An Uplifting Start to My Sunday

I have at least 2 more Vermont posts coming including a phenomenal restaurant review, but it’s 8:45 and I am quickly fading. Therefore, tonight’s will be a bit shorter and instead be a recap of an awesome workout class I enjoyed today back in the city!

After a wonderful weekend in Vermont, my brother had an early (6:20am!!) flight out of the Albany Airport this morning. Instead of making him figure out a car service, I offered to drive him to the airport on my way back to the city. While I’d normally stay in Manchester until around noon on a Sunday, leaving early actually gave me the opportunity to enjoy the best of both worlds: a weekend in Vermont but a Sunday in New York City with Bo!

We were up and out the door by 4am in order to ensure he arrived at the airport an hour in advance. By the time he jumped out of the car and I moved into the driver’s seat it was clear that coffee needed to be the next order of business. Luckily, there was a Starbucks on the road where I could get a much needed iced coffee while also snagging a perfect oatmeal for breakfast.

By 8:30 I was walking back home from the rental car office in the West Village, ready to enjoy a wonderful Sunday in the city.

Since Bo didn’t get home until the wee hours of the night after a bachelor party, I decided to unpack and organize while he slept and then slip back out of the house for a quality workout. Maybe it was the four hours in the car this morning or the three glasses of wine last night, but I was craving a hard core, sweaty workout. After consulting the Equinox schedule and seeing that there weren’t any classes I really wanted, I decided to take advantage of the Uplift Studios new client special and squeeze a class in between a run.

I enjoyed a 3 mile run around Gramercy and Madison Square Park before hopping into Uplift Studios for their 55 minute 10am Uplifted class. Helena greeted me at the front desk and offered me a bottle of water and cup of coffee, on the house, before suggesting I head into the locker room to change before the class. Their inspiring messages greeted me in the locker room as I wiped the sweat off and dropped off my jacket in exchange for a workout towel.

Today was my first time taking the 55 minute Uplifting class but based on the class description I figured it’d leave me sweating just as much as the weights and cardio portion of the Fit & Flow class.  Here’s the description from their website:

Uplifting
This total-body class focuses on strength training, using dumbbells, balls, resistance bands and body weight exercises to work all the major muscle groups to a point of fatigue, while incorporating plyometrics and cardio bursts throughout the workout to boost the fat burn.  You’ll leave feeling uplifted in more ways than one.  (Images source and source)

As soon as I entered the studio, Chelsea, the instructor greeted me with a huge smile and told me I’d be in for a treat. Helena was right when she said that Chelsea’s personality and fun was contagious. For the next 55 minutes I did moves that I’ve never done before in any of my workout experiences while jamming to an awesome playlist including some old favorites like Eminem, that helped push me through the last few seconds of each move. The class was killer from minute 0 to 55.

This was one of the more creative classes I’ve taken, using tools such as a dyna band to add resistance and spicing up normal movements like prisoner squats or even jogging in place by adding weights or combination moves. I was drenched just five minutes into class and the mirror in front of the studio kept my focus on form and ensuring that I wasn’t cheating. There is no where to hide in a studio like Uplifts because there are no “columns” or back row spots!

A few things that I find consistent in every Uplift class and love thus far:

1. Instructors take the class right along with you for at least 1/2 of each set when not correcting the other students. This helps you see perfect form and feel like they too are feeling the burn.
2. They use the count down method, letting you know how long each set is going to be and also telling you when you’re 1/2 way, 1/4 way, and then finally done. It really helps you know when to give the final push.
3. Heart rate is kept up the whole time by using intervals. While I hated every second of our burpees with a lateral shuffle, the bursts of cardio helped me break a sweat early and keep my heart rate up every time she added them, every 5 minutes or so.

If you want to read more about Chelsea’s Uplifting class, check out this review on Rate Your Burn which echoes many of the same thoughts!

Rant or Rave? Do you like the countdown method or would you rather not know? Do you like creative moves in a class or more traditional ones?