Fitness Classes at the JCC Indianapolis
At the JCC Indianapolis, fitness isn’t just something we do; it’s who we are. Although exercise is not mentioned in the Torah, taking care of one’s health is. In fact, while other belief systems advocate for the healing power of prayer, Judaism encourages people to look after their health and seek counsel from medical experts. In Judaism, good health is not a goal in itself; rather, it is a means to an end – to serve the Creator.
The Best Workout Classes
We offer classes and options for exercise the way you want it, whether you’re a do-it-yourselfer or looking for expert advice and/or someone to hold you accountable. It all starts with you.
The JCC’s 20,000-square-foot Mordoh Fitness Center has an indoor track, cardio and strength equipment, free weights, boxing bags, kettlebells – anything and everything you need to maximize your workout. Plus, the Marcia and Bruce Sklare JFIT Studio has the feel of a boutique fitness studio with the amenities of a large-scale fitness center. From state-of-the-art equipment to intentionally designed classes, there’s something for everyone!
Unlike a fitness club, we also offer two gyms, racquetball courts, and indoor and outdoor pools. Whether you’re looking for a gym with a pool, a pool with a fitness center, a fitness center with racquetball courts, we’re the place for you!
Check our Schedules page for group exercise dates and times, or download our mobile app for iOS or Android devices.
If you don’t see what you need below or for any additional questions, please contact Nicole at nhagemeyer@JCCindy.org or 317-715-9222.
Land-Based Group Exercise Classes
Strengthen your core and take your workout to the mat at the JCC Indianapolis to lengthen, elongate and stretch muscles and joints to increase flexibility and mobility.
Balance Basics is designed to help you become stronger and improve balance. The movements taught in class focus on specific exercises to improve strength and power around the ankle, knee and hip joints, while improving your reaction time.
A boot camp is a group fitness class that mixes military-style obstacle course training, strength training, and high-intensity cardiovascular work. Boot camps are designed to push participants to their limits through challenging total-body workouts. Classes typically last 30 minutes and are held outdoors or in a gym with minimal equipment.
Sculpt, shape, and strengthen your abdominal, buttock, and thigh muscle groups at the JCC Indianapolis in this targeted, high-impact workout that strengthens and tones all your core muscles.
Our dance classes at JCC Indianapolis are first and foremost cardio fitness classes with dance-like moves. The “cardio” part means working to achieve a target heart rate, increasing metabolic rate, burning calories, and improving stamina. The “dance” part is for participants to have so much fun, they don’t even realize they’re getting a great cardio workout!
Your heart rate is going to climb as you cut, jab and box your way through various strike patterns. Between strike patterns, the weights come out to complete the class and your workout.
Come spin at JCC Indianapolis! Indoor cycling is a form of cardiovascular exercise delivered in a group setting that mimics road cycling featuring a specific style of stationary bike that’s commonly referred to as a spin bike, although Spinning and spin bikes are trademarked brand names.
Fit For All at JCC Indianapolis is fitness fun for the whole family (ages 8+)! Kids and adults alike will have so much fun moving to the music you won’t even know you’re exercising.
HIIT exercises are a cardiovascular exercise strategy alternating short periods of intense anaerobic exercise with less intense recovery periods to provide improved athletic capacity/condition as well as improved glucose metabolism.
Stretch lab classes are the latest trend in what is classified as a recovery class. Stretch classes, as the name suggests, are all about setting aside dedicated time to stretch your muscles. Exercisers tend to focus on the workout but neglect the recovery. The intent of a stretch- and recovery-focused class is to place a strong emphasis on the more gentle, restorative parts of an exercise program.
Israeli dance is a fusion of traditional and contemporary dance styles reflective of the diverse culture of Israel. From Yemenite, hora, and debka to folk, salsa, ballet, hip-hop, (and more!), there is something for everyone. The dances are sometimes lively and energetic, sometimes lyrical and meditative. You don’t need any experience, just a positive attitude, a fun-loving spirit, and an open mind. The music will draw you in, the friendly atmosphere will keep you coming back.
Muscle Tuf at JCC Indianapolis is a group exercise class similar to a body pump class, focusing on low weight loads and high repetition movements timed to choreography of popular music. You’ll burn fat, gain strength, and quickly produce lean body muscle conditioning.
Pilates is a low-impact exercise on a yoga mat that builds strength and tones muscles through slow, precise movements and controlled breaths. In a Pilates class at JCC Indianapolis, you hold movements like planks, side planks, and core exercises to build your muscles and core strength. Use of bands, exercise balls, and small weights help increase the level of your Pilates workout.
The JCC Indianapolis is one of more than 22,000 locations nationwide to offer SilverSneakers, a set of fitness classes geared toward senior citizens provided by Tivity Health.
This class is aimed at total body strength, conditioning and endurance using weights, stability balls and other fitness equipment.
Tai Chi, a Chinese martial art often described as “meditation in motion,” is a low-impact, slow-motion exercise of fluid movements and deep breaths.
Get your heart rate up at the JCC Indianapolis by jumping and punching your way through this high-energy, high-intensity, cardio-heavy class that includes a jump rope workout and boxing exercise!
Feel like you’re flying at the JCC Indianapolis as you bounce on a mini trampoline (with handlebars to hold on to) and move to heart-pumping music!
Get your cardio in and do weight training at the same time!
Level up your aerobic step class by dancing to hip hop music in this energetic cardio workout!
Zumba is an aerobic Latin dance workout similar to Jazzercise; its distinctive characteristic is its use of Latin American music and dance rhythms. Summer Island Zumba takes place on the part of the pool deck encircled by the lazy river (Schloss [small] Gymnasium is rain backup).
