Day 59 ! Mother-of-all-Circuits

Circuit training. Almost sounds boring, eh? I had to spice up the title a little, else you wouldn’t be here would you? And this is a class worth reading about. Actually, it’s a class worth attending, but one step at a time my little ones.

Instructor Michael's class today was like Book of Mormon in circuits form - witty, offensive and incredibly funny. If you are easily offended or prefer your class instructors politely encouraging and happy clappy complimentary, you should avoid this class. But, if you can take a bit of banter and just want to work out, then Instructor Michael is like no other instructor I've had so far. There were references to lady humps, buttocks and a mention of sex even came up – all of which were taken by the class in the light-hearted manner it was intended. (Subtle/not-so-subtle disclaimer). And jokes aside, he will make you work in that hour and he will make you work hard.

If Instructor Michael's refreshing, raw and direct style is not reason enough alone to try the class, then try it for the class itself.

Let’s be honest, circuits classes are usually pretty standard. You'll do some star jumps, a few lunges, perhaps some burpees if you’re (un)lucky and certainly some squats. Probably you’ll use some handweights and do some bicep curls, a few tricep dips and a deadlift or two. You'll work out if you're feeling brave and you can slack if you're feeling a bit lazy, no-ones really counting how many reps you do.

But then you try this Mother-of-all-circuits class. It started harmlessly enough and it was during the warm-up neck stretch that I noticed there were no circuit stations set up - no exercises written on A4 sheets, no collection of dumb bells in one corner. So when Instructor Michael pointed at two ppl and then pointed to each side of the room, I was really confused. Then, to my surprise (/mild horror), the two chosen ones started picking members of the class, one by one. Yep, primary school, don't-pick-the-fat-kid-to-be-in-your-team stylee. (And no, I wasn't the last one picked and I'm sure that had nothing to do with Instructor Michael telling the chosen ones to pick a girl mid-way though the selection process).

Right, to the point. We're in teams. We did some mini-relay races. Then some more, with press-ups in between lengths (I quote "full ones, the ones on your knees don't count."). And some more. Yes, there was an air of competitiveness. So yes, I ran my sockies off. There's nothing like having a gaggle of majority guys cheering/ pushing you to get you to miraculously find that inner motivation.

Obviously the class was not just relay runs (thankfully - it would have been impossible to continue at that pace...or so I thought) and we did move onto circuits. Instructor Michael calls out "mats and benches!" And within 1-minute, an array or the old wooden school benches and big, soft crash mats are arranged throughout the dojo. But even with simple equipment, 8 extreme exercises are possible. Star jumps and jumping lunges were on the crash mats (so much harder!), squats were down until your bum touches the bench (that's one way to get people down lower on their squats) and push-ups holding a bench from the underside (you had to be there) – to name but a few.

By the end, you are trying to find a section of the dojo mat that is not covered in sweat to do your folding sit-up (that’s hands to feet at the same time – kill.er). It may sound gross but it’s all part of the charm – expect to work out, sweat and work out some more.

The Need To Know:

- Where: The Tokei Fitness Centre (www.tokeicentre.org)

- Nearest Station: London Bridge (7mins)

- When: Circuits on Tues/Thurs 18.00 – other classes available

- How Much: Day membership £10 else no-contract (yay!) monthly memberships available.

  

The Want to Know:

- Who’s it For: For those who want straight-up, take no prisoner class

- Sweat Scale: 9/10.

- Strength / Cardio / Flexi / Tone: Mainly cardio and some toning

- Complexity: 7/10

- Fun Factor: 8/10

- Changing Facilities: Toilets, showers and a sauna I noticed this time!

- Instructor Inspiration: 8/10. Don’t take no sugar-honey-iced-tea

The Stats:

- Total Time: 42mins (should have been around 52 but fat wrist syndrome stopped the watch).

- Calories Burnt: 304. Hello 3^rd place, only after Day 53 Frame Camp and Day 42 Sweat Factory. Leader of circuit / bootcamp classes so far! Probably closer to 375 for the class.

- Average Heart Rate: 133bpm of recorded time, average will be higher.

- Max Heart Rate: 168bpm

Expect to look awful after class

That highest heart rate mark is 160bpm!

Day 58 ! XtendBarre @Heartcore

When I find something that I like, nay, love I’ll stick to it. I won’t get bored easily. Usually applicable to food – I happily ate the Leon chilli chicken box every Monday-to-Friday for lunch for about 2 weeks, much to the bemusement of my ex-colleagues. And I only stopped because I foolishly looked up the nutritional information and realised that the box was almost 700 calories. That’s almost the same as a McChicken Sandwich and medium MaccyD fries, I wrote to Leon, and besides, if you add up all the individual components of the box (this was back when they still sold the rice and slaw as sides and you could calculate the chicken from the with/without chicken salad), it doesn’t add up to 700 calories! It’s un-creamy coleslaw, brown rice and some sauceless (but delicious) chicken! Something came back about proportions being different, lunch being the main meal of the day and  it being a validly healthy lunch choice. Anyho, needless to say, I still have the chilli chicken box but can’t help but feel a little guilty each time.

