Body Combat – Day 5 
The sun is finally out and that usually in my book, means one thing at the end of the day, sitting in the garden with a glass of something chilled. However, this is a different day to my usual day, as I am attending a gym class down at The Core in Falmouth to try Body Combat. I love wine in the sun. I hate Lycra. I hate me in Lycra, so I was already sulking before I had to leave. One hour previous, I had emptied the drawer where I keep my old sports clothes, onto my bed and rifled through, deciding what to wear. I don’t even know what people wear in the gym these days. I have been to one gym class in the past 6 years. Me in Lycra running shorts is not a good look – thankfully I have the world’s biggest T-Shirt to cover the lumps, bumps and camel toe!
Apart from my relationship with wine, I have a new and recent friend, which I am embracing and this is my FitBit. A FitBit is an activity tracker, worn around your wrist that tells you how many calories you burn, steps you take, etc. I gave one to Dad last Christmas, which he neglected to do anything with, so I’ve repossessed it for the purposes of my challenge. Although weight loss isn’t the point of this challenge, it would be a welcome by-product.
After an unplanned 25 minutes stuck in rush hour traffic, I was in full flapping mode, as I rushed to find the gym, find somewhere to park and actually find the door to get inside the building. Ironically, the building was set in between a pub and an Italian restaurant, two places that I would much rather be just then. But I was welcomed in by a very friendly guy, who pointed me in the direction of the changing area and then into the class itself.
Immediately, I recoiled at the 360-degree mirrors. I don’t need to see my Lycra-clad arse in 3D. Then the first thing I had to do was figure out where the back was, so I could tuck myself away and make my mistakes out of the full glare of the instructor. Body Combat is a martial arts based aerobics class, set to high energy
music, where you punch, jab and karate kick throughout. I wondered what Denis from my boxing challenge would feel about this bastardised version of boxing.
As a class, it was something I could follow...for maybe 75% of the time. I was mostly out of time and had to apologise to the token man next to me for nearly kicking him. It was intense but to give me extra encouragement my FitBit buzzed in approval, which meant I must be actually working out (equally it could have meant the battery was low). My FitBit has never buzzed before. I am working out, people!
Body Combat was enjoyable and it certainly worked arms and legs but I am pretty gym-phobic, so it’s going to take more than one class to make me feel at ease in this environment. 15% of my challenge will be in a gym class, so it will be interesting to see if I get over my phobia at all. It was a good start – they seemed a friendly lot and the instructor didn’t point out my mistakes and try to “help” me, which I have found mortifying in the past. I certainly drove back feeling more energetic and my mood had lifted. When I got back, I looked momentarily at the wine in the fridge, but then poured myself a glass of water instead.
Sofa Dodger; One Woman's Quest to Try 100 Different Sports and Fitness Classes in a Year is available on Amazon, please click here