Aquatics Group Exercise Classes
- Arthritis Foundation Aquatics Program
- Aquajoints is a water exercise class to develop range-of-motion through gentle exercises in shallow water.
- Fit Joints Plus is a water aerobics program that works on range of motion.
Ai Chi is a warm water-based exercise providing total body strengthening and relaxation. It is the perfect way to relax while helping to improve range of motion and mobility.
Aqua Mobility and Aqua Yoga are performed in warm water in our Backer Therapy Pool at JCC Indianapolis. It follows the principles of yoga, including an emphasis on breathing, mindfulness, and balance.
The Aqua Jogging workout at JCC Indianapolis is a full-body workout that uses the full length of the pool. Water weights and dumbbells, as well as other provided aquatics tools, e.g., noodles, are used in the shallow end with jogging through water in the deep end of the pool using a water jogging belt, resulting in a great cardio workout.
Aqua Zumba is like Zumba, except instead of on land, it is performed in water, in our Regenstrief Indoor or Cohen Outdoor Lap Pool at the JCC Indianapolis. It follows the principles of Zumba, including an emphasis on fitness moves and choreography set to music. Aqua Cardio classes are similar to Aqua Zumba but without the dancing (the music stays, but the moves are more traditional aerobics/cardio).
BOQUA is aquatic boxing and simulates land-based boxing moves in a water-based environment. Taking place in the shallow end of the Regenstrief Indoor Lap Pool (or Cohen Outdoor Competition Pool in summer) at the JCC Indianapolis, it is a full-body, aerobic workout using provided boqs (a type of handled block that provides resistance in the water).
Deep Water and Aqua HIIT (High-Intensity Interval Training) is exercise conducted while suspended in the pool at JCC Indianapolis, alternating between bursts of high intensity output and moderate activity intervals. Participants exercise all muscle groups using the resistance and buoyancy of water and the resistance of their hand weights.
Hi Low Water Fitness at the JCC Indianapolis is aqua interval training, a great cardio workout using the resistance of the water and water weights. Alternating between shallow water interval exercises and deeper water cardio, this class works to both tone and trim. All exercises can be adjusted for ability and swimming level.
Rivercise is offered outdoors at the JCC Indianapolis in the summer season from Memorial Day to Labor Day in the 300-foot-long Biccard Lazy River at the Eskenazi Water Park. Participants walk and perform aquatics exercises with and against the current ̶ walking forward, backward, sideways, on your toes, and on your heels.
Session-Based Classes
Movers get ready to return to dance, or get started dancing for the first time over an eight-week, 16-class session. Learn basic technique and conditioning, borrowing from ballet, jazz, yoga, modern dance, and more. No previous dance experience required. Have FUN in a non-stop class, from floor work to standing combinations.
Personalized Support
Need an intro to all the machines and other bells and whistles? Sign up for a FREE 30-minute fitness orientation with a JCC personal trainer! Available to new members and those who have never had an orientation, no matter the length of their membership.
The JCC’s InBody Scale measures body composition through bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA). The BIA method sends a small alternating current through the body that allows for highly accurate measurements of a person’s body fat as well as water, lean mass, overall weight, and more.
The benefits of working with a personal trainer include:
- Accountability. One of the biggest challenges about maintaining a workout routine can be just that — doing the workouts and doing them consistently. If someone is expecting you to meet them at the gym, you’re much more likely to go. You may also find you work harder with a trainer by your side than you would if you went alone.
- Education. A personal trainer has studied human physiology and body mechanics, behavior change, exercise science, and more. They can help you learn proper form, how to use specific equipment, and what exercises will be most effective for you.
- Goal Achievement. A personal trainer can help you set realistic and attainable goals based on your personal experiences and abilities, aiding you in your progress along the way.
- Variety. You may be a creature of habit when it comes to exercise, always gravitating to the same equipment at the gym or doing the same workouts at home. A personal trainer can introduce you to exercises you may have never done before or would never have attempted on your own, decreasing your chance of boredom and hitting a plateau.
Reformer Pilates is the Pilates method of movement done with the help of a machine, a piece of specialized equipment that adds tension and resistance to increase and focus the impact of a traditional mat Pilates workout. The equipment looks like a bed with springs. It has five springs of different strengths, a sliding carriage, ropes, and pulleys. Movement is slow and precise and breath control plays a large role.
The JCC offers private yoga for those who want a custom experience tailored to their individual needs.
Come experience a soft, but powerful form of energy healing at JCC Indianapolis. The receiver is fully clothed, lying comfortably on a massage table; however, there is no traditional massage or manipulation of tissue. The Reiki practitioner lightly places hands on, or hovering above, the receiver, delivering energy to your body and improving the flow and balance of your energy to support healing.
Unwind and do your body a favor at JCC Indianapolis. Massage therapist Aubree Huber brings both spa and chiropractic experience to the JCC so is able to cater to whatever needs you may have. Available to members and non-members.
The Benefits of Group Exercise
- Motivation and Accountability: One of the best things about exercising in a group is that individuals of different ages and abilities can support each other. You will undoubtedly be motivated to push yourself harder knowing others are there. Group exercise is the perfect middle ground between working out alone and hiring a trainer. The instructors in group classes demonstrate each move and ensure that everyone is following along correctly.
- Structure: There are so many elements to think about if you want your workout to be well rounded and safe. The instructor plans a balanced workout using different muscle groups and ensures that they are not overworked. And, your brain doesn’t get overworked because all you have to do is follow along while the instructor does all the thinking.
- Socializing: Group fitness classes are the ideal place to meet new, like-minded people. The group begins to act as a support to help each other stick with goals and make new ones. These positive influences are critical to long term success.
In addition to the benefits of exercise, there are benefits to participating in a group class.