Day 45 ! 20.20.20

Back on Day 34 Reggae Aerobics, I had a velly frustrating day when I arrived too late for a class (despite running like a maniac down Seven Sisters road), fell through the studio doors only to see the teacher signaling me to turn right round and get my sweaty late ass out the studio. Oh, the annoyance. But, thankfully, this daily exercise has given me a general positivity about life so I cross-trained for 30 minutes, got bored, brisk-walked for another 30 minutes to a more convenient station and concluded that it was a day lost for the 80days but not a total wasted day for exercise.

But a niggle that I had was that the class I missed was called 20.20.20 and I was intrigued by it. It was advertised as 3 different classes in one, working heart and lungs, increasing general fitness and maybe using weights and/or resistance bands - I thought this was a vague, hazy description which basically meant that the teacher had free rein but regardless, when else can you do three classes in one? Was it going to be boxing up a pole whilst dressed in a Gi (brazilian jiu-jitsu robe)? (Which are the current top 3 on the Most Fun (and Efficient) Fitivites leaderboard – See Compare Charts page). Or playing tennis up aerial silks with squash racquets?

I jest, it was obviously going to be nothing like that, though the aerial tennis sport does sound fun indeed, if it existed (it doesn’t – I checked). Instead, under the leadership of Instructor Pat, the 20.20.20 class was 20 minutes of aerobics, 20 minutes of salsa-type aerobics then 20 minutes of step body toning. I have to admit, when the class started, I thought I was mistakenly in a Zumba class (which would have been less than ideal as…well, been there, done that (Day 23 Zumba), but nay! I was wrong - Instructor Pat’s aerobics section just took a dance-y style. And there ain’t anything wrong with that – I’m a believer that any simple routine choreographed in time to music is fun. It might not be the most intensive exercise (or efficient use of time, if time is a constraint for you) but it will be at the very least, enjoyable.

After the aerobics section, we moved onto salsa, though the difference was quite slight - perhaps there was a bit more hip-shaking but it still took an entertaining dance theme. However, once the steps came out, the intensity increased. This may have been partly due to my choosing of weights that were arguably slightly too heavy but how was I to know that we would be doing non-stop arm exercises, while stepping! It’s lucky I can lift my arms to the keyboard to type up this post. When we were finally able to put down the weights (I’m expecting defined arm muscles by the end of the week. Too soon?), we had a mini, but solid abs section to finish off.

All in all, a light-hearted class. A class that you could go to with your Mum and you both would still have a workout – just be sure to push yourself on the weights section to get that heart rate up (if you’re wanting to burn those calories)!

The Need To Know:

- Where: Islington Tennis Centre (Part of Aquaterra) (http://www.aquaterra.org)

- Nearest Station: Caledonian Road & Barnsbury Overground (10mins)

- When: Tues 12.15 (55mins) at Tennis centre, other times at other Aquaterra entres

- How Much: Drop-in around £7.50 for single class

  

The Want to Know:

- Who’s it For: For those who fancy a shimmy with their exercise

- Sweat Scale: 6/10. Brought up by the step section

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

- Complexity: 6/10. Simple steps to follow

- Fun Factor: 6/10.

- Changing Facilities: Showers, toilets, smaller place than other Aquaterra leisure centres

- Instructor Inspiration: 6/10. Encouraging throughout!

The Stats:

- Total Time: 63mins

- Calories Burnt: 235. Same calorie burnt/minute as Day 35 Frame Cardiolates, surprisingly

- Average Heart Rate: 102

- Max Heart Rate: 153

I forgot to take a picture with Instructor Pat! Doh!