Wednesday, February 11, 2009

At The Gym: Taking Some Classes

Oh hello. I am in a much better mood today and not so worried about my life and my future and all of those things. I swear I am so up and down I must be bi-polar. Not really, but it never ceases to amaze me how much my moods swing. Hormones anyone? Wow. 

Actually I think one reason I'm feeling better is the fact that I've been getting my ass to the gym and working that shit out. I am a big believer in exercise being a mood enhancer. Now I'm not going to lie, it's not as good as some of the pharmaceuticals out there, but hey, sometimes you have to work with what you've got. 

Yesterday I knew I really needed to hit some weights, but I just DID. NOT. FEEL LIKE IT. I dilly-dallied all day. Had lunch with my mom and sister. Went to the mall and tried on shoes. Ate some chocolate-covered almonds. Read all about Chris Brown and Rhianna (side note - will be taking his songs off of my workout mixes. NEVER EVER is violence okay). 

Anyway, around 4 I decided to check out the gym's class schedule, and wouldn't you know it, there was a class starting at 4:30. I decided to go for it. The class, called Camp24 at my local Biggest Loser sponsored-club, is described as a circuit designed to improve cardiovascular  and muscular strength. I figured it was kind of like a mix between Body Pump and step class. I was basically right.

Well I got there at about 4:20 and the room was already packed, all the girls had their steps all set up and their weights ready to go. So I scurried over and set up my step in one of the only places left, of course at the very front of the room, and sat down to wait. What is it about a room full of women waiting to get their work out on? Honestly it kind of scares me. It must be all that estrogen. 

When the instructor came in and told us it was a mix of strength exercises and cardio based on kickboxing moves, I relaxed a little. I'm obsessed with kickboxing right now, so I knew it would be perfect. We did lots of fake jump roping, jumping jacks, running in place, that sort of thing and then mixed it up with your basic weight moves - lunges, squats, bicep curls, chest presses, etc. I liked it and I think I got a good workout, although my muscles aren't really as sore as I think they should be after a good weight session. I really wish I knew how many calories I burned, but for some reason my heart rate monitor isn't registering my heart rate consistently right now, so it didn't give me a very accurate reading for the workout. 

So yeah, I'm liking classes right now. I'm liking that taking one class gets me in the gym for a full 60 minutes, and I'm liking that I don't really have to think about what I'm supposed to be doing. I just follow the instructor like a robot. An intense, hardcore robot. Umm yeah. I went to regular kickboxing this morning, and I'm betting I can find another good class tomorrow or Friday. That's three good classes for the week, couple that with a few runs on my own (okay maybe just one) and maybe one weight circuit, and that should be a really good week of workouts. 

What about you? Do you take any classes I should check out?

1 comment:

Jess said...

I don't take classes, but maybe I should. Another good way to mix things up!