Signs are showing that – at last – the coronavirus lock-down might be easing, with the promise of some businesses reopening and the promise that we can begin to think about returning to the gym. Or, in some cases, going to the gym for the first time ever! Many of us have gained a little bit of excess weight or become unfit from the weeks of enforced inactivity, so signing up at the gym might be just what we need to get us back into a good healthy routine.
Here are 3 hot fitness classes that you could try out:
Calisthenics
As this page about the definition of calisthenics says, the word calisthenics comes from ancient Greek and literally means “beauty and strength”. In this workout, you use your own body weight as a resistance tool. It includes exercises like push-ups, sit-ups and jumping jacks, plus others, such as: lunges, crunches, squats and many more. Planking can be included, as the only equipment used is your own body. The beauty of calisthenics is that the exercises are literally tailored to your body, and that you do not need any expensive or complicated equipment to enjoy moving your body and building muscle.
Barre Class
You do not have to be trained in ballet to attend this class – nor do you need to be particularly graceful! Instead, the classes are designed to give your whole body a thorough stretching workout that includes cardio and strength training: the full workout package! There are various different types of barre class, from those tailored for the infirm or elderly all the way up to the super-fit who want to feel the burn. The range of exercises are engaging so you will not become bored with them, and they can help you to improve your balance and posture, overall flexibility and range of motion, and can even build stamina, and aid weight loss (the latter by building muscle which has a higher metabolic requirement than fat, keeping you both lean and strong!).
HIIT Yoga
Yoga tends to be thought of as a calm and gentle series of stretching and toning exercises, while HIIT stands for High Intensity Interval Training, meaning that the exercises are hard and fast – and tiring. It would be easy to assume that there is no crossover between the two, but this would be incorrect. HIIT yoga is intense and tiring, and attention must be paid to the instructor in order to avoid injury. But the combination of full-body stretching and HIIT burn means that HIIT yoga is the perfect exercise for those who need to workout in a hurry and who want to see great results fairly quickly.
Have you tried any of these exercises before? How did you find them? If not, which one sounds like something that you would like to try – and we dare you to sign up and give it a go as soon as lock-down permits!
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