Dare You To...

The following post is sponsored by FitFluential LLC on behalf of Les Mills.  As always, the opinions reflected below are entirely my own.

Senior year of college, I was a regular at the student gym's "BODY COMBAT" class.  This is where I fell in love with martial arts-style classes.  It was all about moving to the music, harnessing your inner strength, and kicking butt.   That class is still one of my favorites; I loved every minute and have missed it ever since.  Turns out, the folks that created the Body Combat classes have a slew of other group fitness programs that are offered at various locations throughout the country.  The company, Les Mills, has created 13 global group training programs, which now have millions of participants in over 15,000 gyms in 90 countries.

Their weights class, BODYPUMP®, debuted in New York Sports Clubs across NYC this week.They moved in with a bang; they are now offering an average of 130 classes every week at 36 NYSC locations... WOW.  Th…

We are jumping from one awesome workout to another!  The winner of last week's DMF Giveaway is Angela! She commented: 

Congrats, Angela!
Moving on, from booty-shaking to booty-blasting at Barry's Bootcampin New York City. Last week, you may have noticed some Tweets and Instagrams showcasing this kick-butt workout. Here's what went down:
I was pumped to try out Barry's Bootcamp for the first time this past week at a media workout sponsored by Chobani.  I'd heard of Barry's Bootcamp before, but really had no idea what to expect.  It was my very first bootcamp class, so I was a bit nervous going in!  All I knew was to expect strength AND cardio in one intense workout.  And that's just what we got.

The Barry's Bootcamp location in TriBeCa (one of many locations worldwide) was pretty impressive.  In the entryway, there was a small cafe/smoothie bar with various offerings.  In the bootcamp... studio? gym? giant room of equipment? we rounded up to get the part…

From ages 2-15, I took dance classes weekly. It included hip hop, tap, and jazz, and I enjoyed it year after year.
Because I loved dancing growing up and my affinity for group exercise classes, you'd think I might enjoy dance workout classes, right? You'd have been wrong. I'm not saying I never do them, but they're really not my favorite, probably because the options were few.  Zumba never did it for me; it felt forced and on occasion boring--the same moves, no matter what the music. There are some dance exercise classes that are great, but, as always, it depends entirely on the instructor.
Guess what? I've found a FANTASTIC instructor.

Lindi Duesenberg founded Dance Motivation Fitness (DMF) in January 2013 (just 7 months ago!) and it seems to be off to a great start. Last week, her team reached out, inviting me to sample the new DMF workout at DANY Studio in New York City, and I am so glad I said yes.


From the website: "Powered by awesome music and inspir…

Since the June Yoga Challenge, I've been going on and on and on about yoga, so I thought it might be time to go over the basics and (maybe) then I'll shut up about it.  If you're new to fitness, yoga is a great way to start moving your body, and if you're a seasoned athlete, yoga is often just what your body needs to really stretch, reduce injury, and gain extra balance.

What is Yoga?

Yoga is an ancient Indian practice through which a person integrates the body, mind, and spirit in order to be in harmony with himself and his environment.  Exercise, breathing, and meditation are the structures through which one attains balance in life.


Namaste is the recognition of others. "I bow to you," is what it means.  It's about two individuals connecting, spiritually.  "The light in me honors the light in you."


Why Practice Yoga?

There are many health benefits to incorporating yogainto your life.  The most well-known might be increased flexibility.  With eve…

An email made my ordinary Monday extraordinary.  I nearly jumped out of my seat when I read that I would be attending the grand opening of...

Reebok's new Fit Hub concept storein New York City.



It's located directly above Reebok CrossFit Fifth Ave, bringing to the facility fitness, nutrition, and product experts to help you find the perfect gear for your health, workout, and performance.  An experience like no other!


But that's not all.  Before the Grand Opening event, five FitFluential ambassadors -- Alfonso, Tina, Katelyn, Erika, and I -- would have the honor of taking a CrossFit class with the winners of the 2012 (and 2011) CrossFit Games: athletes Rich Froning and Annie Thorisdottir.


HOLY COW. 

For a year, I've been wanting and wanting to try CrossFit.  I read others' first experiences.  I learned about the functional movements and tried to incorporate some into my workouts.  I understood its greatness and the power of the community, but didn't belong to a b…

"Hot Yoga" views sweat as our body's natural healing mechanism.  The yoga practice, performed in a room kept at 95-105 degrees, opens your skin's pores, allowing the release of toxins.  This, combined with special breathing practices, makes for a powerful cleansing practice.


According to Powerflow, some benefits of Hot Yoga (and, in my opinion, yoga in general) include reduced back pain, improved posture, increased energy, lower blood pressure, glowing skin, clearer mind, less cravings for unhealthy habits, and improved reactions to stressors.

I've been enjoying fulfilling my June Goal to do yoga 3x/week via Courtney's Challenge, and morning yoga has become part of my regular routine.  Sooo... when an online coupon showed up in my inbox, I couldn't resist the opportunity to finally try the infamous hot yoga workout.  It was a great deal ($29 for a month of unlimited classes!), so although hot yoga is probably not the kind of thing I'd do on a daily ba…

In honor of my Wednesday morning spinning class (eee can't wait! It's been a whole week!), today we're talking about...

Spinning: the infamous, high-intensity, indoor cycling class.  Saddle up in a dark room, blast the music, and get your heart pumping.

I shared my love for group exercise--including Spinning--before.
I also showed you how my heart rate soars during my Spin classes; such a great interval workout!
I've also shared how fantastic it felt to get back to spinning after a couple weeks under the weather.

So, basically, since September, I've completely fallen for Spinning.  It's about time I share the details with you, anddare you to get into a class ASAP! It builds muscles, works cardio, and serves as a great cross-training workout for runners, too.  Easier on the knees than running, so good thing to try when you've got an injury that prevents you from running. (Consult your doctor, of course.)  OR... just do it because it's a great workout a…

Check out what Janetha at Meals and Moves has in store for the month:


LOVE IT!  As the writer of a blog based on the idea of trying new things, this totally appealed to me.

For the first week, I decided I would step out of my comfort zone by trying a new exercise class: ZUMBA!

I've written before about my love for group fitness classes and tips for entering a new class for the first time (see that post here).  I dared you to, and now it was my turn to do so, as well.  I've watched the Zumba class wrap up (often going overtime, grr) in my gym while I wait to enter Pilates.  This week, I put myself on the other side of the glass window.  Time to get dancing.

In I went.  Took my spot, listened to the music, watched the instructor, and got my groove on.  I really enjoyed the warm up; it felt good to just dance like no one's watching.  (It did, however, take a lot of courage to just let loose and pretend no one could see me.)  But fun!  Great!  I enjoyed!

Then, I got a little bo…