Class 6: Zumba

If you like to "shake it like a salt shaker" or "pop it like it's hot," then definitely try out Zumba-- even if you don't have the "moves like Jagger."

This class is devoted to dancing.

Zumba starts at 5 p.m. on Sunday and lasts an hour in Studio 11.  Meredith B. is the instructor.

Meredith teaches this class on Sunday evenings, and she also teaches three of the other Zumbas the TRECS offers.  Zumba is offered everyday but Saturday when there are no classes at all.

About twenty people showed up to the class, and all of them were girls.  Generally, the Zumba classes fill up fast, and people have to show up early so they can actually get in because of the 35-person class limit.  In this case, arriving a little before 5 p.m. is sufficient.

Be sure to wear clothes that you can dance in and shoes that have good traction.

In Zumba, being the new person can put you at a disadvantage.  Meredith has routines to certain songs that she plays at each of her classes.  Therefore, the new person has to learn all of the dance moves while most of the people there are already familiar with them.  If it's your first time, don't panic if you mess up a lot.  Make sure you can see Meredith, who clearly shows and tells you what to do.

Some of the songs that were played during Zumba included Shakira's "Hips Don't Lie," Maroon 5's "Moves Like Jagger," Brittney Spears' "Till the World Ends," Fun.'s "We Are Young," V.I.C.'s "Wobble," and some other rap and pop songs.

The routines to these songs are different, but all of the dance moves are repeated throughout the song.  Meredith incorporated squats, high knees, glute kicks, the grapevine, clapping, sidestepping, shaking, skipping, arm movements, etc. into the song dances.  

Zumba ended with stretches and an abs routine.  The abs portion included crunches, Russian twists, penguin waddles and other similar exercises.

Don't be scared off by this class because it involves dancing.  Everyone had a lot of fun just letting loose.  You will definitely sweat and get a good workout too.

Class 5: Box and Sculpt

Sometimes you just have to release all that inner anger and frustration you have pent up inside your body.  This class will provide you with that much needed catharsis.

Or, it will just burn off the food and drink causalities from your Thursday night out.  

If you like to switch up your workout routines often, definitely try this class.  The first half is devoted to kickboxing, and the second part is all about body sculpting.  People who rarely work out should not try this class until they are slightly in shape.  

Box and Sculpt begins at 3 p.m. on Friday and lasts an hour in Studio 11.  Briana is the instructor.  Due to an event in Studio 11, for this Friday only the class was relocated to a different studio.

Briana has a passion for kickboxing, and it clearly showed during the class.  She is very vivacious and loves getting feedback from the people she is instructing.

Just fewer than ten girls showed up, so just be sure to make it to the class at 3:00.  For this class, we used a mat, heavy and light set of weights and an aerobics board.  Definitely bring a bottle of water.

The class began with marching in place, grape vining, side stepping and other activities to get warmed up. 

During the first half of the class, kickboxing was the focus.  This is a great cardio workout. Since I have never done kickboxing before, it took me some time to get used to all the footwork and arm movements. 

A lot of the time everyone did the boxer's shuffle, where you hop from foot to foot.  Your calves will be burning by the end from the lactic acid buildup. We also did side punches, forward punches, roundhouse kicks, jabs and hooks.  Briana would start off with simpler moves and then combine them into one routine.  It's okay if you don't know exactly what you are doing.  Just do what you are comfortable with. We also squatted and lunged our way through a good few minutes of the class.  Towards the end of the kickboxing segment, everyone took turns side kicking a punching bag for 30 seconds.

Briana gave a short break in between the box and sculpt portions.

The sculpting segment was all about toning muscles.  There were more squats and lunges paired with bicep curls, and then there were tricep dips (done on the aerobics board) and tricep kickbacks. 

If you hate doing crunches, you will probably not enjoy the last part of the class.  Leg raises, side crunches, regular crunches, penguin waddles (to help get rid of that muffin top), bridges.... All of these exercises definitely made the abs and glutes work hard.  You can follow Briana's pace, but you can also just do what feels right.

During the last five minutes of Box and Sculpt, the instructor led everyone in stretches.  The cool down relaxed the muscles and lowers the heart rate.

You might not have the perfect Chuck Norris roundhouse kick during the boxing segment of this class, but what is the harm of trying? Box and Sculpt will burn lots of calories and keep you in the exercise zone.

Class 4: Body Blast Boot Camp

Boot camp.  It's no joke.  And neither is this class.

So if you're looking for an hour workout session that will kick your booty into shape, definitely try this fitness class.  However, it is not a class for the faint of heart.  You must be active and ready to push yourself through the workout.

Body Blast Boot Camp begins at 6:15 p.m. on Sunday and lasts an hour in Studio 11.  Meredith B. is the instructor.

Meredith teaches this class on Sunday evenings, but a different instructor teaches the Wednesday night boot camp.  Meredith encourages everyone throughout the class to keep going and will correct you on your form if you are doing something wrong.

Only a handful of people showed up, so just be sure to make it to the class at 6:15.  Both guys and girls showed up to the session.

Meredith set up all the weights, mats, etc.  Therefore, you do not have to worry about grabbing the correct items.

The class began with jogging, side shuffling, and skipping around the studio to get the heart rate up.  After, stretches were done to loosen the body.

The next 20-25 minutes consisted of rotating through three stations two times. Meredith took the time to explain all the stations and then helped people who needed it.  The first station involved a mix of sit-ups, lunges, push-ups and tiptoeing.  The second station had squat kicks, some footwork moves (such as jumping over things and fast feet in and out of a cloth ladder) and lifting small weights.  The third station included jumping jacks, inch worms (crawling your feet up to your hands and then your hands from your feet), weight lifting and side lunges.

The second major portion of the class is partner work.  There are leg exercises and ab workouts that fill the majority of this time.  There are simple sit-ups, and there is the more intense drill that involves swinging the feet up and down with a partner helping.

Right around the time you think you're done, think again. Next the class scaled the TRECS staircase to the top floor and ran three laps around the track.  This was definitely the hardest thing to achieve since fatigue started to set in.

After the final intense part of Body Blast Boot Camp, everyone returned to the studio and stretched.

If you are looking for a hard workout, then definitely show up to the Sunday night boot camp.  Just be sure you are ready for your sweat to be dripping to the floor.