At a Glance:

Website: http://speedplayla.com
Address: 8500 Wilshire Blvd, Penthouse, Beverly Hills, CA 90211
Length: 60 minutes
Price: first class free, 1 class/$30, 10 classes/$250, month unlimited/$300
Sweat: high
Energy level: high

Sometimes I’m in need of a class that’s going to challenge me and make me sweat profusely. While barre and Pilates classes aren’t hard to come by in this city, finding a killer bootcamp can be challenging. With the first location in DTLA having opened in May and the Beverly Hills studio on July 8^th, Los Angeles has just been blessed with a brand new killer class.

Pre Sweat

Beverly Hills and especially La Cienega are pretty awful for parking. Thankfully, Speedplay recommends parking at the BH city lot one block away, which is free for two hours. Although it’s about a 5-minute walk from the studio, it is very low stress and has plenty of available spots. I walked into the office building and entered the elevators, feeling pretty legit as I chose “PH” for penthouse. When the elevator doors open, you’ll be in the main lobby. I initialed by my name and filled out a short waiver before grabbing a towel and putting my stuff away in one of the digital lockers. There is a water fountain with filtered water if you need to top off.

Sweat

I met Beka, the instructor, who briefly explained how to work the Woodway Curve treadmills. These are unlike typical treadmills as they run with your own power and are not motorized. Basically you are responsible for keeping it moving and how fast it goes—so hard! Beka had us pair up (not the structure they always use)—and pairs either started with cardio (treadmill/rower) or strength. She demonstrated each exercise before we got started.

After the 3-minute warm-up, we rotated between cardio and strength doing four 8-minute rounds. On the treadmill we ran until we hit 0.2 mile then “tagged” our partner who was on the rower—going back and forth until the eight minutes were up. The strength portion was half inside with dumbbells and half outside using our body weight. We did squats, skater lunges, bicep curls, planks, burpees, rows, and lunges with a twist. After we hit 20 reps inside, we would tag our partner who was outside and switch spots. The exercises were all written out on the TV screens around the room so it was easy to check quickly if you forgot what came next. It was also a gorgeous night, which made working out on the rooftop so pleasant. At the end we headed outside to the turf for three minutes straight of core work and then stretched.

Post Sweat

“Restaurant row” is on the next block with nicer restaurants such as The Stinking Rose, Benihana, Fogo de Chao, Lawry’s the Prime Rib, and Morton’s Steakhouse. There’s a Trader Joe’s two blocks north and a Starbucks one block south. If you’re in the mood to shop, the Beverly Center and Connection are about five blocks north, featuring stores from Nordstrom Rack to Bloomingdales and many in between.

Tricks of the Trade

• The bathrooms are fully stocked with deodorant, blow dryers, feminine products, and even sunscreen for your outdoor sweaty needs!
• There is parking in the building but they only validate so it’s $3 for 30 minutes.
• Sunset 7:00 classes have an epic view—Speedplay sunglasses are coming soon to help prevent squinting while on the treadmill.
• Towel service is free.
• There is parking validation for $2 at the downtown location above the studio.