Dance, Dance

Dancing is a great form of exercise. So great, in fact, that gyms have incorporated different types of dancing into group fitness classes. It is pretty normal to see classes for everything from Bollywood Bhangra to hip hop to stripper aerobics. All the while, you are dancing to burn calories, and possibly pick up some moves to bring with you when you go out to a club.

That said, dancing provides a multitude of benefits for when you do go out. 

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Work Out – Cycle 2 – Reunion! “Jackie gone wild!”

It’s not over yet. We have one more week of this show with the reunion! The show was structured around a Q&A format with the host asking Jackie and the gang questions submitted by viewers through the Bravo website.

Q and A session begins

What are those things around the trainers necks? Microphones. Duh.

What’s in the protein shake?  

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Douchebags!

Is it just me, or does it feel like there is a higher concentration of douchebags in a workout environment than anywhere else; at least in real world day to day life. It kind of makes sense, after all, people tend to get into cramped quarters, get all sweaty, energized, and to some extent, completely self-involved. Social norms such as politeness or even basic etiquette tend to get thrown out the window. Maybe it’s the elevated levels of testosterone, or hey, maybe it’s just the fact that some people are complete douchebags.

Allow me to provide a few examples:

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Work Out – Cycle 2 – Episode 8 – Recap – “Jackie is very pleased with herself”

We pick back up with the trainers grieving Doug’s passing, and decide to have a memorial bike ride in honor of Doug, and Jackie tries to inspire the crew.

The bike ride is significant because Doug was passionate about bike riding, a spin instructor and had participated in numerous benefit bike rides.

The trainers get to the beach and sit around a bonfire reminiscing about Doug and how much he had impacted them. Each of them speak about how caring a person he was, and the legacy he will leave. Peeler reads the group a list of Doug’s “principles to live by” and the trainers feel that they have been able to come to terms with what has happened.

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Coffee, coffee, coffee!!!

It’s 5:30AM, and I am sitting at my desk with a cup of coffee, home brewed. If it weren’t for this cup of coffee, I would still be in bed. Sure, no matter how many times I hit snooze on the alarm clock (and subsequently pissed the neighbors off), I need the kick of some serious caffeine to get me going, like a lot of people. Still, there seems to be an almost stigma associated with drinking coffee (or other caffeinated drinks), and it’s effects on exercise.

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You’re not tired, you just think you are

So says my good friend, spin instructor Joanna S. In the middle of her hour long or two hour long rides, after pummeling us with wicked hills and kick-ass sprints, when she is telling us that just because the song has ended, doesn’t mean we can sit up on our bike and break, she tells us this: “You’re not tired, you just think you are.”

These are words to live by, and it’s in the same vein as the “No Pain, No Gain” idea, in that figuratively speaking, you can push yourself harder than you think you can. Obviously, pushing yourself through an injury can be stupid, like what I’m doing now I would do.

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Work Out – Cycle 2 – Episode 7 – Recap – “Turn ‘em and Burn ‘em”

Last week, Jackie resolves to go home to visit her father’s grave and bond with her mom. 

Jackie is talking about going back to Ohio to visit her mom and we revisit Cycle 1 with the issues the 2 have.  Erin will be going with her. Rebecca got dissed?

Jackie is checking up on the trainers at Sky Lab and she tells that Peeler he is in charge when she is gone, in front of Rebecca.  Rebecca was confused. Dissed again. 

Jesse is excited to train a male model, Gage Weston (at Sky Lab or Sky Sport.) Gage says he doesn’t do much cardio and Jesse proclaims that he’s the “cardio king!” He comes off as a different member of royalty.  It turns out that Gage Weston is a male erotic model, and Jesse gets all flustered.  After he gets over being flustered, he goes directly into an awkward groin stretch. 

Rebecca questions why Jackie left Peeler in charge.  Rebecca is a little bit bummed, Jackie explains that she couldn’t because it would look bad.  Guess that’s the reason why don’t date subordinates, because if she should have been left in charge, you just screwed her over.

Jesse is at lunch with Gage and they are talking about his stint in Iraq.  They discussed challenges that gay people had in the military.  Then they move on to discussing how Gage wouldn’t do it again, but Jesse says his brother is proud of having served.

Erin is going with Jackie visit her mom.  Jackie explains how she feels that she is reverting back to childhood as soon as she goes home.

Erin meets Jackie’s family. Jackie’s mom talks about how they used to have a great relationship, how she was sad when Jackie moved to Cali, and how your daughter can be your best friend.  An old picture of Jackie; she used to look like Kristi McNichol.  Now she looks more like Scarlet Johannson.

Peeler is excited that he’s in charge.  He’s checking up on the other trainers.  Erika is a little peeved that Peeler is in charge because last time, she was left in charge, and he was the person who gave her the hardest time.  He says that he enjoys his “reign of power. Terror.

Jackie and Erin make it back to her mom’s house and have breakfast.  Jackie is going to her old school to speak to a bunch of students.  She’s scared, but she doesn’t allow fear to control over her.

The trainers are in Jackie’s office; Peeler is sitting at her desk.  They start talking about their Sky Lab clients.  Andre’s client, Kiki, has been slacking off.  Peeler understands that she has school, but says that everyone can make time.  I know a lot of people who would dispute this.  I guess it maybe depends on how bad you want it. 

Back to Ohio, talking about how the fact that Jackie grew up in Ohio formed her drive.  She admits she was suspended once in high school.  The person who Jackie was in high school was a pretender, an actor. Jackie was a terrible student, but she spent the last 20 years of her life telling people she was an honor student. Hard to keep that lie going when they show your grades on TV.

