The Gauntlet

Six stations, three full laps, and a finisher — the monthly hour that members circle in their calendars

HIIT
Intermediate
60 min
Works for 12–24 · six stations of 2–4 people
1 instructor
Effort 5/5
Studio floor · full room, six stations
circuit
stations
endurance
advanced
dumbbells

The ClassPlans programming teamLevel 3 group-fitness qualified · 10+ yrs teaching

Kit: Mats, dumbbells at two stations, timer, six station cards or cones, water. Set the room before doors open.

Warm-up9 min

Walk the Course

4 min pulse raise + 6 × 30s station rehearsalRPE 3–4

Setup: Six stations pre-built in a loop: 1 goblet squats · 2 push-ups · 3 skater hops · 4 dumbbell rows · 5 plank shoulder taps · 6 burpees. Station cards face inward so the room reads itself.

How it works: Four minutes of pulse raising on the spot — marches, jogs, side-steps, squats, building each 30 seconds. Then walk the whole class around the loop like a race director: 30 seconds at each station demonstrating the move and its easier version, everyone rehearsing on the spot. Brief the format last: three laps of the loop, working 45/15 on lap one, 40/20 on lap two, 30/15 on lap three — shorter work, higher fire, and a 90-second regroup between laps.

What to say

“Learn your next station while you work this one — the loop rewards the prepared.”
“The gauntlet gets shorter each lap, never easier — pace lap one like an adult.”
“Your easier version is on the card all night; using it is called strategy.”

Easier

Rehearse only the easier version at every station.

Harder

Course walk at working pace for the seasoned crew.

Workout13 min

Lap One — 45/15, Learn the Loop

2 × 6 stations × [45s work / 15s rotate] + 90s regroupRPE 6–7

Setup: Members spread across all six stations, two to four per station. Timer set to 45 work / 15 rotate. Two full circuits of the loop make one lap tonight.

How it works: Twelve minutes: the loop twice at 45 seconds work, 15 to rotate. Lap one's job is rhythm — everyone learns the rotation direction, where the bells live, and what 45 seconds costs at burpees. You float opposite the flow so you meet every member twice. Coach pacing loudest at station six: burpees at minute four of a sixty-minute class is a trap, and saying so gets a laugh and saves the hour. The 90-second regroup after: water, then the one-line brief for lap two.

Rounds: Lap 1 of 3

What to say

“Rotate on the beep, not when you're ready — the loop owns the clock.”
“Meet the burpees politely this lap; you'll see them twice more.”
“Learn what 45 seconds feels like at your hardest station — that number is your pacing map.”

Easier

Work 35 of every 45; the card's easier version at any station, any time.

Harder

None on lap one — even the front row paces the first lap. Say so.

Workout13 min

Lap Two — 40/20, Turn the Screw

2 × 6 stations × [40s work / 20s rotate] + 90s regroupRPE 7–8

Setup: Same loop, same rotation. Timer now 40/20. First peak track as the lap opens.

How it works: The loop twice at 40 seconds work with 20 to rotate — five fewer seconds of work buying five more of transition, and the trade is announced: pace goes up one honest notch. This is the lap where the middle of the class happens and focus drifts, so coach with names and specifics — one member's squat depth praised aloud is worth ten general cues. Watch the plank-tap station; tired hips pike there first, and it is your early-warning system for the whole room. Regroup 90 seconds after, and name lap three's deal: shortest work, biggest fire.

Rounds: Lap 2 of 3

What to say

“One notch braver than lap one — you know the loop now.”
“Hips level on the taps; that station tells me who's tired before they know it.”
“Use all twenty seconds of the rotations — walk, breathe, arrive ready.”

Easier

Hold lap-one pace all lap — steady through the middle is a strategy, not a surrender.

Harder

Add reps: two more squats, two more burpees per visit than lap one.

The rest of this class plan is free — along with 3 more this week.

ClassPlans programming team

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