Around The Fitness World In 80 Days: Day 13 ! Princess Warrior

There are people in the UK (according to the BBC), who named their child Justin Case. Anna Sasin. Barb Dwyer. Stan Still. Oh sigh. In New Zealand, a couple named their child Talula Does the Hula (and then lost custody of their child because of it). And there apparently (according to telegraph. All the best sources today!), used to be an Experts Exchange website where programmers could trade advice called www.expertsexchange.com. It doesn’t exist anymore, unsurprisingly – I doubt the programmer renewed that domain name once it expired.

The point is, a name is very important. For children, pets, websites and most important of them all, fitness classes. Of course. By now, it’s safe to say that I have looked up quite a lot of classes / timetables and schedules. You get used to seeing a lot of “circuits,” “body conditioning” and “run club”, which may be a great classes led by a great instructor but the names are a bit meh. Would you rather go to:

(i) Circuits or Cardio Disco Circuit?
(ii) Body Conditioning or The SuperChicks Workout?
(iii) Run Club (though I heart run club after Day 7 – Nike x Frame Run Club) or Couch Potato to 5km Dashing Diva?
(iv) Arms n abs or Bingo Wings and Belly Buster?

Exactly. Maybe similar classes but an entertaining name just makes you want to go. Like Princess Warrior. Now if that’s not an awesome name for a class, I don’t know what is. I forgot to mention, we’re in Edinburgh today. My hometown. Ahh. My lovely Auntie and Uncle from San Diego are visiting so I’ve popped back. But the blog continues! The search for fun fitness goes on (this time with Big Sis)! And Fitness Chicks provided. The only difficult part was choosing which of the cool classes on the timetable to pick…

Fitness Chicks is a studio for women to “make friends, sparkle and get fit whilst they giggle.” And the place does sparkle! From the moment you walk in, you are greeted giant smiles and happy people. Everyone we saw in the studio, instructor, classmates or receptionists, they were all smiley. Promoting a strong woman feeling, there is grease-esque pink ‘n’ black ladies’-chic décor throughout with pictures of power girls on the walls and inspirational quotes from Audrey Hepburn. And of course there’s a beauty salon too - what kind of ladies’ haven would be without one?

So, the Princess Warrior class was based on 10 exercises working the whole body. Including sprints across the room, triceps dips, kettlebell swings, burpees and sit-ups, we were encouraged to go as fast (or slow) as we wanted through the exercises while bubbly instructor Sarah cheered us on and some good ol’ classic top 40 tunes played in the background to pump you up. Push yourself as you run, squat, jump and lift and you will be justifiably proud of yourself after the 40minutes! And if you then donate blood after in the hospital just beside the studio, like Big Sis insisted, you can ride that proud-of-yourself-wave for a long while! (Time to confess, I had "slow flow" so couldn't pump out enough blood in the time so mine was rejected! Wasted, I tell ya!)

Now I’m looking forward to trying out some of the other classes next time I’m home – a trip to Fitness Chicks will leave you motivated, confident and you will certainly leave with a smile!

The Need To Know:

- Where: Fitness Chicks, Quartermile, Edinburgh (http://www.fitnesschicks.co.uk)

- Nearest Station: Edinburgh Train Station!

- When: Various 40-60mins cardio, toning, dancing, pilates classes throughout the week

- How Much: Drop-in classes £4-6, else various memberships available

The Want to Know:

- Who’s it For: For those ladies (sorry guys!) looking for a fun, relaxed place to work out.

- Sweat Scale: 7/10 if you push yourself.

- Strength / Cardio / Flexi / Tone: Strength and toning.

- Complexity: 4/10 Exercises are simple and effective

- Fun Factor: 8/10 Hardworking girlie fun.

- Changing Facilities: Cute changing rooms, showers, hairdryers, straighteners, lockers.

- Instructor Inspiration: 7/10. Smiles all the way!

The Stats:

- Total Time: 29mins (I only started timing after warm-up)
- Calories Burnt: 186 (Surprisingly similar to MMA Circuits though didn’t feel as strenuous)

- Average Heart Rate: 125bpm

- Max Heart Rate: 162bpm