It’s that time of year where many of us put down our chocolate bars and pick up a set of weights. No I mean it, seriously put down the chocolate bar! For some peeling off the tracksuit pants and putting on a swimsuit is a frightening prospect. Many of us have trouble accepting our bodies for what and how they are whether we know improvements could be made or not. I know there’s no way I’d wear a two piece swimsuit, in fact I have barely worn a swimsuit since I was about 12 years old.
But alas, no fear of the mirror will stop summertime coming and our longing to stretch our legs in the sunshine so it’s time to come out of hibernation. Not only is it a great excuse to get healthier, but it’s a good time to get prepared for all those festive season drinks you’ll be partaking in over the coming weeks no doubt!
Getting fit however is no longer about the humble gym and your trusty sweat rag. It’s no dingy building with bad lighting and weightlifters in the corner. Fitness has evolved into a new almost fanatical culture. With the emergence of Superfoods, we’ve now turned to super fitness aswell. Crossfit, Tough Mudder, Paddle boarding and I even saw in the US a fitness class inside a studio where you balance on surfboards working your core. It’s all about getting not only fitter, but stronger. We are now in a world where strong, not skinny is the new sexy. It’s healthy from the inside and out. It’s about enjoying yourself and having fun, challenging yourself and pushing your own limits.
Feeling the need to shake off my first Canberra winter; a friend and I felt inspired to try something new. I don’t have a gym membership from moving around so much of late and being a fan of a good old walk around the lake, I felt it was time to search for that one fitness craze that I could get fanatical about.
Here’s our experiences and feel free to post yours to any others you’ve tried!
Fly Yoga: With intrigue and trepidation I walked into FitSistas in Braddon and signed up for my first Fly Yoga class. It’s $20 for a casual session but they have a heap of package deals if it takes your fancy. The class size isn’t too bad and there seems to be a lot of other new people. Fly Yoga involves a little ‘cocoon’ that you lay in whilst using your body weight to perform controlled movements. By controlled I mean by someone has a lot more strength than I do. All in all it was a great class, and if I wasn’t so terrible at committing to a time and place I most likely would do it again.
No Lights, No Lycra: Never something I’m usually keen to do without a few drinks under my belt, No Lights No Lycra is where the windows are blacked out though you can see a few peeps of light. Mostly you can’t see anything. Then the music starts and you have about 50 people in the room gyrating and flinging themselves around moving to the rhythm of whatever they feel like- as no one can see you! After 90 minutes it’s certainly a work out, but something I felt is better off left to a night out in the city.
HIIT: Created by Les Mills this isn’t for the faint hearted. In fact someone should send out a memo to ensure your will is up to date because afterwards you really honestly feel like slipping into a sweat induced coma. I wasn’t game enough to try this myself, but from what I’ve heard, it’s sprints, followed by burpees, followed by everything painful you can think of. To me it sounded like a horror movie. But if you want to get fit fast, this is a sure bet. With a bpm maxing out at around 175 during her session you will certainly be working off any of those chocolate bars.
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