So, I’m back at Heartcore - the hidden gem (not for much longer!) from Day 56 TRXCore where I tried the much-more-difficult-than-it-looks-in-those-google-videos TRX Suspension class. I would’ve gone back to try TRXCore again but then that wouldn’t make for a very interesting review and someone made up some rules about trying different classes (ppff) so here I am, at Heartcore’s XtendBarre class.

To change it up a little (and nothing to do with the close proximity to Maison Blanc), I went to the Hampstead studio today. True to the Heartcore vibe, the studio was bright, open and quite spacious – some good use of space here, with no reception area per-say and the XtendBarre class taking place in between the reformer pilates machines.

Instructor Amy is a petit little ball of fitness energy - this is instructor inspiration defined – my main thought stream throughout the class was “if.i.pulse.a.little.higher.or.push.a.little.harder.i.might.look.like.her.must.push.harder.must.pulse.higher.must.also.remember.to.breathe.” It might be weird to mention but I also found her instructor voice (probably similar to normal voice too) particularly soothing, so much so that I made a mental note to mention it. So there we go.

At the start of the class, each mat is laid out with 2 little weights (1kg) and less-little weight (1.5kg). 1kg? Pish-posh I thought, I’m better than that. It turns out, I’m not. The standing exercises we started with were non-stop and we were balancing, pulsing and pushing until one side reached exhaustion before switching sides. All I’m going to say is, 1kg was enough.

The second part of the class was at the barre and in contrast to the previous ballet barre classes I’ve tried (Day 29 Frame Method and Day 47 Barrecore), I found this class a bit more ballet-esque – between the moves, the focus on posture (even down to pointing/flattening of feet) and our “frames,” I did enjoy the attempted elegance although I likely looked more like a baby panda trying to ballet.

We ended on some mat work abs exercises but these were fairly standard – by then end, I was happy to float my achey, but satisfied leg muscles to the incense-filled changing rooms for a quick shower and head on over to Maison Blanc for a delicious sandwich that I’m hoping didn’t have more calories than the chilli chicken box.

The Need To Know:

- Where: Heartcore Hampstead (http://www.heartcore.co.uk)

- Nearest Station: Hampstead – Northern Line (30seconds)

- When: A few XtendBarre classes throughout the week (I actually went on Friday), else Pilates, Kettlecore and CycleCore

- How Much: Single class £27 (ouch) but they let you try first class for free and have multi-class packages which make it cheaper

- Special Note: Other studios at Notting Hill, Kensington and Chelsea (See Day 56 TRXCore at Chelsea)

  

The Want to Know:

- Who’s it For: For those who like low-impact, ballet-barre toning classes

- Sweat Scale: 6/10.

- Strength / Cardio / Flexi / Tone: Toning

- Complexity: 7/10

- Fun Factor: 7/10.

- Changing Facilities: As with Chelsea, a few lovely showers, incense-filled toilets and lovely changing areas.

- Instructor Inspiration: 10/10. Small but strong!

The Stats:

- Total Time: 54mins

- Calories Burnt: 171 (did not negate my post-workout sandwich)

- Average Heart Rate: 97pm

- Max Heart Rate: 123bpm

Instructor Amy = Inspiration!

Day 57 ! Powerplates

Today, someone asked me whether I was a personal trainer (blush). They said I looked fit (double blush - no-one said that on Day 11 MMA Circuits, that's for sure). Maybe they weren't wearing their glasses or perhaps it's because I only had a potato salad for dinner last night. But whatever, I'm taking it and of course I'm in a wonderful mood now. And that's not the only reason. Today, in only 25minutes, I have apparently achieved almost 100 minutes worth of exercise. Now those are nice numbers. Like finishing a 2-hr report in 30mins, or having twins - it's just time efficient.

Today was a powerplate class at the Powertone studio in Chelsea. Just off King's road dahling. Without the billboard outside, it’s easy to miss and even inside the mall, you have to navigate through the renovations (which I assume are temporary) to get to the studio. But once you're there, you'll be welcomed by Instructor Brian (who is also Studio Manager Brian), who constantly wears a big, friendly smile and is more than happy to make sure you get the most out of your 30-minute session. The studio has 4 power plate machines, what looked like a mix of running / crosstraining machine (which I forgot to ask about) and a small chill-out area with sofas and a couple changing cubicles.

