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Posts tagged with: 24Hr Fitness
Dec 27, 2010    |      0 comments

24Hr Dirty Fitness

Being a member of Equinox seriously spoiled me in terms of gym standards. Of course, I get what I pay for, and because the membership is so high, I get it, I get all these extras (cleaner lockers, workout towels, all the toiletries, more classes). I mainly picked Equinox because it was the most convenient to my workplace. It’s a no nonsense turn to the parking lot to and from work. Easy peasy. The main reason why I have my 24 membership is that I signed a contract years and years ago that I’m locked into a pretty cheap annual rate. It’s a good gym backup, plus I like the convenience of having an option if I ever needed to go to the gym at 11pm.

Today, I went to the new 24Hr Fitness closest to my parents house. I haven’t been to a 24 in forever, so coming back to this one was a huge improvement! Really clean machines, nicely lit interior, ample room. The pool is indoors and heated. I guess since I went on a busy hour, obviously, the pool was busy too. Usually, I get the privacy in the Equinox pool because hardly anyone can brave the cold (since it’s on the roof) before entering the water. The pool here started off at 3ft, then gets to 5ft towards the end. You see the photo above? Well, when I went the water was not clear at all. I don’t even remember seeing those lane lines. I went underwater and I could barely see the other end of the pool! I don’t know if it’s dirty, or the way their chlorine is, but it felt really dirty to me.

Sure, I guess you can call it part of triathlon training, because in an actual tri event, there’s no way I’m going to get ideal pool conditions anyway. It was the closest pool I could get to, so I shouldn’t complain. I was able to work on some drills, plus practice some breathing and turning skills my UCLA instructor told me to practice.

Sep 30, 2008    |      0 comments

Spin, Spin, Spin

Spin class, known as 24Cycle, has been one of my weekly habits. Mondays at 7:30pm in the Santa Monica 24 Hour Fitness led by Katyia. It’s pretty much all up to you because the instructor isn’t going to tell you what resistance to put, neither is she going to tell you if you’re going too fast or too slow. It was all about feeling what’s most comfortable but challenging at the same time. I definitely feel the burn each and every class. I can use this kind of training to help improve my leg muscles and conditioning for my running. It’s a tiny bit easier now than the first class, but still very challenging.

What I like most about this class is that the instructor varies the patterns and workouts. What helped me the most was the interval training where we would do intervals of sprints and hills for 5-10 minutes. Sprint as fast as you can, then when you’re done, up the resistance and then repeat. What a workout! I was sweating so much that my shorts got wet from my shirt’s sweat. I know, I know, too much information, but that’s how intense it is. I’m already interested in buying the special shoes for it that clips on to the pedals for a greater leg workout plus more efficient power handling with each stride.

Aug 2, 2008    |      0 comments

Turbo Kick Boxing In The Mix

This morning was my second time trying out 24 Hour Fitness’ Turbo Kickboxing class. I admit, the first time kicked my ass because I didn’t have water, which is VERY important in these high intensity workouts! I figured, since I don’t do as much running on pavement anymore because of my TNT break, I should at least keep up my cardio. The video above is a good representation of the class. I was in the groove of things this time around. I was more familiar with the moves, and was hydrated. I think this will be a good Saturday morning routine for me now.

Jul 8, 2008    |      0 comments

The Return of the Spin

24CycleLast week my first spin class, aka 24Cycle, at 24 Hour Fitness in Santa Monica literally kicked my ass! I wasn’t giving up there! Just like my first day at TNT, which I thought was HELL, I was struggling so badly. I know it just takes some dedication and motivation to keep coming back. I always look back at my marathon experiences, thinking to myself, “If I can do 26.2 miles, I can do this!”.

So today after work I returned to the 24Cycle class, very determined to get a great workout, and hoping that I will see (or feel) some kind of improvement. It was a different instructor, so the interval routines were slightly different, but just as challenging. I noticed that we didn’t have to turn up the resistance as much my previous instructor, but focused more on speed bursts and very, very slow controlled movements. I’m not complaining though. It didn’t kick my ass as much as last time, but it was still one great workout. Hydration definitely helped me out (I forgot it last time).

I’m sold. I’m determined to take this class AT LEAST 2x a week, whether it be in the early morning, or after work. I highly recommend this for a high intensity, fat-burning workout!

Jun 26, 2008    |      0 comments

Resistance Is Your Friend

24 Hour Fitness Spin ClassThis morning was the FIRST time I’ve ever gone to the gym before work. I slept early with the intention to check out a Turbo Kick Box class they offer at the Santa Monica 24 off Ocean Park and 31st. Only two people were in the Kickbox classroom, so I opted to try the 24Cycle Spin Class instead. It sounded fun, with some house music playing in the background, why not?

I picked a stationary cycle near the entrance, trying to be sneaky. About 15 minutes into it, I was drenched in sweat. Then the instructor said, “Ok, that was the warm-up. Time to step it up.” What the?!? Mind you, this is my FIRST spin class. I’ve always observed the class from the outside, and I’ve always thought that I’m never cut out for this kind of training. Never say never. I’m not sure what the intervals were, but at every interval before the rest period, the instructor would tell us to turn the dial to add more resistance. We would simulate hills by cycling standing up with more resistance, then have one arm behind our back, switching hands. The last part was sitting down with high cadence. She would repeatedly say “Resistance is your friend!”, because she said that low resistance could injure our knees.

Working out in the morning definitely gave me more energy throughout the workday, and I think I will make this a weekly thing for me since I don’t have TNT training anymore. It’s every Thursday at 8am in Santa Monica.

May 17, 2008    |      0 comments

In The Habit

I woke up VERY early this morning to check out some strength cardio class at 24 Hour fitness, but when I got there the class was full. What the? Oh well, so I just did a little cardio on the elliptical machines and some weights. Wow, this is good. 6 out of 7 days this week I did something cardio-related. I came to the realization that I’m in the habit in all things active. Shaweeet!