TURBO KICK! & why I think it's a GREAT cardio workout!

Well helllllo! It's been a while since my last blog post! I hope everyone has been doing well, eating healthy, and working out!! Labor Day Weekend was pretty long and eventful, and if you are anything like me, you PROBABLY ate and drank a little more than you should have. And getting back to the gym was definitely a struggle.
Have you ever heard that when you eat like crap, you feel like crap? There's all these technical chemical reasons as to why this happens, but bottom line is, it's REALLY tough getting out of that funk! I went to the gym after a 4 day break of not going to the gym, and I was REALLY depressed going there! After some good cardio and strength I felt so much better but MAN, are they right about food affecting your mood.
Anyway, today I wanted to talk about a class I have been taking for a few years now at 24 hour fitness called "Turbo Kick"! First of all, I just want to throw it out there, I'm not an instructor, nor a promoter or anything like that for the Turbo Kick class/program. I'm just an avid lover of the class and would love to spread the word!! If you don't go to 24 Hour Fitness and you are enjoying your gym work outs, keep doing it!! No need to switch, but if you are just trying to get into some fitness for not too expensive of a price, 24 hour fitness is a great option! There are so many gyms all over CA that you can go to! And once you are a member of 24 hour, all of the group fitness classes are COMPLETELY FREE! Some of the more popular classes (BodyPump and Spin) you have to sign up ahead of time, but everything else you can just walk in and take the class!!

So Turbo Kick. Have you heard of it? It is a 1-hour full, sweaty, fun, cardio kick boxing class that you can take at most any 24 hour fitness that provides Group Fitness classes. I've taken some step classes (which I love!) and pilates, and yoga, but Turbo Kick has definitely been one that has stuck to me! If you love dancing, constantly moving, punching air (and feeling like a bad ass doing it) this is definitely the class for you. It's a little more advanced in the sense that, you kind of have to know the moves ahead of time, like certain punches, kicks, twists, etc. but after about 2 weeks you will have all the moves down and be able to follow along effortlessly. :)

Usually there is one instructor who teaches the class and will call out the moves and sometimes explain it to you prior to the class beginning. When you have a great instructor they truly motivate you to push yourself so much harder!! And I absolutely love that the playlist that we workout to is usually always music that is popular and upbeat so it almost feels as though you're just dancing!!

Obviously each class is very different, but here is a break down of how the class usually goes down:

Warm Up

- The usually shoulder rolls, jabs, kicks, stretching, just to get your body warmed up.

Turbo Part 1 (I have no idea if it's actually called this haha)

This is the first phase of the cardio kickboxing, usually filled with tons of punching, kicking, twisting, and yelling. They definitely make sure you work both sides of your body and within the first 5-10 minutes of this phase you should be DRENCHED in sweat.

TURBO!

This part is VERY intense. It's kind of like a 1-2 min HIIT workout. It's supposed to be the part where you just go ALL OUT, with tons of burpees, knees, jumping jacks, tucks, and it's all very super fast! 

Recovery

So after doing a couple rounds of Turbo, this is the time where you enable your body to recover. Bring your heart rate down a little, but not completely. Recovery usually starts very slow and it's very controlled and just let's you be funky and fun! It's a great way to cool off before the last part of Turbo Kick... the FINALE!

FINALE!!

Finale! As the name of it explains, it's where you just go ALLLL OUT. It's usually very upbeat, loud, and it's the last 5 minutes that you can give it your ALL. There should be no regrets at this point of the workout because you just did a WHOLE HOUR of cardio!!!

Usually after I'm done with the Turbo Kick workout, I do 5-10 minutes of abs and then I am just exhausted. The first few times you take the class, I will warn you. You WILL be sore. Each class uses all parts of your body, and if you are not used to working out a lot, it may be a bit of a surprise, but once you are doing cardio on the regular with running as well as some HIIT workouts, you will be keeping up with the rest of the class in no time!!

If you have any questions about Turbo Kick, feel free to ask me! I've had such a great time with the class, I just want to spread how great it makes me feel!!

Love you all and as always, let me know if there is anything you want me to blog about!! Keep the fitness up! NEVER GIVE UP!