I have written before that I do not naturally take to exercise. I know people who look forward to the gym, voluntarily run and swim, play organised sport - I am not that person. I do love to dance, but as I always tell my classes, I'm a lazy dancer. With good technique I can get my partner to do a whole heap of the dancing for me and I'm just fine with that.
All that said, I come from a family with a genetic predisposition to osteoperosis and giant bums, so I know that I do need to exercise to keep myself healthy and able to walk through a door easily. So when I heard about an exercise class based on dance but low impact (bad knees and zumba are not a good combo) I was excited.
And so I started Xtend Barre classes. If you haven't heard of it, Xtend Barre is based on ballet and pilates. It uses lots of small, repetitive movements to build long lean muscle. You use small hand weights, yoga straps, small pilates balls and stretchy rubber bands (aka the moment everyone groans in class) to work out and work hard. Seriously I haven't sweated this much since I was in a tropical country.
But it is working. Just a few weeks of classes and I can feel a difference to my posture. My chiropractor commented on how much better my pelvis was being supported, it is making a difference.
And while I wouldn't say I enjoy the classes, there is too much sweat, groaning and pain for that, I do think it is something I can keep doing.
Do you exercise? Do you enjoy it? And what motivates you to keep going?
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