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Abs and Butt of Flab! All in a Day’s Workout at Cardio Barre

May 21, 2012 by

I go back and forth with running. Sometimes I just don’t feel like it. (Misplacing my iPod Shuffle may have something to do with it.) After a year of screwing around and not going, I went back to Cardio Barre yesterday. What a workout. I am sore all over today – upper, lower back, hamstrings, quads, arms, butt. Even the abs, what little I have. And I love it.

It's nice to pretend those are my legs and butt. (source: cardiobarre.com)

It's nice to pretend those are my legs and butt. (source: cardiobarre.com)

If you’re unfamiliar, Cardio Barre is a barre class on speed. The class works your entire body. You’re doing squats (on tippy toes), plies, stretchy ballet arm moves, crunches, scorpion (my arch nemesis move), and other ballet-ish moves. A 1-lb weight can be hell. Don’t laugh. It’s true. Watch as everyone’s arms start to shake from lifting and squatting and twisting. Even the skinny minnies.

If you’re interested in getting all kinds of sore, there are plenty of Cardio Barre locations. If they don’t suit you, there are similar classes by The Bar Method and Pop Physique. I haven’t tried these other two studios but have heard great things about them. Lucky for you, Pop Physique is offering free classes this Saturday at their 3rd and Fairfax location. So you can kill your abs, legs, arms, and butt in class, and then walk over to Farmers Market for some grub. [#winning]

As for Cardio Barre, I’m going back. As much as I would like it, flab doesn’t go away by just sitting and blogging.  I bought a 10-class card. Money doesn’t grow on trees, and I can’t get a refund. Ha!

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Gym Fail – 1.30.12

February 1, 2012 by

source: http://tamigrimmius.blogspot.com/2010/11/just-say-no-to-daylight-exercising.html

I didn’t go. I woke up at 3:30AM instead and stayed up reading. Then fell back asleep around 6:30AM for a half hour and decided to get ready for work instead.

*takes a bow*

 

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Zumba on the Intercon LA’s Roof/Helipad!

October 14, 2011 by

Intercontinental Los Angeles/Century City (photo source: lowcostusa.co.uk)

Yesterday, I had the pleasure of taking a zumba class at the Intercontinental Los Angeles/Century City. What made it even more fun was the fact that the class took place on the helipad, 18 stories up!

As you may know, I live on the east side of town. Luckily, even at 4:00PM on a Thursday, the LA traffic gods were on my side – even the 101 North was moving! The Intercon LA nestled right up against 20th Century Fox studios on Avenue of the Stars. You see it when you drive by, on your way to Westfield Century City. (Admit it.)

Check in is at the Spa. It’s got the essentials: comfy chairs and magazines, water and fruit, manicure stations and product displays. The locker room holds the shower, steam room and sauna, which is complimentary to use when you sign up for zumba. I was a little early, so I hung out at the pool until class time.

Serenity is... the pool area at the Intercon LA

Yes, I still have my Long Beach Half Marathon timing tag on my shoe

Once it was time to go, a staffer found me and escorted me back to the spa. (How nice!) I met Rita, the zumba instructor, and Miranda House, Director of PR and Social Media, and we headed up to the 16th floor. Then we walked up and out to the helipad!

Ready to zumba on the 18th floor helipad!

Rita got started, and I tried to keep up. I’ve taken zumba before, and I enjoy it a lot. The fact that you’re on a freaking helipad makes the boogieing more fun.  The space overlooks all of Century City to the east and West LA and Santa Monica to the west – trust me, it’s a stunning view. As we cooled down, the sun started to set, and the view was so clear! We could see out to the ocean! How could you not want to be up here for that?

Sunset facing east - my pics don't do it justice

Sunset facing west - you had to be there

Class ended, we stared at the sunset and then headed back down. This was the perfect workout to recover from the Long Beach Half. I’m not always on the Westside anymore, so this was a treat. I highly recommend coming to the Intercon LA for zumba at least once to check out the beautiful view while you sweat your pants off! (If you’re staying at the hotel, then you have no excuse! Do it!)

Big thanks to Ms. House and the Intercontinental Los Angeles/Century City for hosting me!

The details:

  • Zumba is scheduled Tuesdays and Thursdays, 5:30PM – 6:30PM
  • Cost is $15, and valet parking is included!
  • The Intercon also offers yoga on the helipad on Mondays and Wednesdays; call for times
  • Call for reservations and/or more info: 310-552-0425

Intercontinental Los Angeles/Century City
2151 Ave of the Stars
Century City, CA 90067

 

Disclosure: This class was comp’d.

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WIRI 9.18.11: My new running shoes

September 18, 2011 by

When I was in Portland, I had the pleasure of meeting up with my an old b-school classmate who now works for Nike. He invited me to the Nike Employee Store, which is similar to your typical outlet store. In all honesty, my favorite Nike items are not their shoes, but their Dri-Fit clothing. That stuff is the best when it comes to keeping you not too sweaty after 6+ miles, and they wash and dry quickly.

I ended up buying up a pair of Dri-Fit capri tights in Medium, which, well, are too small for running. I tried them out for SPX pilates at Eq Fitness yesterday and they stayed on. (Good thing.) I put them on today for running and felt like my pants were falling off. Ie. The waist was rolling down. Obviously they were the wrong size for running or any kind of bouncing. I should’ve bought a Large but the Medium fit so well.

I headed to the shoe area and saw that the prices for running shoes were about half off of retail! Well, hello, bargain! I pulled up reviews on Lunarglide+3s and Vomero+6s to see if they were stability shoes. They were. The Lunarglide+3s had good reviews, so I tried a pair on. Boy they are light! I thought, well, if they end up being a good spare pair of running shoes, fantastic! If they hurt my feet, then I’ve got myself a pair of walking shoes.

So I put on the new shoes today and started to run my usual route in the neighborhood. Not 10 seconds in and the heel of my right sock began to pull off and slide into my shoe!! WTF! So I re-adjusted my sock, pulled it up, re-laced, and got going. 15 seconds later, the waist of my capri leggings began to start to fall off my waist. Lord.

Needless to say, I walked around the block and walked home. And here I am. I will give the shoes another try… but I’m annoyed that my sock slipped in the heel. I think the shoe’s heel cup is too short and there may be too much cushion around my heel.

Nike Lunarglide+3s (or my new walking shoes) - see you can see my sock has disappeared in the heel...

View from the top - Nike Lunarglide+3s

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