Les Mills on Demand

Exercise on demand is a big deal. Irregular work patterns, improved technology, the recent global pandemic, and an increasing awareness in fitness have made online training formats wildly popular. In fact, it’s one of the fastest growing segments of the fitness industry. Half of us have downloaded some form of fitness app onto our smartphones at one point or another.

On demand workouts bring a lot of benefits. They are often cheaper than in-person training, they fit to your timetable, rather than forcing you to work to a gym’s timetable or fit into a trainer’s diary, and you can take part in them from the comfort of your own home, making them accessible and less intimidating that going to a class.

Les Mills On Demand is one of the biggest on demand workout platforms in the world. Les Mills were one of the first to make the most of the interest in online classes, and they are certainly one of the slickest providers.

You will likely be familiar with some of their more popular offerings. Things like Bodypump, Bodystep, Bodycombat and HIIT have been around for years. Most gyms hosted and offered them. In fact, pre-pandemic, a full 2,000 gyms in the UK offered versions of the sessions (including the likes of Fitness First, Virgin Active and Nuffield Health), with 21,000 gyms globally offering their 20+ workouts.

They beat the pandemic in bringing their work online – they have been doing it for years. However, lockdown has made us all rethink our fitness habits and move our training to our living rooms, bedrooms and back gardens. Les Mills On Demand has unsurprisingly been very popular during this period.

Les Mills On Demand 

But what exactly is Les Mills On Demand?

In short, it is a provider of on demand workouts, often in the form of on demand group exercise classes. It is a workout streaming service featuring thousands of classes taught by Les Mills trainers, usually in large studio settings. They are all upbeat, well produced, empowering sessions, ranging from around 15 – 60 minutes.

There is also an impressive range of training styles from which you can choose. There are thousands of individual sessions available through Les Mills On Demand, with plenty of different types of classes, all on the same platform. These include:

• Bodypump
• Bodyattack
• Bodycombat
• Bodystep
• Bodybalance (yoga fusion)
• Core
• Sh’bam (dance workouts)
• Barre
• RPM (cycling)
• Sprint (HIIT cycling workouts)
• The Trip (immersive cycling featuring fantasy landscapes)

It really is something.

You can access the classes from anywhere that your device has connectivity, wherever and whenever that is, making them perfect for people with antisocial work hours, such as shift or night workers, who might otherwise struggle to find classes at times to suit them. It also makes Less Mill On Demand perfect for those travelling; they can simply log in from wherever they are staying get their workout in.

If you join Les Mills On Demand, all you have to do is simply login and press play to join one of their signature classes with a group of their expert trainers.

You don’t need equipment to take part in the majority Les Mills On Demand classes, once again making them perfect for people who travel a lot, or those who simply don’t want the expense and clutter of keeping a well-stocked home gym. Most of the classes are designed to be undertaken with little else but your own bodyweight to work against.

Some classes do require equipment, however, which can complicate things. It’s fair enough – good luck trying to complete a spin class without a spin bike, or Bodystep without a step!) – but it is something you’ll need to bear in mind when building your own training regime.

Some classes will also benefit from a set of light dumbbells. Where they are relevant, Les Mills generally build a class around their Smartbar, but I would recommend dumbbells. They will have far more utility in the long run.

I would also recommend getting a yoga mat or something similar, no matter what class you go with. It will save you a lot of discomfort in the long run – carpet burn is never fun.

One of the main benefits of Les Mills On Demand over some of their competitors is the multi-instructor approach they take. Pretty much all of them feature more than one trainer. I really like this. There is generally more energy at work with several trainers working together, feeding off each other’s energy. There will always be someone doing modified, often regressed versions of all the exercises, adding a great deal of accessibility to their sessions.

All in all, Les Mills On Demand, like most other on demand workout providers, is a great resource.