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BOULDER, Colo. -
Flatiron Athletic Club, 505 Thunderbird Drive, Boulder, 303-499-6590, www.flatironathleticclub.com
Instructor: Stacey Anderson, of Boulder. Anderson has been active all her life (cross-country, soccer and track in school) and has been teaching since 1998, originally kickboxing. This year she started a triathlon-training group for women.
What is the workout? This is a sculpting class, focusing on strength and balance, using the Glide System, Bosu and hand weights. The first half of the class elevates the heart rate, but while doing strength-building moves.
What does it cost? A drop-in is $15.
Who does it? Class is usually 17 people, but there were only 11 the day I was there. Most are women, from 21 to 68 years old, with the average age of 40 to 50.
When:8-9:15 a.m. Thursdays.
Level:A variety of resistance options makes this class welcoming to all fitness backgrounds. Anderson rates it a six to nine on a 10-point scale.
"The level has to do with how well you can engage the muscles," Anderson says. "The weaker you are, the harder it is."
I would like to add, "The less of a morning person you are, the harder it is."
Which is why the class was an eight for me. My body does not function -- at all -- this early in the morning.
Format: The first half of the class is more cardio-intensive. The second half focuses on form and strength.
Equipment:Bosu, Gliders, hand weights, mat and balance bar, for stability when balancing. Sometimes tubes.
What to wear: Normal exercise clothes and shoes.
Muscles worked:This is a whole-body workout that starts, ends and has continuous stabilization of the core. Sometimes, you concentrate on the core, whereas other times you must use it in order to do the other moves safely and efficiently. Overall, the class is designed to be gentle on the joints.
One new move:Start on the floor, standing on one leg. Then, take it to the Bosu. If you feel confident, try it with your eyes closed. Good luck.
This class had a great abs exercise that I plan on incorporating into my regular workouts. Lie on your side, draped over the Bosu, legs straight. Stack one foot on top of the other. Put your arm that is closest to the ground on a Glider disc. Crunch sideways up, pulling the disc closer to your body as you crunch up, and farther away as you move down. Try to only touch the disc with your fingertips.
What's different:Don't underestimate the importance of balance work, Anderson says. Having good balance keeps your body strong and safe, especially as you get older.
Using all of these different toys for balance in so many crazy ways made this class distinctly different than anything I've tried before. Also, the fast-paced first half was a surprise. I was expecting a lot of standing still, but I got sweaty (much to my coworkers' dismay an hour later).
What I loved:Another participant with a heart-rate monitor on told me she burned about 800 calories in the class. Talk about a metabolism boost all day long.
What I didn't like: The time: 8 a.m. Are you kidding me? Who are these superheroes that are able to consistently wake up this early to exercise at this intensity? Not to mention I think rush hour is now more of a rush three-hours (7-10 a.m.), so I was a few stressful minutes late to class.
Inspiration for class: Anderson used to teach two Body Architect classes. She turned one of them into this class, making it less intense and intimidating to appeal to more people. (What? This was the easy class?) She started Glide, Balance and Sculpt about a year ago.
How I felt after the class:Hungry.
How I felt later:Hungry. Maybe there is something to this early morning workout thing. And I confess: My abs feel great.
-- Reported by Aimee Heckel.
Know of any interesting workouts? Tell us about them so we can check them out: heckela@dailycamera.com or 303-473-1359.
