BODYROK – Union Square

BODYROK delivers a kick-ass workout, and now, even more New York fitness lovers can experience it with the franchise’s new Union Square location. Featuring even more trainers, more reformers and more space to sweat, the new location is an amplified version of the Flatiron location. If you haven’t checked out BODYROK yet, sign up for a class ASAP. The brand is still relatively under the radar in NYC, but it’s going to blow up big time very, very soon.

RUNDOWN

WORKOUT

BODYROK offers a high intensity, low impact full-body sculpting workout that will tone your body and have you dripping in sweat in 40 minutes. With the high energy playlists, multicolored lights and challenging instructors, the studio always offers a killer workout for all levels. Using the custom BODYROK reformer, the full-body class incorporates traditional reformer pilates exercises (teasers, ab rolls, army crawls, planks, etc) with the help of props like jump boards and hand weights. The class is essentially divided into a cycle of body part-focused segments (though, of course, everything comes back to core). We began with lower-body exercises to warm up your muscles, including traditional foot work, and various styles of extended lunges to work all areas of your thighs. A special treat for this class was using the jump board. From side extensions to straight jumps, we totally exhausted our leg muscles from the get-to, even though we knew more lower body work was to come (including banded donkey kicks and other harder versions of pilates glute work). This transitioned into a series of army crawls and plank variations on the carriage to teasers and pikes at the back of the reformer. The min bulk of the class involves complex exercises; you are rarely working just your core or just your inner thighs. As per usual in Zach’s classes, we ended with an upper body segment of bicep curls and tricep extentions using the hand straps located at the back of the reformer. If you’re not quivering throughout your body as you get off your reforming, you’re not human. Don’t be fooled by the meditative, repetitive motions – the workout is sneaky hard, even for experienced pilates practitioners. The BODYROK workout model is definitely more intense than your typical pilates class. Even the simplest exercise is amped up and made more challenging to increase the burn and elevate your heart rate. There’s no elegant zen here – this is hard-core, athletic pilates. You can’t get through class without sweating buckets and backing out of a held pose at least once. It’s truly physical and mental.

INSTRUCTOR

There’s no surprise Zach was voted BODYROK Instructor of the Year in 2018. He is extremely welcoming and friendly to all clients, and he does not forget a face. His instructions are verbally cued flawlessly, and he always demonstrates more challenging movements for new clients. He is so positive and motivating during class, and you’ll need that considering his routines are killer. Yes, death by Zach is served with the biggest “smize” and the gentlest touch when he’s correcting your form. And don’t even try to cheat the exercises – he will find you and call you out in the nicest way possible so you feel so guilty for letting him down!

SPACE

The new studio is gorgeous and spacious, with a gorgeous greenroom-esque front lobby where you are greeted by an extremely friendly front desk concierge. The main floor has almost double the number of reformers as the Flatiron location, which is great considering reformers are in high demand and classes often fill up quickly. There are mirrors on both sides of the reformer, ensuring that you are able to observe and accordingly correct your form (and check out your toned bod!) at all times. As a warning, the studio gets pretty stuffy quickly, as only fans seem to be circulating cool air into the space right now. In addition to the studio space, there is a significant lower level for lockers, several private bathrooms and a lounge area. The locker room area offers lotion, body spray and deodorant to freshen up after class (there aren’t showers in this new location), and the mirror has great lighting for selfies (if you don’t take a post-class pic, it didn’t happen, right?).