“Cherry Cherry Boom Boom” “One Hot Mess” “My Buns Hurt” and the strangely poignant “Somewhere I Belong” – One of my favorite things about Bodyrock.tv besides their seriously hardcore workouts is all the fun names that Freddy and Zuzana give them. The names generally having nothing to do with the actual workout (imagine my disappointment when the Hot Warrior workout did not come with any hot warriors) but rather what they were dealing with in their lives at the time (I know, I know “Cherry Cherry Boom Boom” – I snickered too). So how cool would be if instead of naming my workouts something boring-yet-descriptive, I just got creative and drew from the well of inspiration that is my life?
This month’s Great Fitness Experiment has been trying out a new type of dance every week and I cannot tell you the last time we had this much fun in the gym. I mean, we always have fun but this month has been a riot. Ballet reminded us how much even small movements hurt if you do 200 plies in a row. But Capoeria was where the fun really started. This type of Brazilian dance/pseudo martial art is pretty much all done from a lunge position so while we had a grand time cartwheeling and kicking around the room, the next day we all wanted to amputate our butts we were so sore. Of course we did it again the next day. We ended up enjoying it so much we carried it on for another week.
This week’s agenda is break dancing (rule #1 of break dancing: only noobs call it break dancing, it’s really called “breaking”) and so far it has been crazy fun – so much so we even picked up a couple of extra Gym Buddies. It turns out breaking is a lot like Capoeira but just using different beatboxes. (We made Megan beatbox for us last week – she’s not quite this chick but she is pretty awesome.) Unfortunately the day we were supposed to start found me fighting a head cold courtesy of the disease-carrying little people I live with. You know what feels awesome with sinuses so packed with snot that everything smells like that used tissue in the bottom of your purse? Standing on your head! And we spent at least half of this workout upside down. Therefore, I present to you The Fountains of Snot Workout. (Yes, my life is waaayyyy less sexy than Zuzana.)
Warm-Up: This workout had us jumping rope, doing pistol squats, Napolean Dynamite lunges and bunny hops across the floor. Gym Buddy On Load From Other Gym Tyler said his heart rate stayed up in the 180’s just in the warm-up alone.
Push-Ups. For those of you who have not seen Stomp the Yard, You’ve Been Served, Dance Flick and Step Up 1, 2 & 3(D!) like I have, the first thing you need to have for breaking is a hero/heroine from the streets but who is always inexplicably well-groomed. Oh wait, WORKOUT. Right. You need some serious upper body strength as many of the moves are done on your hands. This workout had us doing at least 10 different types of push-ups, our favorite being the pike push-ups on the wall (which is what Megan and I are doing and Tyler is attempting while Allison cheeses for the camera.) In addition to pike push-ups, we did dive bombers, spidermans and push-ups with every conceivable hand configuration you can imagine. My shoulders and pecs? Sore, thanks for asking.
Ground Moves: The workout first taught us some breaking basic transition steps like the one-rock and the Indian which I will spare you the footage of because we weren’t bad enough to make them funny and not good enough to make them cool. It was white-girl dancing at its finest. Then we worked into some floor tricks like the Helicopter. Not only does this really challenge your core, quads, shoulders and balance it has the added bonus of tripping unsuspecting passer-by. Check out Megan and I as we look super fly… until I get so dizzy I fall on my butt. (Click through to see video):
Headstand Moves: Since none of us were brave enough to try spinning on our noggins, we just practiced headstands and then worked up to this:
Handstand Moves: The bulk of the workout had us working out of a handstand position. We did handstand push-ups, donkey kicks onto our hands, and a super intensive core move – the press-to-handstand (which none of us could master but it made for awesome pictures anyhow):
But our fave handstand move was the dive roll. First you kick up to a handstand and then slowly lower yourself until you can tuck and roll. Check out our synchronized swimmer action: (Click through to see video)
Allison had a tough time mastering this one but she finally got it.
If you guys want to try a killer workout that gets you way out of your box, I totally recommend breaking (and Capoeira too). We haven’t touched a free weight all month – yes, the weight floor has been blissfully peaceful without us – and yet we’ve gotten great workouts, including targeting some muscles that we didn’t even know we had. Not to mention how much fun we had! Now, I just need to come up with a Lindy Hop/Swing workout and our month will be perfect!
What’s your favorite out-of-your-box workout? Are you guys interested in the actual details (reps, instructions, etc.) that we did for each type of dance workout as part of a different post? When you smile do you show your teeth or not? (I hate showing my teeth when I smile – so that’s how you know if my smile is genuine and not posed, if my pearly whites are awkwardly flashing!)
Oh this is totally MY kind of workout! Combines yoga moves, inversions (I love going upside down!) and dance. All in a fun way. Sign me up!!!
Love the pics in this post! 🙂
Love the pictures Charlotte – I’m the same way with smiles. If my teeth show I’m uncomfortable!
I am seriously impressed with the headstands/handstands! I can’t do any of that.
Glad to know I’m not the only one!
I’ve had two shoulder surgeries so I imagine that would be an incredible no-go for me… 🙁
I used to participate in hashing — where you run from bar to bar — and we truly sprinted… I would only have my cocktail at the last spot, so it was more like doing intervals… hahaha.
Then there was the time I thought that roller derby would be a great workout — and trust me it was and I got to dress up like wonder woman — bonus!
Wow – I’ve never even heard of hashing! Much better than a pub crawl, I think, lol! I would LOVE to try roller derby sometime!