There's not much faffing around (a good thing too, we like time efficiency and cost efficiency) - I arrived a bit early so Brian ran through the technicals and physics of a powerplate machine, which was most interesting - did you know the different buttons control the frequency (number of vibrations per second) and vibrating altitude of the plate? And there's a button to control the airbag in case a, well let’s say a bigger boned person uses the powerplate? Knowing what it’s doing (making your muscles work 4x harder) and why it’s good for you (making your muscles are working 4x harder) does give you a better feeling as you’re doing the exercises. Education is knowledge and knowledge is power!

Once you get used to the vibration of the plates during the exercises, Instructor Brian explained that you can make exercises harder and harder, either with additional equipment (medicine balls, kettlebells etc) or upp-ing the vibration. One key A-ha! moment was when he explained that when doing standing exercises, knees should be kept soft - if you lock your knees when you stand up, the vibration shoots to your head and makes your teeth chatter which is a tad unpleasant (so don’t lock our your knees!). 

We had 3 students today – myself, the lovely Dagma (she was the nice lady who complimented me. Blush.) and Paul (who looked a bit like he could’ve been a slightly older Colin Farrell). Because of the small class (there are only 4 machines after all), Instructor Brian could go round each of us, giving us different exercises, making it quite a tailored session.

One final piece of advice, which I had mentioned in a previous post and shall repeat - one should not use powerplates with a full bladder. The consequences could be simply disastrous.

The Need To Know:

- Where: Powertone Studios (www.powertonestudios.com)

- Nearest Station: Sloane Square (6 mins)

- When: Classes pretty much all day, Mon-Sat

- How Much: Single class £20 but you can try first class for free and have multi-class packages which make it cheaper

- Special Note: Other studios at Battersea and Mayfair

  

The Want to Know:

- Who’s it For: For those who just don’t have the time

- Sweat Scale: 6/10.

- Strength / Cardio / Flexi / Tone: Toning

- Complexity: 7/10

- Fun Factor: 6/10.

- Changing Facilities: I’m not sure whether there are showers but there are a couple changing cubicles and a toilet just outside the studios.

- Instructor Inspiration: 7/10. Knowledgeable and friendly!

The Stats:

- Total Time: 31mins

- Calories Burnt: 109

- Average Heart Rate: 98bpm

- Max Heart Rate: 152bpm

Bless Dagma and her shaky photo-taking!

Can you see where the medicine ball kicked in?

Day 56 ! TRXCore @Heartcore

Hidden gems are the best (closely followed by iced gems, fondly remembered from those happy break-times at school, around the same time when I could order 2 McDonald burgers at the weekend - but never a meal, the drink and fries were a waste of money, said Mummy and Daddy - without having to suffer the consequences or guilt. God bless youthful metabolism).

In my many (many) hours spent on google (why has someone not created a search engine for drop in fitness classes?), I thought that I had come across pretty much all the general fitness studios in London. We are on Day 56 after all. (Day 46 Diva Dance was only 10 days ago, can you believe? Day 33 Aerial Silks, only a few weeks and Day 6 Pole Dancing, well that, and Day 1-3 Fatcamp,a lifetime ago!).  But nay, NAY, I tell you, only last week my friend tells me about a place called Heartcore, which does reformer pilates, this great barre-class, a kettlebell class and a TRX class, which I hadn't heard of yet. Gasp, I tell ya. 

TRX Suspension – those black and yellow straps with loops at the end that hang from any heavy-and-fixed-to-floor-objects, looking a bit like luggage belts (or some strange contraption designed for torture). You’ve seen them. You didn’t know what to do with them. You ignored them.

Well, let me what you can do with them. You can, actually, torture yourself with them. If pain is weakness leaving the body (grr! She-Ra!), I am thrilled that those innocent-looking straps caused so much weakness to leave my body this morning. I am pretty sure I had no weakness left by the end, which was pretty awesome. If you’re going to stop reading here (but why?) the takeaway is go try the class – it’s hard (in a good way), you’re body will burn (in a good way) and I’m guessing muscles will ache tmrw (in a good way)!

Cool, calm and collected, Instructor Richard from Hungary peacefully called out exercises as us 5 girls grunted and groaned more than the Sharapova vs. Larcher De Brito match. The most tricky exercises (for me) were those that involved your feet in the loops and facing down – i.e. being in a press-up position with your feet suspended. Now, I was proud to say that I could do a full press-up and could hold my own in the press-ups section of any bootcamp / circuits session. But after trying a couple of exercises with feet suspended (alternating straight press-ups with pikes/downward dog kind of poses), I realise that there is still a long way to go. When your legs are suspended, the whole body needs to work doubly hard to balance and stay strong. I shamefully had to stop mid-way through some of the exercises because I just.couldn’t.go.on. Upper body exercises with the TRX, involved leaning at an angle and using the straps to pull your body up (like a rower or bicep curl) or lean it forwards with your arms outstretched above your head.

