Les Mills Bodycombat Review & Weekly Workouts

I've been on a huge Les Mills On Demand kick lately! I've been so busy with new work projects and teaching group fitness classes that home workouts have been the ultimate timesaver. I'm trying out as many Les Mills On Demand programs as I can during my free trial. I want to try and evaluate Les Mills as a whole. I've tried several other Les Mills programs already (Les Mills Barre, Les Mills Bodyattack) and I'm considering reviewing Les Mills Grit as well. Let me know if you're interested.
 
Next on my list to try was Bodycombat!
 
Here's the description from the website:
 
"Step into a BODYCOMBAT workout and you’ll punch and kick your way to fitness, burning up to 740 calories* along the way. This high-energy martial-arts inspired workout is totally non-contact and there are no complex moves to master. A LES MILLS™ instructor will challenge you to up the intensity and motivate you to make the most of every round. You’ll release stress, have a blast and feel like a champ. BODYCOMBAT is available as either a 55- minute workout, 30-minute express workout and an online exclusive Remix workout."
 
To give you all some background, I've done Muay Thai kickboxing classes in the past (both hitting a heavy bag and doing pad work with a partner). I always left those classes drenched in sweat. They were great for cardio and practicing technique.
 
*Side note* If you're in Connecticut and want to try a great mixed martial arts gym, I highly recommend Fighting Arts Academy in West Haven. The head coach, Nick Newell, is a professional fighter who fought on the UFC Contender Series. He’s a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu! After just three months of training there, I competed in a jiu-jitsu tournament. Whether you want to become a professional fighter or just want something fun to do to stay in shape, you should check it out! Nick offers a free trial week, so you can try it before you commit!
 
I've also done cardio kickboxing classes (no equipment or partner) at local gyms and left mostly unimpressed. The music was usually pretty terrible and they were all pretty similar.

 I was very impressed with Bodycombat, though. It wasn't the most challenging workout I've done, but it was very fun and I did sweat. I really liked that this class wasn't just a bunch of kickboxing combos. They took movements from different martial arts - even Capoeira, which happened to be my favorite part! This was something I'd never seen in a martial arts fitness class, and the moves really target the legs.
 
The music was outstanding and matched the exercises perfectly. Even though it’s a cardio workout, I also got in a good amount of bodyweight strength training, especially with the Capoeira. I wasn't as crazy about the music in Bodyattack, but I loved most of the songs in this release of Bodycombat.
 
On a difficulty scale of 0 to 10, I'd give this class a 7. This is a good workout to do after a day of heavy lifting. It’s a good way to sweat and keep the muscles loose, but it’s probably too intense for an active rest day workout. I’d say this is one of the most fun workouts I've done; Les Mills really hit the nail on the head with this choreography. Transitions were flawless and the variety provided in the class was excellent. You won't be bored doing this workout. Bodycombat did a good job activating the core, but not enough that you'll be sore the next day if you exercise regularly. I also appreciate that there was some HIIT during the session. The instructions provide tons of modifications; don't be afraid to try this class out if you're a beginner.
 
As with most Les Mills On Demand programs, the instructors were a bit cheesy. Some people love this and some people hate it - it just makes me laugh, which I guess is a good thing! Of course, if you're doing Bodycombat live, then this will vary by instructor personality. In my experience, the Les Mills Barre instructors do a lot less of the cheesy yelling and are more calm and collected. That’s more my speed!
 
I chose a 45-minute version of Bodycombat. But you can choose a shorter or longer class with Les Mills On Demand. It went by very quickly since there were so many different martial arts covered! As with the other Les Mills programs I've tried, I did this at home in my basement.
 
Overall, I'd definitely recommend Bodycombat for all levels of fitness. You can choose how difficult you want the class to be - Les Mills programs are top notch when it comes to providing progressions and regressions. I had a lot of fun with this one!

Check out my workouts from last week:

Monday
Lower body day

• Warmup - 5 mins on the bike
• Pistol squats with dumbbells
• Bulgarian split squats with dumbbells
• Traditional squats with dumbbells
• Hip abductor machine
• Leg press up to 290 lbs
• Kettlebell swings
• Burpees
• Glute bridges
• Bodyweight hydrants and donkey kickbacks

Tuesday
Taught 55 minute barre class

Wednesday
30 minute barre workout at home

Thursday
Taught 50 minute barre class
30 minutes of lifting

• Weighted back squats
• Weighted curtsey lunges
• Sumo leg press
• Side lying single leg press

Sauna session (15 minutes at 194 degrees)

Friday
55 minute HIIT class

Saturday
Rest day - went to my mom’s wedding!

Sunday
30 minute HIIT workout at home
 
Have you tried Bodycombat? Did you find it as fun as I did? Did you meet your fitness goals last week, and what are your goals this week?
 
Let's talk about it!