Oh man...where do I even begin.
This place is AWESOME. I can already tell, and I have only taken one kickboxing class. I'm a kickboxing n00b, and they made me feel welcome and comfortable, despite my awkward n00biness.
I am by NO MEANS a person who likes working out (I LOATHE working out, hate it with a passion!), or lives a fitness lifestyle or any of that nonsense, but I signed up for a membership to this place immediately upon completing my first class(!!!). That has never happened to me before; I have NEVER wanted to pay money to do any sort of workout outside of the free trial or intro deal period. I've tried many different gyms and classes and studios and whatnot, and nothing has ever made me go "hhmm, I think I'll sign up for that!" besides this place.
No one pressured me to buy their membership (which is an AMAZING deal BTW), it was like they didn't even have to. The workout was THAT good, it spoke for itself.
I started my first kickboxing class (with Mike...I can't say how the other instructors do their classes) with a little circuit training for about 5 minutes or so, then you move to my favorite part: PUNCHING BAGS. Ugh, such amazing stress relief, I can't even tell you. Mike will yell out and demo punch/kick combos and you do them at your own pace on the bag. None of that sparring/partner-work BS that is awkward as HELL. No thank you! They do have other classes that offer that sort of interaction, but that is not for me. Hitting the punching bag is where it's at. Then, Mike broke up the bag session with random bits of crunches, push-ups, jump roping, etc. which was fun and exciting! And then I think we ended the class with some leg lifts and ab-work, which was a nice way to kind of let me lie on the floor and flail around if I was feeling exhausted...which I was!
If you are looking for a fun (my personal #1 criteria for a good workout), stress relieving, amazing, full-body workout, this is the ticket.
HELPFUL TIPS FOR FIRST-TIMERS!
***Bring some gloves of your own, if you can! I walked in and the only awkward part was when they front desk girl & the instructor were asking me if I had gloves or hand wraps, and I was like "uuumm...no...no one told me I needed anything!" So, I had to use their loaner gloves (GROSS!...but they worked, so I can't complain too much). A membership comes with a pair of gloves (yay!), but you will need to buy hand wraps for like $4.99 at a sporting goods store.
***Make it known to the front desk and the instructor that you are new, and the instructor will quickly go over some basic moves with you so you can understand the combos throughout the class. All of the combos pretty much consist of the same basic kickboxing moves, so once you get those down, they are easy and fun so don't worry too much if you get lost. Other people in the class were SUPER helpful and nice, because they too were new and awkward once.
***HAVE FUN! Seriously. It's only awkward if you make it awkward, and these types of places and gyms have a high potential for workout awkwardness, but this place is FUN. read more