New Boston Fitness Finds
This summer I have been taking advantage of various opportunities to try out new-to-me workouts and fitness studios in Boston! Ever since I tried and fell in love with CorePower Yoga Sculpt, I have been feeling more open to spending more time outside of my gym, whether that means trying a completely new workout or doing a workout I already enjoy, but in a different setting.
I purchased a Gilt City deal for five Back Bay Yoga (BBY) classes (just $39!) because my good friend Emily is a HUGE BBY fan. So far I have attended three classes with her and am so glad that I purchased this voucher. I have a long-running history of not counting yoga, even vinyasa, as a “real workout” in my mind. I love CorePower, but it IS a heated bootcamp-style yoga, so it’s pretty easy for me to call it a workout. In the past I have done yoga on a “rest day”, or paired it WITH a cardio workout, because I did not feel it was adequate.
The vinyasa classes I’ve taken at Back Bay Yoga, along with just how far I have come in general when it comes to exercise obsession, have really changed my perspective on yoga. I leave these classes dripping sweat and feeling proud of what I have accomplished. I also feel happy, because I often find myself laughing throughout class. The two BBY instructors I’ve had, Renee LeBlanc (pictured above) and Jess Ray, are non-intimidating and have great senses of humor. It feels fantastic to be challenged in a new way. I’ve got two classes left to use, and definitely plan to purchase more in the future! New students can get two consecutive weeks for just $25, so be sure to check out the studio if you haven’t already.
A couple of weeks ago I had the chance to take a complimentary class at Barry’s Bootcamp in Downtown Crossing. I have heard its praises sung for awhile now by Sean, Haley (both pictured above), Ashley, and Sarah (also an instructor). But I never really made an effort to go, despite having had previous free opportunities via blogger events, because this workout scared the crap out of me. All it took was hearing “incline treadmill intervals” for me to doubt myself. I am NOT a fast runner, and running on a super-steep incline freaks me out! Plus I was nervous about being one of the slower people in the room. But Haley often goes to Barry’s classes and offered to accompany me, so I took a deep breathe and headed into that dark room for a Butt & Legs focused class. And I actually loved it!
The instructor, Brian, also happened to be one of the co-owners. He was so motivating and selected a great playlist. Despite the fact that I never was able to run as fast as he suggested, or do the steep inclines without holding onto the treadmill, I didn’t feel embarrassed. Some others were in the same boat, and Brian mostly stuck to urging us to work hard, versus calling out MPH numbers over and over again. The floor portion of the class was, as you can imagine, very squat and lunge heavy. I walked out feeling so accomplished and experienced the longest period of soreness a workout has EVER given me – I was can’t-sit-down sore for four days! I will definitely be back to Barry’s and am so glad I tried it out. Thanks Haley for accompanying me and giving me the opportunity! Click here to find a Barry’s near you.
I was invited by Tribe Hummus to attend a charity FlyWheel ride which also doubled as promotion for their new Tribe Swirl products. This week (now through Sunday 7/26), Tribe will donate $1 to a non-profit for every person who takes a FlyWheel or FlyBarre class in Boston, NYC, and NJ. The Boston funds will be donated to local non-profit CitySprouts, which introduces school gardens as a core element of children’s education. I decided to ride last night, because I enjoy ending my Mondays with a sweaty spin class. Helps me sweat out the weekend!
I got to my bike and found some swag waiting for me!
FlyWheel itself is not new to me – I went with Maria in Stamford, forever ago! But I’d never taken a class in the Boston studio. And you know what WAS new to me? Taking a class with NO AC, on one of the hottest days of the year. I walked into the lobby to check-in and knew it felt WAY hotter than it had last time I’d been there, for FlyBarre. The front desk worker confirmed that the AC was indeed on the fritz, but I trudged into class and just told myself I’d back off and take it easy as needed.
Thankfully the awesome instructor Meredith kept morale up for the entire room with infectious energy and a fabulous playlist! One thing I’m not super into when it comes to FlyWheel is the numbers focus. I don’t like how the teacher encourages a specific RPM and torque. For all I know I am working my butt off and can barely breathe at a slower RPM or a lesser torque! So I grabbed an extra towel and used it to cover up the tech-pack. But during the last song, I uncovered it to see where I was at. I was surprised to find that my power output was on track with whoever was 5th on the leaderboard (I opted not to have my stats shown up there). So that made me feel a lot more confident in my strength and I walked out of the studio with an extra proud bounce in my step.
It’s been a good few weeks in the fitness world here in Boston! Next on my list, I hope to try some spin classes at Cyc and B/SPOKE. I also have a fun announcement having to do with CorePower, but I’ll save it for another post!
Have you ever encountered an unexpected workout obstacle, like busted AC?
Ever tried Barry’s?
What’s your favorite type of yoga?
