Step at 160 beats per minute????!!!!!!!

CDPotier

CDPotier

Cathlete
One of the instructors at my gym is a speed demon, and she keeps making the music faster until it gets to a speed higher than 160 beats per minute. I can do it, but I think it is much too fast, and it borders on dangerous.

In my opinion, she will also lose the beginners in the class; they can't follow the intricate choreography at that speed. Last night, she was teaching a new routine, and, at the end, we were going so fast that I was almost above my 90 percent.

What do you think? I need opinions. I don't want to start trouble and begin complaining to the manager of the gym.
 
I agree that 160 bpm can be dangerous, especially if the choreo is tricky. It's easy enough to trip when doing step at regular bpm.

Maybe you could just mention to her, instead of the manager, that some of the less experienced steppers were having trouble keeping up at that speed?
 
That sounds just SCARY to me! I have enough trouble keeping my foot on the step at a regular pace. I'm afraid I would get really discouraged and quit if I had to go that fast.
 
That sounds just SCARY to me! I have enough trouble keeping my foot on the step at a regular pace. I'm afraid I would get really discouraged and quit if I had to go that fast.

oops! Obviously I'm pretty fast at clicking the "post" button tho!
 
Thanks, Shelley,

I already mentioned it to her, and she refuses to listen. There one young woman who does step on a six inch height who always agrees that it should be faster and faster. There are a bunch of beginners in the back who know nothing and have a very hard time following. I can follow, and I can do it, but I would much rather have it at a reasonable speed.

Tonight, I take a step class where the instructor keeps the speed and the choreo at a more moderate level, and that enables me to do an hour of a toning class, and then an hour long kickboxing class after. It is the only night at the gym where I can do this.

I keep Cathe and my other home workouts for Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, and, also for the times, when my gym is closed because of snow and weather.
 
darli,

I am sure the novices who stay in the back are going to get discouraged. They were falling all over their feet last night when I looked back. They were also totally mixed up with the choreography, and the instructor just kept saying that it was an advanced class, and beginnners don't belong in it. I don't think that is the right attitude.
 
Perhaps she will learn when people stop showing up for her class.

160 sounds awfully frantic. Does the music sound like Alvin and The Chipmunks?

How can you possibly have any fun when you're just trying to keep yourself upright?
 
There used to be safety guidelines that suggested a maximum bpm of 128. A lot of instructors use faster bpm, but 160 frankly sounds ridiculous to me. There must be some kind of guidelines somewhere that you could bring to her attentino.
 
I love to go fast. It seems like the most advanced steppers are the ones that like to go fast. 160 bpm is fast but fast is fun.

If I am in a class that goes 130, I get so bored that I have to go run on the treadmill to get a workout.

Sorry to disagree with everyone, but I prefer it.
 
It is very, very fast, and I spoke to the manager of the gym, who also agreed with me that it is too fast. A fast pace combined with complex choreography is not a good idea. I have the guidelines that say 128 beats per minute is the correct pace, but that seems a bit slow to me. I think that about 135 bpm is about right for most.
 
Stringbean, that's fine, but when you're in a class that has beginners, you have to tailor the workout so that everyone can do it without fear of injury.
 
I see both sides. IF the class is billed as an advanced (or Level II or Level III) class, then the instructor has the right to set her own pace. If it's not, then she does not.

I used to take a Level II class that was very fast, but the instructor asked each new student how much step they had done, and if they were beginners, warned them that she moves fast and the choregraphy was tricky. That they were better off in a different class, but if they wanted to give it a try, they were welcome to, but to start with a 4" step. Some did and stayed because of the challenge, others did not. Now, if you came to class regularly, the choregraphy was fairly easy to pick up. She would go through routines and repeat a lot of the previous day's one, then add a new part towards the end, and we would work on the really tricky parts as part of the warm up at a slower pace.
 
160 bpm is ridiculous and dangerous ..

the suggested BPM for step is 130 bpm .. that is safe and if done correctly with the right amount of intesity should shoot your heart rate right up there ..

.. they now have what they call "Super Step" some instructors teach it is taught at 135 BPM .. and that is pushing safety limits and students should have to sign a release form ..

.. if this so called instructor is teaching step at 160 wich is faster than most high impact classes I would say she does not have a clue about how to teach .. and obviously thinks she can't get anyones heart rate up without super speed .. tell her to check out Cathe's IMAX and Intesity series .. that should show her how to jack the heart rate up into the ozone layer AND keeping in line with safety guidlines .. (my guess is she couldn't do it b/c she is used to using momentum intead of muscle power) ..

.. find another class .. hopefully you can find a certified teacher that knows how to teach a class with intesity without sacrificing proper form and safety!!
 
I spoke to the beginnners last night about the speed demon class, and two of them said they didn't like it at all. I don't think it is right for the instructor to discourage them like this. I consider myself an advanced stepper as I am able to do complex choreography on an eight inch step, but it gets to the point where the speed is absurd, and I see my form deteriorating.

I wear a heart rate monitor so I know where I am at all times. Her class is only once a week, so I can deal with it. I do like to get to the gym about four times a week, because I lose some of my motivation working out at home all the time. On Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, I devote myself to Cathe, Christi and Powerstrikes.
 
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