Tuesday, 9 July 2013
Booked through the wondrous website of drop-in class that is Fitness-Freak, I was all revved up for Strut and Step. I'd mentioned back on Day 13 Princess Warrior and again on Day 52 Body Sculpt, the benefits of having a catchy class name. It's so simple but makes a huge difference. Had someone recommended an "aerobics" class, a "streetdance" class, or even heaven forbid a "step aerobics" (yawn) class, I likely would've said no - we are coming to the last few precious classes and I have to think carefully about which classes to do. But "Strut and Step"? I'm a sucker for intriguing sounding classes.
Just to clarify, this class is neither like a diva-esque class (Day 46 Diva Dance) or a step class (part of Day 45 20.20.20). This is a fun, funky urban dance class to current tunes, with an added focus on fitness moves. Today was one of the first (if not the first!) Strut & Step class ever and song of the day was Beyonce's Girls Who Run The World. It was a goodie. The routine was broken down well into easy-to-understand moves that were choreographed well by Instructor Mini to the music and taught at a good beginner's pace - repeated enough times so that you can really get the hang of the moves and work on the styling but not so much that you only learn 8-counts of music. The routine had quite a few height changes, from upright moves to lower lungey-type moves so that the fitness element came into play. It really is hard to describe the dance moves but let's say that it felt funky and, after running through the short routine a few times, you can almost feel like one of Beyonce's backing dancers (almost).
Instructor Mini Willets was a perfect beginner's class teacher - she explained the moves, showed them and would run through them faster and faster as the class picked it up. Also, she looks cool (and has a cool name), with funky leggings and style. After all, if you're going to learn streetdance, you want to learn from someone who looks the part. And despite teaching us "easy" moves (for her) - she made sure that they looked good. Also, after a slight technical hiccup thwarted our plans of dancing to continuous blaring music, she was able to hum/run through the words so that we could still learn the steps to the music.
Towards the end of the class, Instructor Mini explained that the mini routine we learnt was designed to eventually be the warm-up to the class so that as people got used to the moves, the warm-up would be an energy-filled, fast 'n' fun cardio blast to get everyone revved up for the actual routine. And I can imagine that being the case, as far as warm-ups go, it will be a goodie!
The Need To Know:
- Where: Gymbox Holborn (book through www.fitness-freak.com)
- Nearest Station: Holborn (2mins)
- When: Thursdays 19.30
- How Much: Drop-in £10
- Special Note: You do not have to be a Gymbox member to join the class if you book through Fitness-Freak
The Want to Know:
- Who's it For: For those who want fun, friendly, beginner's streetdance class
- Sweat Scale: 6/10
- Strength / Cardio / Flexi / Tone: Light Cardio
- Complexity: 7/10.
- Fun Factor: 7/10.
- Changing Facilities: Gymbox facilities - the works
- Instructor Inspiration: 8/10. Fun and friendly!
The Stats:
- Total Time: 55mins
- Calories Burnt: 191. No cardio section and it is still yoga...
- Average Heart Rate: 92bpm
- Max Heart Rate: 137bpm