Does BodyPump Heavy keep new lifters lifting heavy

Participants will be asked to attend 2-3 Les Mills BODYPUMP Heavy (BH) sessions per week for 8 weeks. BH sessions to be delivered as per centre practice by qualified Les Mills Instructors. Participants will have access to a number of sessions conducted during the week as part of scheduled Les Mills club facility timetabling. They will conduct the sessions as part of a public group. The number of participants in each session is typically between 30 and 50. The session duration is 50 minutes. Loads are based on self-perceived 1-4 repetitions in reserve. Instructors are scripted to say: “With regards to weight selection – the last 2 reps of the block should be pretty challenging – if at the end of the block you feel like you could have done another 3 – 4 reps – you might want to consider putting your weights up”. The number of repetitions prescribed / instructed for all exercises are between 4 and 8 in total. Exercises are typically compound movements such as the deadlift, upright row, shoulder press, squat, and lunge. Exercises are varied on a weekly cycle, with three different 'Releases' being used sequentially per week for eight weeks. Each "Release' is a similar but distinctive session comprising a set of exercises performed either consecutively or interspersed with brief rest periods. Music is provided with the 'Release' designed to complement the movement. Equipment is provided to participants in the form of Les Mills BODYPUMP (TM) step bench, SMARTBAR(TM) barbell, and plates. The tempo prescribed is normally between 1-4 seconds concentric and 1-4 seconds eccentric. Each Release includes several blocks of consecutive exercises followed by an approximately 2 minute rest whilst participants change their barbell setup. All sessions finish with several minutes of static stretching. Adherence is closely monitored for all sessions through each participant's record of electronically accessing the centre for a session ('swiping in').