When it comes to fitness, 2014 is all about fun. Forget slogging it out for hours on the treadmill, it's time to think outside the box (or gym, as it were). Whether it's taking up a sport you loved as a kid, attempting a new hobby (trapeze, anyone?) or going to a rave class at Frame, this year your goal is to find a form of exercise that's more play, less work.
Read on for ELLE’s round-up of the best fun-filled classes out there…
Sleek is genius in so many ways. First you don’t have to leave the comfort of you own home, via video conferencing the founders - former ballerinas Flik and Victoria - train you through a laptop. More interactive than a DVD, as they can see you they can correct your moves along the way. So what is it? Well, Sleek Technique is a mat-based workout with ballet-inspired moves that helps you hone a lean body and better posture.
At HydroFit you get your own water cabin complete with underwater bike, hydro jets, the choice of music or video, as well as Bluetooth headsets so you can make private phone calls (very multi-tasking). The idea is you can walk, jog or cycle in the water while your body is pummeled by jets. You burn a minimum of 300 calories in 30minutes and the hydro massage boosts circulation to improve the appearance of cellulite. This is ideal for anyone with injuries who can’t run or cycle on land.
Skinny Bitch Collective (that we call SBC for short) is full of lean, fit (not skinny) women. The trainer Russell takes a playful approach to the 45-minute classes with games like tug of war, dispersed with unusual and challenging exercises like crawling (harder than it sounds) and one-legged burpees.. Here two team ELLE staffers are working pretty much every muscle playing tug of war; their tagline is 'Come Play With Us' and it is fun, honest.
What sets the Speedflex training system apart is the specialist machines, which automatically respond to and create resistance levels based on the amount of force you apply, allowing you to work at your own pace. The machines only work concentric muscle contraction (the movement that shortens the muscles); whereas traditional free weights also work on eccentric muscle contraction, the lengthening movement that tears the muscles leading to aching next day and bulk over time.
The circuit workout is a form of HIIT – high-intensity interval training – so you do intense burst of exercises such as lat pulldowns and shoulder presses, which raise your heart rate for calorie burn and help create a leaner body. Team ELLE is hooked.
Frame is a fitness studio with a difference. The classes are erm, unusual with Jane Fonda Tribute, Bend it like Barbie and Rebounding (aerobics on those little trampolines); they were also the studio that made the rave workout so popular.
The latest addition to the line-up is hot body – a high intensity workout in a hot (not Bikram hot, but pretty toasty) room. It’s low impact cardio (so good for joints) with high energy intervals and also a stretching segment to help with posture. Oh, and like all Frame classes the soundtrack is ridiculously good.
Did you ever, as a child, dream of being a trapeze artist? Well, at Flying Fantastic you can see your dream realised, almost. Choose from Aerial Pilates, Yoga, Hoop and more. The novelty of learning a new, fun skill (that looks pretty darn impressive) will distract from the fact the classes make for a pretty good full body workout.
Flying Fantastic, £20 for a one off class, £16 if purchased as a part of a package.
Hotpod Yoga is just as it sounds, yoga in a hot pod. The pod is inflatable and pops up at different venues around the country. It’s not quite as hot as Bikram at 38 degrees but you definitely sweat. The warmth helps keep muscles supple so you’re able to dig that little deeper to achieve positions you might not have been able to if you were cold. The yoga itself is more physical than meditative – you’ll burn at least 700 calories in an hour - so you really feel like you’ve had a good workout.
You know that Friends episode where Monica takes up tap dancing and can’t grasp the moves but goes for it anyway? This class is for the Monica’s of the world. Fierce was created by South African dance instructor Teva Scarborough. And she says, ‘A lot of people believe they can’t dance if they are unable to perform the moves perfectly. If you look at traditional tribal cultures everyone is involved in the dancing’.
The dance moves are all natural like swinging, stamping, kicking, jumping and twisting, there’s a little bit of everything – ideal for body toning and working your cardiovascular system. It’s the new Zumba.
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