Here’s my quarterly RPM review post giving some details and thoughts about the 2018 Q4 release, RPM 80. I’ll start with my general thoughts for the release, and if you’re interested in a track-by-track breakdown, keep on reading.
General Thoughts
RPM 80 is the twenty-fifth full release of this program that I’ve coached.
As for the music, my two favorites this time are the Hills track (“Everybody’s Somebody” by Don Diablo feat. BullySongs) and the Speed Work track (“New Memories” by DubVision & Afrojack). Our returning artists are Sigala, Afrojack, Tritonal, and Kodaline. I had to double-check my records to ensure Hardwell hadn’t been in RPM — I was shocked. We’ve got a good global mixture this time — some from the US, UK, Australia, and The Netherlands.
Each release brings its own challenges despite not having too many variables in the RPM format (e.g., position, resistance, pace). As introduced in RPM 79 the new Pullback Climb position appears in the Hills and Mountain Climb tracks. Otherwise, those familiar with RPM shouldn’t expect too much out of the ordinary for this release.
Unfortunately I didn’t seem to receive any educational videos with this release. I’ve inquired with Les Mills for the past three releases and have yet to receive a response.
The masterclass has 3 presenters:
- Glen Ostergaard (New Zealand; Program Director for RPM, BODYPUMP, and SPRINT)
- Anna Lowery (US – Texas; RPM, BODYCOMBAT, BODYJAM, CXWORX, SH’BAM, and SPRINT trainer)
- Brent Findlay (New Zealand; RPM, BODYPUMP, and GRIT trainer)
Fun fact… I did my AIM 2 training with Anna.
As Les Mills doesn’t seem to provide the release overview on their website, here’s what the program directors have to say:
RPM 80 has a fresh feel to the music and choreography that delivers a workout which will bring an edge to your cardio fitness.
Longer sustained efforts are dove-tailed into the music beautifully, especially Tracks 2, 4 and 6, which leave you feeling energized and wanting more. Combined with the epic peak tracks in 3, 5 and 7, this delivers an amazing workout allowing simple coaching, the music and you to shine.
Track 1 is an upbeat feel-good song that you can’t help but smile to and gets us moving for the ride ahead. The Pace track is a different sound in music but another great sing-along with challenging Pace phases where we build speed to find our top pace. The Pullback Climb features again in the Hills allowing us to climb for longer and recruit more work from the glutes. Watch out for Mixed Terrain where the rolling waves come crashing hard and fast to keep your heart rate high! Track 5 is a wicked Rock song that focuses on longer working Intervals to build our cardiovascular fitness. We keep challenging our fitness in Speed Work with surges of speed above the beat before we make it to the Mountain for a heavy climb with banging sounds to the top! Coach clear Layer 1 PRP cues and then have fun with the music to bring your class on that awesome RPM journey that we all love!
See you next time for RPM 81!
Track-by-track Breakdown
Pack Ride
- Cadence: 125 bpm
- Genre: tropical house
- Origin: Sigala (Bruce Fielder) is from Norfolk, England
- Released: September 2015
- Other releases:
- RPM 78 (Pace) – Came Here for Love
- Thoughts
- Five simple rounds of work (each 30 seconds) to welcome everyone to the ride
- As is the case with most EDM with lyrics, the phrase “simple melody” gets a little repetitive
- Points of difference: None
- Good lyric cues
- None really seem to apply
Pace
- Cadence: 138 bpm
- Genre: folk rock
- Origin: George Ezra (George Ezra Barnett) is from Hertfordshire, England
- Released: January 2018
- Other releases: Ezra is new to RPM and BODYJAM
- Thoughts
- I enjoy that we have a folk rock song as the first working track to bring a little variety; normally this style is for the Mixed Terrain track
- The 45-second climbing phases go a little longer than I’d like; this probably isn’t helped by the music being fairly repetitive during that time
- The split races give riders a chance to practice control of the cadence by holding back for half the time and then accelerating to a faster pace for the second half
- Point of difference: Races are 30 seconds of building pace and 30 second on-pace
- Good lyric cues
- Ride on (ride on), I will ride on down the road
- But this time it’s real
Hills
Everybody’s Somebody – Don Diablo feat. BullySongs
- Cadence: 80 bpm
- Genre: future house
- Origins:
- Don Diablo (Don Pepijn Schipper) is from The Netherlands
- BullySongs (Andrew Bullimore) is from Swindon, UK
- Released: February 2018
- Other releases:
- Don Diablo – BODYJAM 76 (Mash It) – Secrets (Don Diablo VIP Remix)
- BullySongs is new to RPM and BODYJAM
- Thoughts
- As with RPM 79 Hills, the music in this track pushes all the right buttons for me. This was the track I most looked forward to teaching this release. The motivational message and big room sound inspire movement!
- Although repetitive, structured choreography makes a track easier to learn, I enjoyed having some variety here (instead of having every hill be the same). Out of five rounds, there are three distinct climbing phases where we focus on strength for all the muscles groups in the legs.
- This is the second release we’ve used the Pullback Climb position
- Point of difference: Use of the Pullback Climb position
- Good lyric cues
- Everybody’s somebody, nobody’s nobody
- You gotta keep your head up high
Mixed Terrain
Tidal Waves – Parade of Lights
- Cadence: 150 bpm
- Genre: indie rock
- Origins: Parade of Lights (Ryan Daly, bassist Randy Schulte, keyboardist Michelle Ashley, and drummer Anthony Improgo) is from Los Angeles
- Released: February 2018
- Other releases: Parade of Lights is new to RPM and BODYJAM
- Thoughts
- Again as with RPM 79, this is a typical Mixed Terrain track — riding hills and races to an upbeat song
- Points of difference: None
- Good lyric cues
- None really fit, although my focus for Round 3 mentions three waves of movement: racing, building, riding to the checkpoint
Intervals
- Cadence: 87 bpm
- Genre: drum and bass
- Origins: Pendulum (Rob Swire, Gareth McGrillen, Paul “El Hornet” Harding, Peredur ap Gwynedd, KJ Sawka) is from Perth, Australia
- Released: November 2007
- Other releases:
- BODYJAM 45 (front block) – Voodoo People (Pendulum Mix)
- Thoughts
- Admittedly I double-checked the release date on the music — 11 years ago! I suppose that means it has aged well.
