MACHINES

Five Points has a lot of machines you can work out on.  My favorites are the elliptical and the bike.  Each machine at Five Points has different workouts you can do on the machine. The machines also have where you can control the resistance.  I like how when I work out on the bike I can change the workout so it feels like I am riding up hills because of the different resistance levels.  Also, when you work out on the elliptical there are different workouts you can do.  While working out on the elliptical it will tell you to move fast or slow and to move forward or backward.  I think both the bike and elliptical are great ways to work out.  Also, you can go at your own pace while working out on machines.  Throughout Five Points in the machine area, there are numerous televisions around the room where you can listen and watch television as you work out.  Some other machines Five Points have are treadmills.  I am not a huge fan of running on a treadmill, but on these you have all the same different workouts on it like the other machines.  I work out on in the machine area at Five Points a lot, whether it is after a class I go to or just because.  Working out on the machines is a good way to work out if you do not have the time to go to classes because then you can go on your own time, when you want.  I encourage everyone to go work out on any machine, whether it is a bike, treadmill, or elliptical.      

BODYSTEP!

Last week, my friend, Lizzie and I tried out a new class at Five Points called Bodystep!  Going into the class I kind of thought to myself that it was going to be so easy and that I would catch on real fast like I did for Sh’Bam because of all my dance background.  But no, I do not know what it was but some of the moves I could not catch onto, I also was not used to stepping up and down on the steps.  Bodystep was actually a really good workout!  You are constantly moving your legs up and down the step, across the step, and jumping on and off the step.  You just have to be careful not to trip on the step! 

Bodystep is a great way to tone your entire body!  In bodystep you can adjust your steps by the type of workout you want to get or what is best for you.  The top step is a full step with rubber on it and underneath you can put however many steps you want, the more steps the higher it is to step up and the harder the workout.  Bodystep is a fun class to take at Five Points.  Bodystep is a good class to take to burn fat and increase your cardio fitness and coordination.  Also, in bodystep you listen to popular music that would get you pumped up to workout.  Bodystep is a class that I am going to try and keep taking so I can get used to the moves and actually get a full workout.  I suggest to anyone that wants to tone their entire body to try a class like bodystep!   

 Here is a video of what a bodystep workout class would look like..

  

Running!

Every family has something in common, in my family running is in our genes. There are a lot of runners in my family; I could not imagine my life without running.  This last spring I pulled my groin during track.  I have not run since then, so a couple days ago I thought I would try running on the indoor track at Five Points.  I am not a big fan of indoor tracks because I run long distance and that is just running in circles too many times!  I am also not a fan of tracks in general, I hate that I can only run in a certain lane and I have to run around in circles.  Cross country is my sport and a lot of my family members too.  Running on the indoor track at Five Points is nice, it is air conditioned unlike outside in the heat or freezing cold.  On certain days you are supposed to run or walk one direction and the other days the other direction.  During track my coach always made us run different directions on the track so we would not get hip problems.  My goal is to get in as much shape or even more shape than I would be in cross country by running and taking different classes at Five Points.

I think running is a great way to get fit.  It works all muscles in your body and can relieve stress.  I love going for a long run and afterwards feeling good and awake.  That is my favorite part about running cross country, the feeling I got after I finished a race.  I think everyone out there should at least try running; it can be a little or long jog, a good paced run, a sprint on the track, any kind of run!  Running is one of the easier ways to stay in good shape, and it makes you feel great in the end!

RPM!

I did not think riding a bike could be so rigorous!  RPM is the most intense class I have taken at Five Points.  Basically RPM is an indoor cycling class based on outdoor riding. You control the intensity of your workout by turning the resistance dial and how fast or slow you pedal.

RPM definitely works your legs!  You are constantly pedaling which is working every single part of your leg.  This class also works your abs because during this class you have to lean forward to hold on to the handle bars which allow you to tighten your abs.  RPM is obviously a great workout!  My first time participating in RPM I felt dead by the time the class had ended.  I wish I had worked out at Five Points while I was still in high school running cross country and track.  I think that if I did RPM it would have helped me with running cross country especially because of all the hills we had to climb.  RPM would have built up my endurance more and I could have performed better.

When Lizzie and I walked into the room I was nervous!  The instructor helped us with our bikes and fixed them to our height.  Before the class even started we were just pedaling like you would on a bike ride through your neighborhood.  Once the class actually started the music was loud and the lights went off.  Throughout RPM we changed the level of resistance whenever the instructor told us to turn it up or down and how fast or slow we pedaled.  Also, we biked going uphill, racing, and other positions.  RPM reminded me a lot of a cross country practice; I thought my legs were going to fall off!  But in the end it was worth it, the feeling of my body so tired just lets me realize I worked out hard.  If you like riding bikes or would love a great and hard workout you should try a cycling class like RPM.