Okay, so I totally look like that bi***y chic coach from Make it or Break It. I really was just coaching Allison, not chastising as it make look 🙂
Haha, I was totally thinking the same thing!! I was like, ‘aww, Krista is scolding me’ 🙁
But no, there was only words of encouragement and high hopes for me, thanks girl 🙂
You know I always got your back Al! 🙂
Okay, so that didn’t even occur to me until now but now that you mention it, it does look like that – you big meanie;)
I would love this workout! I am seriously impressed your helicoptor (which I really want to call the hurricane for some reason) skillz. Mad skillz, yo.
Give us the deets!
I’m impressed that you’re impressed! Hahah – usually I just make people wince or giggle. Or both. You would have had so much doing this one with us!
I miss dance so much! Breaking is crazy tough, as is Hip Hop. I would totally be interested in a break down of what your workouts look like!
Yeah, Allison and I do a Hip Hop class once a week and it is a fab workout! This was our first experience Breaking though.
I CAINT DANCE.
Id have adored adored ADORED this:)
HOW FUN!!!!! I saw a parkour vid that showed the exercise they do to keep in shape, and that looked killer, too…
Ooooh I MUST find that vid now!! Thanks for the tip!
At the end of the lecture are some exercises to keep in shape~mostly bodyweight exercises which really, really intrigue me! Sadly, the lecture is not in English and not subtitled. http://www.crunchyroll.com/parkour
Thanks Pauline!
I KNEW you’d be great at the capoeira stuff! Yes, lots of similarity to breaking. What you call helicopter is what they call corta capim, and it took me a few months of flexibility work on my hips to be able to do that, you brat!
Thank you SOOOOO much for the links you left in that post a few weeks ago! We loved watching them and if there was a capoeria studio anywhere near here I would love to do real lessons. It was ridiculously fun!! And hey – I didn’t post the vid of me falling on my head over and over doing the handstand pushup;)
You are all so gangsta. ;^)
LOL! I would have failed so badly at this workout. My Mom made me take Irish Step as a kid and I’m pretty sure that’s why I am now incapable of dancing like a normal person or even learning new dance moves. Well, that and my super whiteness.
Oh girl, we so super white too. We did not make it look good!
I have never been able to do handstands or cartwheels – wish I could but I just can’t get it.
I got my hands on some Zumba DVDs this month and have been having fun with that. “Dancing” is more fun than “exercising”. 🙂
I heart Zumba!!
haha looks like a lot of fun. I loved the videos and the pictures. I’m so jealous of all your gym buddies!! I need to get some at my gym too!
I’ve probably mentioned her before, but I have a very good friend that was a pro break dancer for Red Bull! She is one of the fittest people I’ve ever met!
You did not mention her before – now I want to meet her!!
Hi, Charlotte. I’ve been following your blog for a while and have read (and loved) your book, but this is the first time I’ve ever posted, and it’s just because I want to beg you to please, please, please post the actual details for what you did for each type of dance workout. This looks like SO much fun!
Thank you!
Heidi
(P.S. I love the post title — I had a similar workout condition myself this morning, and I completely understand about being upside down when you have a cold — and I try never to smile with my teeth for photos.)
Oh thank you Heidi! I so appreciate you buying my book (and liking it!) I’ll work on getting the detailed post together. Really these workouts have been a blast!
Your workout looks like SO much fun. Unfortunately, I have a weak upper body and can’t even eke out one real push up yet (though I can now master a “negative” push up, so it’s progress). Now I want to go dancing…
Just keep working those push-ups – you’ll get there! And yes, dancing is the best!
Holy crap! You guys are amazing!!!!!!!!!!!!! I would not attempt a head stand anymore & at my age & things starting to well, hurt & get injured, I just need to survive lately! Don’t get me wrong, I still work out hard but just have to be careful not to mess up anything else! 😉 Like the wall stuff though. Going to try that! And in that position, knee to opposite chest for obliques/core!
I did that helicopter thing all the time when I was little!
Let me know how the wall thing works out for you! It’s fun but tough!
Wow! You and your group are so capable! I’ve never seen 4 people do handstands in a row before. I learned to do a headstand last year at age 42 and it is so much fun!
Hahah- we just fake it well for the camera. Not pictured: all the times we fell and crashed into each other! And yayayay for headstands – they are a blast!
yes! i’d love details! that looks like so much fun! and ridic hard!
my favorite out-of-box workout right now is my skip-it! remember those ? it’s awesome!
Ok, I’ll get working on putting that post together. And heck yes I remember Skip-its!!! I haven’t tried one of those in years… now I have a yen!
I love Skip-Its. A few years ago, my mom bought two so we could do it in the drive, but we hid them so the little kids didn’t use them and wreck them. We’re selfish like that!
I wish I had done the same! my old skip -it is not probably sitting in someone’s garage collecting dust while their child plays with their new Wii…sad…the knock off version is just not the same!
I love body weight exercises and these look like fun! It’ll be a while before I will attempt them though…
Yes – Capoeira especially had a LOT of really good bodyweight moves.
You should come to Dance Dance Party Party! It’s really fun – 80 minutes of “do whatever you want” dancing. Three guidelines – no boys (women only!), no booze and no judgment (of yourself and of others). Hope you can make it!
http://ddpptwincities.wordpress.com/
Ok WOW – how have I never heard of this before?! This sounds right up my alley. Gonna run this one by the Gym Buddies and see if we can make it a girl’s night out. Too fun! Thanks for letting me know about it.
You should! We meet every Thursday.
Cherry Cherry Boom Boom is from Lady Gaga! She says it in the song Starstruck….I heard it in the car on the way here…that’s why I know…I’m not a Lady Gaga freak or anything……..:-)
by here I mean work.
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