If you’re bored with traditional core-strengthening classes, then jumping over the BOSU, and trying to balance on one foot and leaping over that dome-topped training device may appeal to you. The BOSU class at the Denver Athletic Club combines the mental concentration found in yoga and Pilates with the intensity of high- powered abdominal classes, while getting rid of the mats and pumping up the fun.
BOSU — the acronym stands for Both Sides Utilized or Both Sides Up — looks like a ball that has been cut in half. It’s flat on the bottom and dome- shaped on top. And it can be used with either side up, depending on what type of exercise is being done.
What it’s like: If you have never worked with a BOSU Balance Trainer before, the first 10 minutes of class are essential because that is when you practice bouncing and balancing on the ball while jumping into the air and turning.
“It’s OK to fall,” says the instructor, Heidi Gurley, as she tells students to improve their balance with images of trying to squeeze into a pair of jeans that are just a bit too tight. “I like to say that the people who fall are working just a little bit harder.”
As students tremble and shake to maintain their balance, they soon learn what is meant by the acronym. Gurley intensifies the core routine by directing students to flip the BOSU ball and assume a plank position while extending one leg out to the side and pulling it back in, then alternating sides.
To make sure each abdominal muscle thread is worked, Gurley transitions into “mountain climbers” by having parti- cipants pull their knees toward their chest as quickly as possible while trying not to tip the ball.
“Can you feel the burn?” Gurley asks her class half-jokingly. “We like the burn, so we’re not going to stop.”
With that, she guides students through the “Dead Bug,” in which they lie on their back on the dome side of the ball, balancing while their legs and arms are bent in the air like a dead beetle. For those coordinated enough to move once they are in this position, the abdominals are stretched just a bit more by extending the opposite hand and opposite leg.
Before allowing students to pick up their materials and leave, Gurley wraps up the class with relaxing hamstring and hip-flexor stretches.
“It doesn’t matter what exercise you do, it’s always harder on the BOSU,” Gurley says, explaining that students have to fight gravity while balancing.
What was worked: In the 45- minute class, we worked every muscle at least once whether it was toning the arms by holding ourselves in a push-up position on the hard top of the ball or toning our quads with ski jumps by bouncing from one BOSU to another.
The morning after: It hurt to laugh, but was it our imagination or were those jeans that felt a bit too snug the day before now fitting more comfortably?
How long to break a sweat: After we figured out how to control ourselves on the BOSU, we started feeling the beads about 20 minutes into the class. Once it started, it didn’t stop.
Advice: Because many of the club’s classes run back to back, it is important to arrive a few minutes before the session begins so you don’t miss anything.
Lace your shoes snugly so your foot isn’t moving in weird positions when you are bouncing on the BOSU.
If you have knee or ankle problems, you may want to consider another class or talk with the instructor beforehand for modifications.
Details:The BOSU group fitness class begins at 5:30 p.m. Wednesdays at the Denver Athletic Club, 1325 Glenarm Place. For more information call 303-534-1211 or go to denverathleticclub.cc.
