I've been to the gym so many times this week! Today at lunch made my fourth visit and I am so excited that I do not have to go this afternoon! It hasn't been too bad, just different from my usual routine of going home and relaxing while watching TV and eating bon-bons.
Monday I had planned to do a class during lunch, but it was cancelled, so I had to go in the afternoon. First I got on this crazy elliptical machine that we call Robocop. This machine really kicks butt. The first time I tried it I could only stand it for 10 minutes. That was on the lowest setting. On Monday I set it for 12 minutes to challenge myself a little. Even though my lungs were somewhat uncomfortable, I was doing okay and really burning calories. When the 12 minutes were up, the standard five minute cool down started up so I just kept churning away. That made 17 minutes, which was quite an improvement from my first time with Robocop. From there I moved to a spinning bike and challenged myself for another 20 minutes.
On Tuesday, I wasn't able to attend the upper body class during lunch because a major storm was tearing through the area at that time. (I'm not kidding! It looked like a hurricane outside and straight-line winds of 65 mph were recorded in Rockledge) Once again, I trooped over to the fitness center after work. This time I attended a class with my friend and WOW teammate, Becky. BOSU Your Muscles is a cardio and strength training class that uses a BOSU Balance Trainer.
The Balance Trainer is like an exercise ball that's been cut in half with a platform on the bottom. You can use it dome-side-up for cardio, lower body strength, or core moves. Or, you can turn it over and use the platform side for upper body exercises, like push-ups, or more core moves, like planks.
Our instructor had about 15 of them lined up in a row. We ran straight across them, ran sideways across them, did squats across them and jogged on top of them. It was a heck of a workout, but fun. Most of the other attendees go every week and are much more skillful with the BOSU. I'll go a few more times, but once I'm playing tennis again, I'll have to miss the class.
On Wednesday I had a WOW nutrition class on meal planning so I had to go to the gym in the afternoon once again. I was feeling sort of tired and lazy. I chose a regular elliptical machine and spent 30 minutes on it, trying to keep up a decent pace. Once I had finished with that, I felt bad about feeling lazy, so I tried out a Stepmill machine. Basically, it's like walking up the down escalator. Not quite as bad as climbing stairs, but still pretty hard. I managed 6 minutes then threw in my towel.
Finally, today I was able to do a lunchtime class. And I was the only one who showed up! Fortunately, the instructor lead me and I sort of had a personal training routine. Every class ends with 15 minutes of core work. Since there were only the two of us, the trainer suggested we use the exercise hula hoops. Now, let me explain that never in my life have I been able to keep a hula hoop going for more than one revolution. Well, the exercise hoops are larger and weighted, which helps. I was having the usual trouble and was ready to quit almost immediately, but the instructor kept at me and suddenly… I was doing it! I had that hoop going 'round and 'round!
It's supposed to be real good for trimming the waist, so I will keep at it until I can do it continuously for as long as I want.
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