's what I did when I was in my twenties and my thirties. But then like, I had to like back off a little bit from that. But anyway, that's what, that's what it is. A PE class, I call it. Do you have PE classes? Yeah. You mean like phys ed? Yeah, Yeah, of course, but you're not doing Barry's bootcamp in like your chat.

9:09This is what I'm saying is like, it's kind of untargeted. There's a little bit of a sadist kind of vibe to a lot of these group fitness. Again, don't know specifics. Okay, that's true. It's like, just punish yourself. And then the coach, like people get off on it. It's this weird S &M thing, you know, where the coach is like, you can I swear? Yes, you can swear. Yes. You know, like, whatever. I'm not going to now, but like you, whatever it is, basically the vibe, whether they say it with their words or not, is that you're like some lowly, you know, you're not good enough. You're not good enough.

9:44And then people get off on it in the, like, I've seen it. There's a, there's a, there's a, I know a lot of people go to a specific gym who really, that's the core foundational culture. Really? This S &M thing where the guy, where is it? I'm not going to name names. No, I'm not going to name it. Is it in LA? No, I don't know. It's in LA. It's kind of West Hollywood-ish. And they get off on like just like. They get off on it. And there's a cult around it. Oh, just shaming somebody? Yeah. And they love it. And to be fair, it works while they're doing it. But long term, it doesn't. Tell me. I want to know where.

10:17I'll tell you, Asper. Why? I want to know. I want everyone to know. I'm curious. It's not my style. But anyway, either way, what happens is in those classes, is very untargeted it's very not a long-term thing as you were saying right it's not a healthy long-term approach it works while you're doing it as soon as those people stop they're usually fatter than they were just unhealthier than they were they've lost muscle a lot of women lose periods and i'm talking about maybe the the extreme cases because it goes with this it's basically like a form of sort of like anorexia bulimia it's all very negative you know what i'm Well, you know, like I never understood.

10:56I'm going to, the one, the one that I never understood was spin classes, like SoulCycle. I never, I mean, besides the community aspect that I think that people love. But that's huge though, Jen. Like that, that is, you separate the positive and the negative and you take, you don't want to throw your, the baby out with the bathwater. So the, the aspect with Barry's I've heard that the big thing, the big draw of Barry's is not the actual workout itself. It's the culture around it. So it's like the hot people and it's like a scene and it's a sexy place and everyone feels sexy when they go there or they see other sexy people and they don't want to be, you know what I'm saying?

11:32So that is the emotional driver for people in everything, in everything. And fitness is absolutely number one for that. So it's motivating people to work out. So it is positive. But I think it's important to separate what people actually, what's productive about it and what is not productive. It could be improved for sure. Well, this is the thing. Have you heard of high rocks? It's like the new hottest thing. I've heard of it again. I don't, explain what it is. See, to me, I like the concept of that because it's basically, I haven't done it. I want to do it. It's a hybrid. Well, it's kind of like, it's kind of taken over the, you know how CrossFit was massive.

12:10I was going to mention CrossFit and like the thing with CrossFit was people get, it's community, but people would get injured a lot. Oh, well, that's what I was saying. So the thing about all group fitness, right? Like when something takes off, it built it basically becomes like you said it becomes like the culture it becomes a it's a socialization it's the building of a community all that right so crossfit had its moment crossfit still i'm sure popular with some people but now like high rocks is that what it's called even yeah it's it's it's having its moment big time like i see it everywhere a lot of my friends are doing it all the time people i never even thought would even actually like partake in what's it composed In fitness like that.

12:49And well, it's a very much like what I like about it. It's hardcore, but it involves, it's kind of like rowing, like, look it up. Hold on a minute. I'll show you. I'm going to tell you very specifically what it is. It basically is a fitness competition that combines endurance and strength. It consists of eight rounds of one kilometer runs followed by eight different function fitness stations, such as sled pushes, burpees, broad jumps, farmer carries. And the goal is to compete in the race as quickly as possible. So the whole purpose of it, like what is gamified, basically. So like they gamified this whole thing, but it's doing things that that's why I prefer this type of like high rocks versus like a CrossFit, because it's things that I think more of the general population can do if you train for it.

13:42Like if you train well, then you can get better at pushing a sled. If you train well, you can do burpees. If you train, you know, you can run a mile, right? CrossFit, I found had more dangerous moves like power lifts. Olympic lifting. Yeah, like Olympic lifting and like things that like the average Joe will actually really hurt themselves. Especially in a class of 10, 20 people in a state of fatigue too. So that was the biggest thing is you need to be really dialed in for something like that. And because it's a group fitness atmosphere, this is the downside of it. People would be tired. There'd be 20 people in a class.

14:16The coach has not like, doesn't know who's doing what, and it's a recipe for disaster. So it sounds like High Rocks has kind of fixed that issue. Yeah. Like the High Rocks has been really good. So this is what it really incorporates It's running, functional training, and basically the race format, right? Like who can finish first? And like I said, that is building a real community for people. And it's like the hot thing to do. And so I'm actually going to be doing one. I'm not sure where because they do it in different cities and it's a whole thing. But to me, and because you're not doing that all the time, what I love about it, it's also a goal that you can work towards, right?