 

Body Combat

Body Combat with Brooke is intense!  Brooke is one of the instructors for Body Combat at Five Points.  Body Combat is basically an amazing cardio workout that focuses around martial arts, karate, and boxing.  The songs you workout to are popular and they are remixes, which gives you more adrenaline to push yourself even harder.  The start of the class you start slow with a couple punches and kicks.  Each workout gets progressively harder and sometimes I feel like I want to quit, but I do not because Brooke pushes you and encourages you to keep going!  Towards the end of the class we start slowing down our punches and kicks and go on a run around the room.  We then grab mats and lay them out because it is abs time!  Going into this class for the first time I was obviously nervous, but once we started I fell in love with the class!  This class is a workout that works your arms, legs, abs, basically every single part of your body, which is great!  In addition to a great workout you also get to learn some of the basics of martial arts, karate, and boxing.  I loved that at the end of the class I was actually tired and felt like I worked all my muscles.  Body Combat is a class that anyone can take, and I encourage everyone to try it!  It can also be a great stress relief workout, because you can punch and kick your anger out!  I really love Body Combat and it is a class I will keep participating in.  

This video shows some moves that I do in my Combat class!

Sh'bam!

If dancing is something you enjoy then Sh'bam is the class for you!  Monday night Lizzie and I went to Sh'bam, which is basically a dancing class.  In my opinion it is the best class because you get to dance and have fun while working out!  You do not have to have dance experience to take this class, but from taking dance classes since I was three did help with catching on to the moves quicker.  The music you dance to is from the top hits on the most popular music charts.  In Sh'bam you always warm up first slowly then get into all the moves.  Then at the end of the workout you do a cool down to the song Forget you by Cee Lo Green.  My favorite workout is the body roll, booty shakin' one, which is shown in the video I posted.  I love how in this class you can just let out your dance moves and not have to be embarrassed that people are watching you!  It is a perfect way to get in shape a fun way!  There are not many ways to exercise that people would consider “fun!“  Lizzie always says “I love Sh'bam because it does not feel like you are actually working out!”  I totally agree with her too, it is so much fun to do and at the end you feel tired because you did actually work out.  I encourage every girl out there to at least try Sh'bam!  It is a class that I will definitely keep taking!

Here is a video that has some moves from Sh'bam!

Bodyflow Express

Last week my friend, Lizzie and I tried a new class, Bodyflow Express.  Bodyflow Express is basically a yoga class. When I walked into the studio I felt a sense of calmness in the air, the lights were dim, everyone was sitting on their mats, and there was soft music playing. The instructor, Leiana told us to get a mat out and lay it out on the floor and to take our shoes off. She then put on calming music and started with the first move. In my mind I thought this class was going to be so easy, I’ll breeze right through it. Well, I was definitely wrong! We did a move where we went into a deep lunge with our arms out at an angle and my legs started shaking. Leiana said “if your legs are starting to shake it is a good thing!” During the moves Leiana said “breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth slowly.” While doing that it let me feel relaxed throughout my entire body! At the end of the class we stretched and laid on our backs and focused on a part of the body that may still be shaky and breathed in through our nose and out through our mouth until it went away. While walking out of the class I felt relaxed and my whole body was loose. This class is a great class for women to take! There are a lot of benefits to taking yoga. You can build muscle, tone your body, feel relaxed, and become more flexible. I know I will take Bodyflow Express again. I loved the feeling I got from it, and it was definitely a workout!

Introduction

Hi! My name is Paige and I am a freshman in college. I have always been athletic.  I started with dance lessons at age three and running track and cross country at age eleven. I also played volleyball in junior high. Throughout junior high and high school I ran cross country and track and was captain of dance team. In high school being a three sport athlete, I never had to worry about gaining weight, I was always in shape. Every sport I did overlapped each other. Sometimes I was practicing two sports at a time. After graduation, I just was not motivated to run on my own without Coach Jones yelling “Come on Hubert, pick it up!” or my grandpa yelling “Lets go Paige, you can get her!” Without them encouraging me to run faster I am not motivated to run on my own. Without all my coaches telling me to run or workout I really did not want to gain the freshman fifteen! I then decided to buy a membership to Five Points which is a fitness center in Washington, IL. Since I was not playing sports anymore and I was not running on my own, I thought it was a good idea to invest in Five Points. At Five Points there are numerous classes you can take, an indoor pool, free weights, machines, a gym, and personal trainers. Also, if you are a parent, there is a daycare where you can drop your kids off while you work out. So far investing in Five Points has been good for me. I have been going there many times a week to workout.