After last week’s Core Fusion class with Erin, I was excited to take her class again on Saturday. We did a similar crazy planks sequence, without any stopping between a forearm plank, two sets of pushups and a straight arm plank. By the time we finished my heart was pounding! Planks always get my heart rate up!

For the last set of thighs we did something I had never done before – we did the small repetitive movements in a lunge position. I actually really liked this because this is a stretch that helps my leg muscles loosen up for running, so doing thigh work with the stretch felt really good. And it burned like the other thigh exercises, so I felt like it got 2 jobs done.

Erin was so helpful with my position when we did glutes moves at the bar. I love being corrected and knowing I’m getting what I should be getting from the workout. Abs were abs. Painful. Brutal. But when I stick through it I feel so much better after than when I let myself take breaks. I used to give up when it became too hard but lately I’ve really been sticking it through. I think my abs have gotten stronger so it is slightly easier to not give up.

And then class was over. I loved being done on Saturday morning before noon with the rest of my day open!

I did want to touch upon something that happened before the class. The locker room was completely packed and I got there early enough to snag myself a locker (I would). Missy arrived to take class with me and I told her she could share my locker. We were getting ready, putting out stuff in the locker, when a lady came up to me and asked if she could have my locker.

Have it? Like.. share it? Or did she want me to take my stuff out of it? I told her that Missy and I were already sharing and she went off in a huff. Ummm. Not sure what that was about.

Anyway!

I had the day off work on Monday for Presidents Day, so I was able to take a daytime class. Marnie was teaching and I’d had her once before, but wasn’t able to give her class a fair review. That’s because it was during the first or second week of the challenge and it was the day after I took Fred’s class. Needless to say, I was extremely sore and wasn’t able to get the most out of class.

Let me just say I am glad I went back! I loved Marnie’s class. Now that I can hold myself up during the entire plank, I’ve been focusing much more on my form. As a result, I have been getting stronger in my core! Amazing how all the little victories add up and turn into a big one.

Arms were especially hard! We did something I had never done with the arm weights and I had a tough time keeping up. I love being challenged, although I kinda wish I had lighter weights for that part! For the last set of thighs, we did the LUNGES again. I had never done them before Saturday, and then I have them two classes in a row? AND Missy did them again that same week in Kate’s class! Is there a theme?

I’ve actually noticed themes before. I don’t know if this is on purpose or coincidence, but let me give you a few examples.

• Before the challenge started, I took class for the first time in a long time and did the pretzel pose for glutes for the first time in my life. Two days later, I took class again, and we did it again!
• We usually we use a red ball as a prop during class, or no prop at all. We rarely use the block. But for one week, almost every class used the yoga block!
• On a different week, we always did glutes work on our hands and knees. That is usually rare, and I have only done it once since that week!
• Is it just me, or has every teacher been using the song “Hey Soul Sister” during leg stretches after thigh work?

Others people have noticed themes as well. I wonder if this is planned or if it is random!

*Update – I received confirmation that this is, in fact, random

Also – how do the teachers get the music timed so perfectly?! That continues to astound me.

Moving on. I really did enjoy the lunges for thigh exercises because I ran 8 miles the day before, and this was a much needed stretch. For glutes we did pretzel under the bar, holding onto the bar. I hadn’t done pretzel in awhile so I really enjoyed the painful burn as much as I could. I did notice that because my right side is so much tighter, I had a hard time getting that leg off the floor to do the movements as well as I did on my left. Have to keep stretching and working on that.

Abs was very challenging but I like the variation of moves we did. And then class was over and I felt so pleased with my decision to not spend my day off in bed as I had originally planned and instead to do something productive and take Core Fusion. I never regret taking class.

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