- Standard fare for an Intervals track — attacks, races, combinations of the two in quick succession
- Points of difference: None
- Good lyric cues
- This is a new way!
Speed Work
New Memories – DubVision & Afrojack
- Cadence: 131 bpm
- Genre: progressive house
- Origins:
- Released: December 2017
- Other releases:
- DubVision is new to RPM and BODYJAM
- Afrojack
- RPM 58 (Speed Work) – Can’t Stop Me (Tiesto Remix)
- RPM 63 (Pace) – The Spark
- RPM 70 (Pace) – SummerThing!
- BODYJAM 65 (Warmup) – Last Night
- BODYJAM 75 (Jungle Terror) – Afroki
- BODYJAM 80 (Continual Momentum) – Afroki
- BODYJAM 82 (Mash It) – Turn Up the Speakers
- Thoughts
- After four releases in a row where riders are encouraged to move as fast as they can while maintaining control, we’re back to having a more achievable cadence.
- This is my second favorite track musically; the Dutch do progressive house very well.
- Points of difference:
- Surge combos where we’re on-pace for 15 seconds, accelerate for 15 seconds, and then repeat the two phases
- 60-second speed efforts (instead of 30 seconds)
- Good lyric cues
- No compromise
- These are the the new memories
Mountain Climb
Get Low (Extended Mix) – Hardwell, Sick Individuals
- Cadence: 67 & 108 bpm
- Genre: progressive house
- Origins:
- Hardwell (Robbert van de Corput) is from The Netherlands
- Sick Individuals (Rinze “Ray” Hofstee and Joep “Jim” Smeele) are from The Netherlands
- Released: January 2018
- Other releases:
- Hardwell is new to RPM but has been in JAM quite a bit
- BODYJAM 64 (D.R.E.A.M Two) – How We Do (Original Mix)
- BODYJAM 67 (The Dark Block 2013) – Dynamo (Original / Sven Kirchhof Remix)
- BODYJAM 68 (Afro JAM 2014) – Where Have You Been (Hardwell Remix)
- BODYJAM 69 (Warmup) – Jumper (Original Mix)
- BODYJAM 70 (Straight Up House) – Everybody Is in the Place
- BODYJAM 70 (Straight Up House) – Dare You (Cash Cash Remix / Tiesto vs. Twoloud Remix)
- BODYJAM 71 (Bounce Generation) – Ping Pong (Hardwell Remix)
- BODYJAM 71 (Bounce Generation) – Knock You Out (Hardwell Remix)
- BODYJAM 73 (Mash It) – Don’t Stop the Madness
- BODYJAM 74 (Mash It) – Outside (Hardwell Remix)
- BODYJAM 74 (Mash It) – United We Are
- BODYJAM 76 (Warmup & Mash It) – Off the Hook
- BODYJAM 76 (Mash It) – Alive (Hardwell Remix Radio Edit)
- BODYJAM 77 (Mash It) – United We Are (Armin van Buuren Remix)
- BODYJAM 78 (Club Hard) – Calvera (Extended Mix)
- BODYJAM 78 (Mash It) – Hakuna Matata (Hardwell Edit)
- BODYJAM 79 (Mash It) – Live the Night
- BODYJAM 80 (So Hard So Player) – Go (Hardwell Remix)
- BODYJAM 84 (Hip Hop) – Badam
- BODYJAM 84 (Mash It) – Smash This Beat
- BODYJAM 84 (Mash It) – Off the Hook (Mark Sixma Extended Remix)
- BODYJAM 86 (Choose Your Adventure) – Get Low
- Sick Individuals
- BODYJAM 68 (Konnichiwa Sweden) – Right Now (Sick Individuals Club Mix)
- BODYJAM 85 (Hyperreal for Real) – I Am (Extended)
- BODYJAM 86 (Choose Your Adventure) – Get Low
- Hardwell is new to RPM but has been in JAM quite a bit
- Thoughts
- Having the two distinct phases of power and strength makes coaching more deliberate, as there are different goals for both
- The Pullback Climb is used in the strength phases
- Point of difference: cadence changes between the power and strength phases
- Good lyric cues
- 3, 2, 1, let’s go!
- You like it when the drums go slow
Ride Home / Stretch
- Cadence: 100 bpm
- Genre: electro pop
- Origins: Tritonal (Chad Cisneros and David Reed) is from Austin, TX
- Released: November 2017
- Other releases:
- RPM 76 (Pace) – Broken (Cash Cash Remix)
- RPM 77 (Pack Ride) – Hung Up
- Thoughts
- I like the airy, pop feel of this track; it’s a nice way to close the workout
- Point of difference: upper body stretches before dismounting
- Good lyric cues
- None really seem to fit
Outro
- Genre: indie pop
- Origins: Kodaline (Steve Garrigan, Catherine Loftus, Vinny May, Jr., Jason Boland, Mark Prendergast) is from Dublin, Ireland
- Released: March 2018
- Other releases:
- RPM 70 (Mixed Terrain) – Ready
- Thoughts
- Catchy variation of a four-chord song; this one is vi-IV-V-I though