9Round

I should exercise more often.  (Anyone else?) I know that. I try to stay active, but the reality is that I don’t exercise quite as much as I should.  When the opportunity came to try a free week at 9Round, I opted to check it out.   Taken straight from the website, “9Round offers a kickboxing themed fitness program that incorporates a functional, interval, cardiovascular, and circuit training regimens.”    There is no set schedule nor formal class times. When you arrive, you can get ready to start your workout. Under the close guidance of trainers, you go through nine three minute rounds with brief periods of other exercises between rounds.  Three minutes may not sound like much, but trust me when I tell you that if you are not used to a cardio workout, that three minutes can feel exhausting and seem to take forever! Workouts change daily, and each exercise can be adapted to your personal fitness level.  Different exercises may involve jump ropes, weights, punching bags, boxing gloves, floor exercises, and more. The staff and other participants are constantly encouraging and supporting you and each other. Although I felt like they were trying to do me in, I also felt as though they really wanted me to succeed and grow stronger!  This was a full body work-out without a doubt! I felt it the next day. I felt it even more the day after that! Although it hurt to move, it was the type of pain I call “a pain of accomplishment” which is very different than pain from a problem. What did I do? I went for a second session. I was reminded (not by trainers but rather by my body) that I was still out of shape.  (Of course my fitness level was not going to change in a matter of days, but I sort of forgot how exhausting the work-out was the first time.) By the end, I was again a sweaty mess but truly felt that I had a great work-out in a very supportive setting! It took several more days for the pain to go away, but I am certainly inspired to get into a regular exercise routine! If you are looking for a place to try a new way to stay fit, I definitely recommend checking out 9Round to see if it’s a good fit for you.

Below are some photos showing some of the exercises from the first afternoon. These were taken after I completed the workout, so I may seem a little more “posed” or the moves were done more slowly for the sake of getting a usable shot. When I moved more naturally, the photos were complete blurs!