14:54So if you want to get stronger, if you want to improve your endurance, then here's a great goal. Now train for it. Versus going to a lot of these other group classes that really there's no real goal. It's just like, yes, it's a great community and make someone work out. But it's just like, can you kill yourself today? Can you push yourself? Great. You did it. Okay, now go home. Like that to me, you know, and I think with women, especially as we get older, especially in our 40s with hormone, like all the hormone issues we have, I don't think it's great as a, I don't really love that, like the orange theories.

15:30My friend's going to kill me because he owns a bunch of them, but let's just say F45s are all those things. I don't think it's the greatest use of time if you're trying to really kind of build muscle, get stronger and get fitter. You never want to trade your long-term health for like a short-term aesthetic. Like you don't want to, it's not a good in, you know, trade. Like, yeah, you get skinnier or whatever in the short term, but then you've lost all your muscle or you just like really burned out or you haven't, your metabolism is down on the floor long-term. It's going to come back and it's going to come back with a vengeance.

16:07So I think people need to maintain their like long-term vision of what they want for their body and don't sacrifice the short term for the long term. Right. And I will also just say, besides like have a goal in place, again, if you are not doing something, this is a great aspect of building. If it, if it motivates you to work out, I think it's great. If you have a specific fitness goal in mind, you may want to do something in addition to it, but that's basically all. So again, you guys should try high rock. If you like try something like that, where you have a goal and you can sign up with a bunch of friends, which I think is a great other social element.

16:45And yeah, if you're in LA, you should also go check out Leverne's classes. You do boxing classes, right? We do hybrid. So we do boxing. We do a little bit of like our twist on Pilates. We do a bunch of weightlifting, but the flagship, like the main thing that everyone loves is the combination of weightlifting and boxing. So you're getting two very different systems. You're getting muscle building, you're getting fat burning, you're getting, you know, power and you're getting metabolic conditioning. So you're really training to be very well-rounded. Right. That's good. That's good. One other thing I wanted to bring up was Pilates.

17:21Pilates is the number one workout. That's why we have our twist on it. Pilates is the number one workout, like of 2025. Everyone like Pilates is like on a huge, it's been around forever. I love that. I respect that. But it's become like the workout of the year. My opinion, if anyone cares to know. I think they do. It's your show. I don't know. I mean, listen, I know. I would say if my opinion is, I think it's a great additive to something else you're doing. Yeah, I agree. I don't think Pilates takes the, like it doesn't take the place of strength training. Or endurance training. Or endurance training.

18:01It's great if you want to strengthen your core. But I think the misconception is if you do Pilates, you're going to have like an elongated dancer's body because you see these images of like these beautiful ballerina type bodies, like these lean, tall girls going by the droves to Pilates. And that's just not realistic. Unless that's their genetic type. Okay. But I just don't think that Pilates is going to move the needle that much for you. So I think, you know, I think that if you want to do play, it's all the power to you. But if you really want to change. It shouldn't be your only workout. It should not be your only workout.

18:37In general, I think this is a theme that both of us like harp on quite a lot is you do want to have more than one type of training. Like you do want to be well-rounded. I think that's really important. Like my protocol always, like my training protocol always has an element of, even though I say I don't like cardio because when I'm talking about cardio, I'm talking about like walking or running on a treadmill. But I play soccer every single week. I box every single week. My heart rate is going up to 1AE plus every single, like numerous times a week. So being a well-rounded, well-balanced athlete or just person in general is super crucial.

19:15And I think a good group fitness gym will try at least to check those boxes or admit that they only do one thing and that somebody should be training someone. By the way, like most gyms aren't doing what you do. I think people are doing a lot of these like one-offs. I'll go somewhere for Pilates. I'll go to one place for Pilates. Class passes. Not even, by the way, not even class pass anymore. Just like, hey, you know what? Like I like this place for Pilates. I'll go there. I'll go to like a main gym to do my strength training and my cardio. I'll go to a boxing gym to do my boxing. Like it's very fragmented now, which is fine.

19:50But I guess my point is, there's two different points. My point is if you really want to change your body in a real way than maybe, you know, do Pilates in addition to something else like string training. But the other thing is, again, the other component is if you just want to move and that's the only thing you like, then something is better than nothing. And like that social element again. But I just think that, like I said, everything has its like 15 minutes of glory and fame. And I think Pilates is like having it right now. But it's been around a long time. It has. But like, I'm telling you.

20:23It really taps into a niche though. It's very much a woman's thing. It has no eccentric component, I think. It's very little eccentric. Actually, there are guys, a lot of - It's started by a guy, pretty hardcore dude, Mr. Pilates. He was a hardcore German guy. Really? Boxer, weightlifter, like serious, serious guy. Well, I see a lot sometimes the professional athlete guys I know, they go to Pilates on their like active recovery days or like their off days just to kind of like do other things, just for like stretching. Bandwork, activation, you know, hit flexes. Yeah, but some of these classes could be very challenging in these intricate muscles that you just don't ever, ever work.

21:07Again, I have nothing against Pilates. I just don't think it should be your BL end all. And with that, I think we should wrap this for fitness and then move on to next topics. But tell us, what is your favorite group fitness class? Have you guys tried high rocks? because like I said, I'm very curious and I'm going to try it very soon. And tell us what you think. Do you agree? Do you disagree? Always comments, feedback, so important. Thanks, everyone, for being here. You're welcome.