NEO U
Class I took:
NEO U Bootcamp / HIIT
Instructor:
Dani
Location:
NEO U is located on 5th Ave between 37th and 38th. I wasn't sure what to expect and didn't realize this place was pretty much brand new (a staff member said they opened in March). I was seriously impressed! The entire location is on the downstairs levels of the building. From my understanding, it used to be the Reebok 5th Ave CrossFit location. The basic concept of this gym is to have all of the studio-type classes all under one roof. It's like a fancy studio gym without the cardio machines.
According to NEO U's website, https://www.neoufitness.com/home, the classes they offer are the following:
Bootcamp / HIIT
- Core (NEO Go)
- Strength (NEO Go, Stronger With Time)
- Faster With Time
Yoga & Meditation
- Recovery and Mobility (NEO Flow)
Boxing + Kickboxing
Dance
Endurance (Coming Soon)
Pilates and Barre (Coming Soon)
Everything in here is clean, new, and modern. It's not intimidating at all, despite having classes like CrossFit that might intimidate some. Everyone working here was super nice and energetic. A nice plus in my eyes is that they also have a cafe with juices and other items for after your workout, as well as a large seating area on the main floor. Like me, I think you will be impressed.
The Breakdown:
The Bootcamp/HIIT class that I took was a mix of core, strength, and AMRAPS. The main focus was the core and glutes. The class started with a warm-up, followed by core, legs, butt, and a couple of AMRAPS, and ended with a cool down. The class was 1 hour in total.
What I liked:
The trainer was really friendly and introduced herself to those of us in class. She explained the class format and what we could expect during the hour-long bootcamp. The room the class was in was large and there was plenty of space between everyone, which is pretty rare to find in the city.
As for the workout itself, I am used to something a little more intense, but it was nice to slow it down and focus on solely on strength and core movements. The AMRAP that we did in class, which was 12-12-12 of thrusters, burpees, and box jumps, was more my speed and I felt like I got the best workout in during this time. We repeated the entire workout a second time with less reps, which I wasn't expecting, but I wasn't disappointed. I like to judge a workout by how I feel the next day and I was definitely sore, which means I did something right.
What I didn't like:
Like I mentioned above, I am used to something a little more intense than this class. I would have like to see one more round of an AMRAP or something a little more cardio-based mixed in, like more burpees and box jumps.
Final thoughts:
Overall, the class was good. All fitness levels could definitely attend, which is a plus. Being sore the next day tells me that it was a good workout and I got something out of it, which is always the goal.
Pro Tips:
It seems they might be handing out some free class passes, so it might be worth it to stop in here and check out the location.
Price:
They have a BOGO introductory offer for $35, which you can take advantage of even after you have used your first free pass if you have one. A single class after that is $35.
Will I return:
For sure! I want to check out some of their other classes that they offer. I would like to check out Boxing + Kickboxing. An update on this post will be coming soon after!
