Orangetheory Fitness (OTF) has experienced exponential growth since its formation in 2010. The boutique fitness studio franchise employs a unique approach to workouts and fitness, blending science, technology, and coaching to help its clients become fitter. Granted, OTF owes its success to its world-class equipment and science-backed training program, but does the fitness company provide sauna or steam room services?
Orangetheory Fitness doesn’t have a sauna or steam room because the franchise is more focused on providing short but high-intensity group workouts to keep clients at the gyms for under an hour. Some partner gyms, however, might provide sauna or steam room services as separate packages.
Are you interested in learning more about Orangetheory and the various services provided? Then you couldn’t be in a better place. Read on to learn all you need to know about the fast-growing fitness franchise.
Why Doesn’t Orangetheory Provide Steam Room or Sauna Services?
Unlike other gyms and fitness centers that focus more on weights, Orangetheory takes a different approach aimed at maximizing the body’s potential.
Steam room and Sauna services help a lot in muscle recovery. However, despite their undoubted significance, steam rooms and saunas aren’t part of Orangetheory’s service package. This is because the fitness company leans more towards high-intensity interval training in a group setting.
The hour-long Orangetheory workouts aim to generate excess post-exercise oxygen consumption, an afterburn effect that helps in burning extra calories.
Some of the partnering studio gyms have saunas and steam rooms that clients can use if interested. However, Orangetheory doesn’t provide steam rooms or saunas as part of its package.
The idea behind Orangetheory’s short but precise workout program is to keep clients motivated and eliminate the need to spend several hours at the gym, which is a huge demotivator for most working people. Due to this, Orangetheory is unlikely to include sauna or steam rooms as part of its package, especially since its training routines target groups of people split into two teams.
Steam rooms are ideal for people participating in individual exercises as opposed to group routines. This is because group routines normally conclude simultaneously, meaning there might be excessive demand for sauna or steam room services once the group members finish their routines.
However, in case the Orangetheory studio in your area provides sauna or steam room services on the side, you can join in to help boost your muscle recovery times. But you’ll need to pay separate charges since saunas and steam rooms aren’t part of the package provided by Orangetheory.
I’ve also put together a complete list of gyms that do have a sauna, steam room, or infrared sauna!
How Does an Orangetheory Class Work?
To ensure clients understand their heart rate statistics and workout progress, Orangetheory gives heart rate monitors to all class members. The monitors are connected to large screens that display each member’s heart rates, in turn allowing for the classification of the heart rates into color-coded zones.
Orangetheory’s classes are normally broken down into two groups. One starts its training on the treadmill, the other starts on the floor and rowers. Group one will spend about 28 minutes on the treadmill, following the coach’s instructions on when to increase speed, incline, or decline. Orangetheory allows class members to use stationary bikes or striders in case they don’t fancy running on treadmills.
As group one battles it out on treadmills and cardio exercises, group two is usually left to square it out on the rowers and floor. Floor exercises include lifting weights and pushups. Once the timer runs out, the coach instructs the class members to switch places. This ensures that all members participate in all workouts by the end of the session. Â
What Are the Various Orangetheory Zones?
The main reason behind Orangetheory’s unusual success is its reliance on scientific data. The heart rate monitors allow Orangetheory to categorize the heart rates into color-coded zones. Below is a brief explanation of the color-coded zones.
Zone 1: 50-60% Max Heart Rate, Very Light Activity
When in zone 1, your body is using minimal or negligible effort, which explains the little change in heart rate. This level usually precedes the warm-up stage. This level is also useful in readying your muscles for the main workout.
Zone 2: 61-70% of Max Heart Rate, Warm Up
This is the warm-up zone. This level is characterized by increased breathing and moderate intensity. When in this zone, the body gets ready for a workout, which in turn reduces the chances of sustaining an injury during workouts.
Zone 3: 71-83% of Max Heart Rate, Challenging-Doable
This zone is achieved during base pace and active recovery. It is a challenging zone that is maintainable for 20-30 minutes. When in this zone, the body receives oxygen and replenishes ATP stores in the process, increasing your body’s metabolism.
Zone 4: 84-91% of Max HR, Orange Effect, Uncomfortable
Arguably the most important zone in the Orangetheory fitness program. Achieving this zone isn’t a walk in the park, and participants must feel ‘uncomfortable,’ pushing themselves to new limits. The idea is to maintain this zone for 12 or more minutes to achieve the after-burn effect and increase metabolism as well as fat loss.
Zone 5: 92-100% of Max HR, All Out Effort
This zone is the highest of Orangetheory’s heart rate zones. However, achieving this level isn’t ideal as you’ll be pushing your body to its extreme limits. Orangetheory’s coaches aren’t advised or allowed to drive members into this level.
Maintaining zone 4 is the main goal of Orangetheory’s famed 60-minute workout. You’ll start to notice gradual changes once you become consistent in maintaining zone 4 during your workout routines.
As Orangetheory instructors advise, maintaining levels above 84% of the maximum heart rate allows the body to burn more calories for up to 36 hours after the workout.  Â
What Makes Orangetheory Fitness Stand Out From Other Studio WorkoutsÂ
Reliance on TechnologyÂ
All participants of Orangetheory’s fitness classes are required to wear heart-rate monitors. This means that all workouts and routines are backed by factual data, which provides client-centered guidelines that enhance the workouts’ effectiveness.
Excess Post-Exercise Oxygen Consumption
EPOC is an integral part of what Orangetheory targets to achieve in its rigorous routines. Participants are coached to maintain high-performance levels, preferably in zone four, for a minimum of 12 minutes. Maintaining the high-intensity interval training allows participants to burn calories up to 36 hours after the training session.
Personal Training in a Group Set-Up
Orangetheory has a reputation for working with small-sized classes to enhance the efficiency of the workouts. Therefore, although you’ll be working out with other team members, you’ll also get to benefit from the hands-on approach observed by the fitness trainers.
The trainers take their time with each participant. They take their time advising on when to up the ante or when to relax and recover. This allows all members to achieve and maintain a high level of performance throughout the workouts.
Several Training Routines
Orangetheory fitness integrates several routines to spruce out the workout sessions. The coaches never reveal the workout routines prior to the workout, which adds a bit of thrill, making the sessions unpredictable.
Workout sessions might involve an indoor water-rower, a BOSU Trainer, a TRX strap, dumbbells, Ab Dolly, and even medicine balls, all in the span of an hour.
Final Takeaway
Although Orangetheory doesn’t provide sauna and steam room services, it is among the best when it comes to effective fitness regimens. All their routines are backed by science and enhanced by technology, making it possible to push your body to its full potentials.
Calls are constantly being made for Orangetheory to include sauna and steam rooms to their package.Â
While top management claims that the franchise will continue to modify its services to suit client preferences, the chances of introducing saunas and steam room services to the packages are minimal. This is because Orangetheory is focused on high-intensity interval exercises that take no longer than an hour.