Dashing Dish

I grew up being probably the most ‘un-athletic’ person in the world.  Envision a sports ball of any kind flying in the air and there I am running and covering my head for shelter.  I thought I was destined to HATE anything fitness related for the rest of my life.  That all changed when I was forced to take an aerobics class in order to graduate from high school.

It was in this aerobics class that we did a variety of workouts from kickboxing to hip-hop dancing.  I learned that if you find the ‘thing’ that works for you, it really can be fun and even take your mind off the fact that you are working out!

Personally, I LOVE kickboxing…and here is where I need to go on a bit of a tangent about one type of kickboxing in specific.  The best kickboxing out there is called Turbo Kick (aka Turbo Jam) created by the wonderful Chalene Johnson.  She has created a kickboxing workout that is paired with amazing music and high energy ‘choreographed’ kickboxing routines.  You can either get the workout DVDs, which can be found at www.beachbody.com or www.turbokick.com.  Or, another option is a to join a group class.  Many people have been trained to do turbo kick at fitness clubs all over the US… so check out your local fitness clubs to see if they hold any turbo kick classes in your local gym!

This particular kickboxing workout is great because it is always changing rounds so you never get bored.  The music, well it’s simply amazing… It is current and is really motivating. The best part is that your mind is always so busy learning the moves and you’re having so much fun dancing that you never notice your working out! Oh and did I mention it burns like 500 calories an hour!?  So what I’m saying is… if you have never tried it… try it! You wont regret it! It has changed the way I look at working out…and I’m clearly not the only one.  It has a pretty big following! (Just YouTube turbo kick and you can see for yourself!)

Anyways, off my tangent… there are also many other ways of getting fit and it doesn’t have to involve treadmills or flying balls of any sort! ;) Just find what ‘works’ for you, and go for it!

In addition, I would advise to switch things up as often as possible (maybe even a few times a week). I mean think about it… who wants to do the SAME thing every day!? It gets boring, and your body gets bored (i.e.: plateau)! So for example, I do kickboxing 1-2 times a week, a bootcamp class at a gym 3 times a week (AFS in Ann Arbor Michigan: {www.appliedfitsolutions.com}, which is also an AMAZING workout that got me toned and ready for my wedding!) and maybe take an hour long walk with my sister once a week!

The point is, a workout should NOT be boring or something you dread and if it is… find something new!  Be bold about it!  Go with some friends, try drop-in work out classes, and buy some workout DVDs ({www.collagevideo.com} is a great place to find them and preview them). Do whatever you can to get out of your comfort zone!  You never know… you might try something once and fall in love like I did with turbo jam!