I am an avid lover of fitness classes. I came to this realization after two years of a love/hate relationship with gym memberships and many (failed) attempts to start jogging when I started going to group fitness classes at FSU’s Leach Recreation Center. The upbeat instructors, weekly schedules and variety of options kept me motivated and always learning to ways to stay fit- I was so motivated I was attending over four different classes a week. From HIIT, barre, step, yoga, Pilates and more, there was never an excuse not to get some type of exercise in. Then, of course, we were hit by COVID-19, and all group gatherings, including fitness classes, came to a sudden halt.
For the first few weeks of this change, I did no exercise and was feeling extremely unmotivated and frustrated. As I said before, I do not like running, and I get bored with lifting weights and have minimal equipment at home. I did not know what other options there were for me. After discussing my problem with my mom, she offered to share her account with me to an online fitness program that she is a virtual coach for called Beachbody. I admit, at first, I was extremely skeptical. I always felt silly doing online fitness videos, I wasn’t sure what kinds of classes I would enjoy and I was sure I would try a few and not keep up with it. Turns out, I was so wrong.
Well, not wrong at first. The first two classes I tried consisted of a core class that I did not enjoy, and the second was a “hip hop abs” class that was not my style. But Beachbody has something for everyone’s style. The first class I found that I and my roommate really enjoyed was a series of workouts called “Piyo” which is an intense mix of Pilates and yoga. These were super fun, but very challenging if you’re not experienced in either workout style (we are not.) Next, we tried a 30-day yoga retreat, which was nice because it was challenging and relaxing at the same time. Our absolute favorite class so far is called “Core de Force”- a cardio class that’s inspired by mixed martial arts combinations, and it is so much fun. There are 30 different classes and they range from 30 to 50 minutes. There are between six and twelve rounds per class, the rounds consist of three minutes each and each round switches between a challenging MMA combo and an even more challenging cardio “spike.” Each class leaves us dripping in sweat, completely out-of-breath and feeling amazing. With so much out of control around us right now, it feels good to be in control of our health and fitness and get out some of the tension by learning some crazy punches and kicks (don’t mess with us.) And when we’re too sore from a few days in a row of Core de Force, we take a day off and switch back to yoga!
Beachbody gave us so many options that there was just no excuse to be sitting on our couch in front of the TV when we could learn great workouts right in front of us. There truly is something for everyone, and each class has different intensity levels that you can follow along to. If you have the chance to try a class, I highly recommend it, it’s always fun to try learning something new and burn off those quarantine calories. If you can’t afford a program that requires a subscription or purchase, that’s okay too! So many fitness instructors are posting free workouts on Instagram and YouTube, and that’s another great option! If you are interested in learning more about Beachbody, you can click here!
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