But now, post workout (and celebratory post-workout lunch of silk handkerchief pasta with white Bolognese sauce mmm mmm!), I’m thinking that it was such a good core workout that if I tried that a couple times a week, I will have abs of steel and can actually become She-Ra. So I have decided to go back one day, maybe after the 80 days are finished, I will drag The Boy, who appeared to scoff when I explained how challenging the class was, along. Ha, he’ll be sorry…

The Need To Know:

- Where: Heartcore Chelsea (http://www.heartcore.co.uk)

- Nearest Station: Sloane Square (6mins)

- When: 2-3 TRXCore classes a day, 7 days

- How Much: Single class £27 (ouch) but they let you try first class for free and have multi-class packages which make it cheaper

- Special Note: Other studios at Notting Hill, Kensington and Hampstead!

  

The Want to Know:

- Who’s it For: For those who don’t like messing about with weak toning classes

- Sweat Scale: 7/10.

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

- Complexity: 7/10

- Fun Factor: 6/10. It’s more serious toning than happy faffy fun.

- Changing Facilities: A few lovely showers, incense-filled toilets and lovely changing areas. Probably much nicer than your bathroom at home.

- Instructor Inspiration: 7/10. Solid class from a solid teacher – just remember when you’re hating him that he’s doing it for your own good!

The Stats:

- Total Time: 53mins

- Calories Burnt: 218

- Average Heart Rate: 108bpm

- Max Heart Rate: 158bpm

You won't be smiling so much during class! But will be after!

Day 55 ! Cardio Kettlebells @Frame

Disclaimer: I have not been paid by Frame (in cash, classes or Vita Coco water cartons) for any posts. Because I know what you're thinking. Frame? Again? Really, Paula? Are you Framedicted? Framesessed? It's true, we have become a bit Frame-focused recently but there is a good reason for this. In fact, nay, there are 3.

1. Frame has a.lot of classes. From their funky signature classes (Day 29 Frame Method, Day 53 FrameCamp) to fun dance classes (Day 49 DanceFit- guest reviewed!) to workout cardio classes (Day 42 Sweat Factory), not to mention a host of yoga, pilates and mum-dedicated classes, there must be at least one class that you will enjoy.

2. Frame has an good booking system. You can book online from 2 weeks before (and up to at least an hour before a class if you're looking for last-minute availability), see if classes are full, on wait list or have 1 or 2 spaces left and cancel without penalty with 12-hrs notice. They are flexible whilst also trying to make you more flexible (physically).

3. The place is fun and trendy. It exudes the East London, rough 'n' ready, hippety hip vibe and best of all, it’s all for fitness!

For this 80 day challenge, for different classes / mixing it up and arranging classes last minute (me? Don’t I plan everything in weeks in advance?), Frame has been a life-saver. In fact, one could even try an 80-day challenge at Frame alone probably.

Cardio Kettlebells with the furiously fit Instructor Diana is another solid class from Frame. Using little colourful kettlebells, we were led through a series of exercises, lifting the kettlebells to the side, to the front, above our heads, swinging them from side to side, weaving them through out legs. Don’t be deceived by the bright cutesiness of the kettlebells though, after 40 minutes of almost non-stop lifting, swinging and pumping, those little dears won’t be so cute anymore. But they will have done their job as Cardio Kettlebells jumps to 3^rd place on the calories-burnt-per-minute leaderboard, pushing yesterday’s Day 54 Metabolic Conditioning, down to 5^th. Which means Frame currently takes the top 3 on the calories-burnt-per-minute leaderboard (1^st being Day 53 Frame Camp at 8.3 calories/min, 2^nd being Day 42 Sweat Factory and 3^rd being today’s cardio kettlebells). 25 days left, will Frame keep the top spot?!

The Need To Know:

- Where: Frame Shoreditch

- Nearest Station: Shoreditch High Street (4mins)

- When: Various classes all day, 7 days

- How Much: £6.50 off-peak/£10 peak if you have a top-up card, else pay-as-you--go and all-inclusive memberships available

- Special Note: You can purely pay as you go but it’s worth having a to-up card to benefit from slightly cheaper per class fees.

  

The Want to Know:

- Who’s it For: For those who fancy a fun but serious cardio workout

- Sweat Scale: 7/10.

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

- Complexity: 7/10

- Fun Factor: 8/10

- Changing Facilities: A few showers and toilets in the changing rooms

- Instructor Inspiration: 8/10. Still the definition of fit.

The Stats:

- Total Time: 41mins

- Calories Burnt: 294

- Average Heart Rate: 138bpm

- Max Heart Rate: 158bpm

So Small, So Cute. (The kettlebells, obviously)

Hello, 3rd place!