Tired of your same ole’ work out routine? Looking for a more exciting way to burn calories on campus? Check out the fitness classes offered on Mondays through Thursdays in the BCLC. There are a wide variety of aerobics classes that are upbeat and fun. These classes are taught by some of our fellow students, Kelsey Hope ’11, Jaime Hopkins ’12, and Lydia Lancaster ’11. Each fitness instructor offers classes that are challenging yet fun.
Kelsey Hope teaches Full Body Toning on Mondays and Wednesdays at 10 a.m. This class helps to work out the entire body and is divided up into 20 minutes of leg/butt work, 10 minutes for arms, 15 minutes for abs, and 15 minutes of stretching. The class features current mash-ups of popular songs and high energy beats. Her class is very energized with lots of cardio, but don’t let that intimidate you! Kelsey explained, “People of all fitness levels can come to the class because people can go at their own pace…so you can come to get a great work out and burn calories or you can come to do a more low-key toning class that you don’t have to sweat through!”
Jaime Hopkins offers 4 different classes. Her AAA class (Abs, Arms, and Ass) is a well-balanced class that works out these 3 different areas of the body. This class is very useful, in that these areas can sometimes be difficult to tone. On Mondays after AAA, she teaches a 30-minute class on stretching for those who would like to improve their flexibility. On Wednesdays, Jaime also teaches two half-hour classes: one for arms and one for abs. Jaime described the breakdown of her classes, which “typically start with a 3-5 minute warm-up, followed by the actual class, and 5-10 minutes of stretching/cool down.” For anyone who wants to focus on toning their abs, arms, or ass, Jaime’s fitness classes, which feature popular music from today, the 90s, and the 80s, are very helpful and fun.
Lydia Lancaster also offers 4 different fitness classes on campus. She teaches 2 half-hour classes: a stretch class and an abs class. She also teaches Kickboxing and Bums and Tums, which focuses on the lower body/abdominals and also incorporates some cardio work. These two hour-long classes start with a 5-minute warm-up and a 5-minute stretch, in order to prepare for higher intensity segments of the class. In Lydia’s opinion, her Kickboxing class can be more challenging than Bums and Tums, in that it involves a higher amount of cardio. Her classes incorporate “techno” music, which uses specific BPMs (beats per minute) that determine the pace of the workout. Lydia welcomes people of all fitness levels, “because aerobics is something your body adjusts to each time you come to class. So for newcomers, the first couple of classes may seem impossible, but after the third or fourth week, their bodies will become acclimated to the physical stress.”
All 3 aerobics instructors have put together some great routines that are fun, challenging, and strengthening. If you’re stuck in a workout funk and need a new enjoyable way to burn calories before bathing suit season approaches, check out some of their classes. Rhodes also offers aerobics for PE credit, which requires students to attend 12 hours of classes in a half semester, so keep these fitness classes in mind during class registration for next semester too!
Aerobics Schedule:
Mondays–
10-11 AM Full Body Toning (Kelsey)
3:30-4:430 AAA (Jaime)
4:30-5 Stretch (Jaime)
Tuesdays–
7-8 PM Kickboxing (Lydia)
8-8:30 ½ Hour Abs (Lydia)
Wednesdays–
10-11 AM Full Body Toning (Kelsey)
5:30-6:30 Bums and Tums (Lydia)
6:30-7 Stretch (Lydia)
7-7:30 ½ Hour Arms (Jaime)
7:30-8 ½ Hour Abs (Jaime)
Thursdays–
2:30-3:30 Zumba (Jessica)
Photo credit: http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_EfAWBCKlDkY/SeeKTgaj1QI/AAAAAAAAARw/dTEhThjkbi…