In preparation for some more plane rides I’ve ordered Dim-Mak’s 12 Most Deadly Katas and Shotokan’s Secrets. Related, I’ve also added Shotokan Myths to my wish-list. HT to Charlie for bringing the later book to my attention.
U.S. Navy photo by Journalist 1st Class Mark Rankin
Given all the craziness on the family front and job front I had to tell Teacher that my attendance will be sporadic at best. While chatting with him a few weeks ago I grumbled about how my conditioning is getting worse. I’ve been up front with him from the beginning and have told him that his program is one part place holder for me and one part fitness maintenance. His classes are great but lately it’s all I can do to get in once or maybe twice a week. What helps is the fact that his school is about 10 minutes from my job. The bad news is that it’s a good 45 minute drive from my home which demotivates me for the weekend class.
Long story short: One of Teacher’s senior MMA guys also teaches a Cardio Kick class in a Mega Church that’s literally five minutes from my home. Teacher advised that if I am having trouble motivating myself at home then I should try the class. He also noted that two other MMA guys from school take the class to supplement their conditioning. My response was to essentially make a Billy Blanks Tae Bo joke. Teacher’s response was to smile and warn me that the class would kick my ass. Given that he had the same sadistic twinkle in his eye that I’ve seen just before he’s about to unleash a hell drill on us, I took notice.
Okay, one free “trial” Cardio Kick class. How bad could it be? Plus it’s a Saturday class that’s five minutes from my house…
That short video is a good metaphor for the 50 minutes of hell I endured and yes, Teacher was right: It kicked my ass.
The class is 60 minutes. Five minutes are spent warming up and another five is spent cooling down. The other 50 are high energy aerobics set to music and it’s non-stop. The “routines” are framed in kickboxing so you essentially punch, kick, and do footwork drills for 50 minutes straight. The amazing part is that 2/3rds of the class went the distance without stopping. Included in that group were an 18-year-old women and one guy who must have been in his 50s. The other 1/3rd included all the rest of us.
I ended up having to stop three times and catch my breath. The punching, kicking, and footwork I got. Keeping up with their pace for more than 1o minutes not so much! In fact, after the first 10 minutes most of the class was moving one way and I was still going in the other direction because I could not keep up.
So how many calories does a class like this burn?
- Tae Bo/Cardio Kick: 600 – 800 calories in an hour
- Running for 20 minutes: Around 200 calories
The class was this past Saturday. Come Sunday and Monday I could barely walk. It is now Wednesday and parts of me are STILL sore. Monday night Teacher was greatly amused.
So, while I continue to sort out my life, at least for the next few months you can call me Billy Blanks.
-BCP
Ha! Used to teach a class like that. Loved it! Good music can really drive you to keep moving. (Bad music can really get you hitting the bag long and hard.) Can’t do it any more because of knees. Totally miss it.
The part I left out is that I am again stopping running for my cardio. It’s bothering my back. This cardio kick is great on my neck and back. However, we’ll see if my old TKD hip starts to act up!
Calorie-wise the one Saturday is equal to three of my runs so once a week should be okay on my knees!