Small Steps to Fitness

I have worked out twice this week. On Tuesday it was a Zumba class and Wednesday it was cardio hip hop. I enjoyed both classes even though I often stumbled through the dance steps like an effeminate lush. I am glad my cohorts in this fitness journey did not laugh at me, especially Nicole who had a double dose of working out with me.

Tonight's class was full and brimming with diverse faces in terms of age, weight and race...... but not gender. After the sweat-inducing cardio segment, which had quite a bit of booty-shaking elements, the instructor had you choose a partner for some floor exercises. The items involved were a 7-pound medicine ball in your choice of red or yellow, and two floor mats. Our task with the medicine ball was to throw it to each other while seated on the mats with our feet touching. There was more to it than that but that was the main point of it. I must mention I was distracted by the weight of the ball.

My throws that lacked power (most of them) spurred Nicole to look at me incredulously and ask "Are you nervous or just afraid to really throw it?" Honestly I think I was having volleyball or softball flashbacks fearing that I would hit her in the head with it, knocking her unconscious, or it would bounce off her head and hit me in the face. I mean that has never happened in my life, but it could, right? I did become more comfortable with the exercise as time passed but I still threw the ball like the girly girl with limited athletic ability I am.

Our next floor exercise involved pushing down on your exercise partner's leg while she held her leg tight and resisted. I think I would need more arm strength for any partner I had to receive benefits from this exercise.

Thankfully my exercise partner was a good sport. I would have been quite uncomfortable if I had attended the class alone and had to select someone who was a stranger.

My experiences this week have persuaded me to purchase a group exercise pass at the Y for the dance-inspired classes and then attend the free classes offered by the Parks Department for the traditional strength/endurance/aerobic combo workouts.