Turbo Kick

I’m always amazed at how no two fitness classes are the same. I wandered into a Turbo Kick class at the Dale City  in Ashdale Plaza and found myself doing a mixture of and : kickboxing moves combined with dance and funky music.

The class was fast-paced right off the bat. It was less muscle pain than Tae Bo, but with a definite kickboxing influence and some dance pizzazz thrown in. Plenty of uppercuts, hooks, jabs, kicks, and knee raises, but dance grooves as well to keep it funky and fun. The class was high energy cardio blended with interval strength training and endurance training. Good news is it required no previous kickboxing experience and was easy to follow and get a full body workout.

Each song had its own routine that you repeated a few times over: jabs, jumping jacks, kicks, hooks, knee/kick combos, Heisman jumps, standing crunches, etc. The music kept it flowing and fun. You could easily throw your personality in to the moves, or tone them down to fit your fitness level.

Then, about three times throughout the class, the music would suddenly shift with a loud siren and the “turbo” routine began. This meant about a couple minutes of high intensity, fast as you can go moves: jumping jacks, ski jumps, jabs, touch the floor, burpies, and low V steps. After that burst of speed, the following song always seemed easier.

Our instructor stayed high energy the whole time, periodically yelling out a, “C’mon, you’re not tired yet!” We were, but she pushed us to find that second wind—and it was in there.

The class was downright fun from beginning to end. Plenty of sweat, but plenty of smiles. We finished up with some intense abs work on the mat. After which our instructor warned us that she was heading off to a Turbo Kick conference and would return really pumped up with new moves.

Remember:

• Water. As always.
• Comfortable shoes and clothing.
• Towel. Be ready to sweat.