Peeler is checking in on Doug, how his kidneys are doing.  Doug says that he’ll be out in 2 or 3 days. 

Jackie tells the kids no matter what you do in junior high and high school, you always have the chance to reinvent yourself.  Jackie does the Q & A, the kids ask some easy questions about getting out of Ohio, nothing too upsetting.

Jackie is excited that her mom is around to see the media frenzy around her, and all the kids asking her for her autograph.  It makes you happy to see other people appreciate your child. 

Gregg is in the gym with his client.  In walks in Zen with her new guy Jason to show off.  Gregg thought it was a little bit tacky for her to come in there like that.  Gregg is pretty pissed.  Deep breaths.  Is it just me, or do girls seem to do that a lot.  Think that it is okay to parade the new BF around…

Jackie decides that she wants to visit her dad’s gravesite.  She realizes she never mourned her dad’s passing; she shut down. Erin nods and listens.   It’s always all about Jackie. 

Peeler’s turn to run the boot camp with the Sky Labbers – the top gun workout; he turned ‘em and burned ‘em.  Peeler is loving being in charge.  Peeler’s work outs really look like they kick ass.

Jacke and her mom are at her father’s grave.  Mom explained what the funeral was like.  How now he’s all alone.  Of course, Jackie brings it back to how she hopes that she has people to visit her. 

This does turn out to be a bonding moment for Jackie and Mom, as Jackie understands her a little bit better and sees how they are more similar than she thought.  Mom explains that it could have been a stressful pregnancy that contributed to Jackie being a lesbian.  This impresses Jackie that her mom admits she could have been born this way. 

It’s the next morning – Jackie has revisited her childhood, her high school, her dad’s grave, feels like she has matured 10 years.  She has another 10 years to go for her mentality to catch up with her real age.  That’s not bad, I think I have 11 years to go.   She says goodbye to her mom and heads to the airport.

Back at the gym and Peeler hangs up the phone, looking pretty forlorn.  The gang has the Sky Lab meeting, and Peeler breaks down and starts explaining how Doug is really sick; his infection has returned, is in ICU, and probably won’t make it.  Peeler completely loses it and says nothing matters; all the trainers start breaking down. 

The Spot Training Myth

About a month ago, I posted about how my friend Priscilla wanted to lose weight before she went away to Thailand.   Let me apologize to her first, for using the name Priscilla as her pseudonym, and explain that she is NOT prissy by any means.  However, in spite of her probably wanting to kill me after I mention her again in a posting, I really do have to mention her warped sense of health and fitness, which is certainly probably shared by at least a few other people.

Let me share an excerpt from an IM conversation we had a few weeks ago. (OMG, she is going to KILL ME; good thing she’s still in Thailand).

Priscilla55: so my friend at work told me

Priscilla55: i should do sit ups with a bar

Priscilla55: then ill have abs of steel

FitFiend: so why did your friend tell you that?

Priscilla55: i asked him if i lost weight

Priscilla55: and how i can lose weight in my abdomen

FitFiend: and what did he say?

Priscilla55: he said to use a bar

Priscilla55: and do sit ups

Priscilla55: and the oblique table

FitFiend: holding a bar above your head while you do sit ups will make you lose weight in your abdomen?

Priscilla55: sets and do them fast

Priscilla55: i think that is what i understood

FitFiend: uhm, it doesn’t sound like you did understand

FitFiend: how are his abs?

Priscilla55: solid

Priscilla55: he doesn’t eat any junk

Priscilla55: like tuna

Priscilla55: eggs

Priscilla55: wheat bread if that

FitFiend: that how you have to be

Priscilla55: he’s one of those neckless guys

Priscilla55: he wants to be big

Priscilla55: no i want a neck

Priscilla55: and i don’t want to be big

Priscilla55: i don’t care for muscle

Priscilla55: i just don’t want to jiggle

FitFiend: part of toning down is getting some muscle

FitFiend: you should do sculpt classes

Priscilla55: my friend said

Priscilla55: i have to give up chips too

Priscilla55: not just ice cream

FitFiend: you didn’t say chips before!

Priscilla55: i cant give up soo many things ok

FitFiend: you have to give up your crap snacks

Priscilla55: all at once

FitFiend: you can do it for like 2 weeks.

 

Now, in Priscilla’s defense, she is by no means very jiggly, and probably weighs in at the low end of what might be considered optimal for a chick at 5’4, but, she feels the need to reconstitute her body. 

Unfortunately, this is something that can only be done by exercise and healthy eating habits, not one or the other.  What Priscilla was describing, by talking about getting a solid stomach by doing ab exercises, and well, nothing else, is spot training.  I would think that most people realize that spot training does not work, but a small number of “newbies” probably think that it will lead to results; it won’t.

In a vacuum, all the crunches in the world will not melt away the fat around your tummy.  If anything, doing a lot of ab training will serve to build the muscle of your abs, and which might even make your stomach look bigger if you aren’t doing anything to lower your body fat (like cardio and a caloric deficit).

Now, I say that Priscilla has a warped outlook on health and fitness because she believes in spot training and also, doesn’t really believe she needs to eat properly.  She actually went into greater detail about what exactly she eats everyday, which is simply pretty bad; snacking (on crap) all day.  This is certainly not something that will help her get that tone body she wants. 

Her takeaway from the conversation with her friend was that she could eat all the crap she wanted, do those ab exercises, and get a tone stomach.  Only if she wanted to get big and muscle-y does she need to eat properly.  Still, she has only recently made the commitment to leading a healthier lifestyle, and I’m sure will be able to incorporate a healthier, more sensible outlook on her own fitness.  As I’ve said before, start small because trying to make an overnight transformation will probably lead to a quicker failure.