I’m shamefully ready for winter to skedaddle! Shoo…and get a move on! This time of year I rely heavily on deep squats, steep incline treadmill cardio sessions, soaking salts and hot baths. Also among the list is big warm sweatshirts, cozy sweatpants, bubbly champagne, football and LAUGHTER.
With that being said, I desperately have to share a funny Friday FITness laugh. Another one of the quirky hysterical gym stories that left us in the thralls of bent over barely breathing belly laughter. Up inside of my training studio, Abercrombie and FITness, is a cackling bunch of batty girls pumping iron, lifting weights and contorting their Funny Muscles for the love of living lean. It can sometimes be an organized three-ring circus.
Last week, I had eight beautiful women show up for a hard-core, one hour workout session. Little did they know, I had a NEW trapeze type exercise tossed into the mix.
I had planned an attempt on a specific style of suspension training. The kind that you see in the movies. The unFITness elementary way of saying it would be that I was bringing the playground school yard days into play. Back in the day the monkey bars were LIT! I knew it was going to be a stretch but I wanted to give a new option. I would have them dangle and hang upside down and lift their body up for a seriously stellar inverted ab crunch. What can I say…I try to keep it fresh and fun.
The good news was, all but two of the eight were in! Each girl demonstrated an itsy bit of panic. I noted a little fear in their eyes but in the end one by one they bellied up to the bar like Balboa…Rocky Balboa!
Early on I made an executive decision to allow each person to decide their entrance and dismount. Keep in mind that the bar is about 4.5 feet off of the ground. This is where I could kick myself for not planting a hidden camera in the corner of the gym. Lord have mercy! Clearly, it had been a while since these girls were on a jungle gym. Watching the wheels turn as each person approached the bar was worth it. I had to grin and fight back the boastful giggles rising from the inside spotting these ungraceful, unathletic dismounts. SHAME on me!
Once they got the “hang” of it, they performed at the highest level. Most everyone completed up to 15 crunches per round. As round three crept around I could see the energy winding down. They were all fighting fatigue and their arms and legs were shaky and weak.
The last brave broad pushed through and completed her crunches like a military movie star. For some reason, I stepped away from my spotting post for a quick split second.
When I turned to make my way back to the bar, I saw a damsel in distress. One leg /foot was up and caught on the bar. She was hanging on with her hands and one big bright Asic tennis shoe was somehow lodged on the bar above her head. Can you even get a picture of this? At first glance I thought she was crying. Trying to help a sista out, I realized she was having trouble breathing because she was laughing. She could hardly muster the words… “My foot is stuck. Help.”
I grabbed her body to try to hold her up as we both worked to finagle her foot loose. Her foot was somehow womperjawed and locked in a semi serious awkward position. I pushed hard to set the foot free and when I did this her exhausted hands released and she fell forward and somehow bounced landed on a big giant balance ball. From there she ricocheted forward into the mirror. The release and her now boisterous laughter coupled with the flailing rebound fall was unlike anything I have ever seen. She would have given a stunt double a run for his/her money. Let’s just say I would have won America’s Funniest Home Video’s in a quick heart beat. I’m positive it would be a viral you tube sensation in which Ellen DeGeneres would have us both on her show to discuss the “fall” in full detail.
The girl, my amazing friend and client, was unscathed and thankfully her feelings were in tact. The room of super sweaty workout warriors were full on debilitated with tears of laughter and drained from exercise. I’m not sure how long it will be before I can bring this movement back into the circuit. Much like a horror movie, this one will take some time to process.
I hope you saw the high suspense drama and were able to share a laugh.
Do you have a FUNNY workout story to share? Stay tuned on Monday for Part 2 of: A Will & A Way. If you missed part one…click here and find your FITness ⇒ A WILL & A WAY
Love, live proud and laugh out loud!
Angi xo
