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Fusion Fitness Underwater Spinning? Yoga Tai Chi? Gyms Blend Workout Styles in New Ways

Posted on: Thursday, 28 October 2004, 21:00 CDT

We are bored with step class. Plain old yoga makes us yawn. Even spinning has ground us into a rut.

Enter fusion fitness.

The new brand of group exercise merges older workout styles in new formats. These classes can be as straightforward as classic cross-training with weights and cardio or as off-the-wall as underwater bicycling.

That's right. Some gyms have thrown their bikes into the pool.

"Our belief is exercise should be fun," says Donna Cyrus, national fitness director for Crunch, whose Chicago "Hydroride" class is one of its most popular. "It enhances the experience. It's not your old-fashioned water aerobics."

Crunch, known for its whimsical approach to exercise, has adopted other novel formats like cardio striptease, disco yoga and psycho karaoke.

Even in its more conventional permutations, fusion fitness is gaining popularity. Hospital-based fitness centers, suburban health clubs and YMCAs have added fusion classes to their rosters. These workouts combine kickboxing and hip-hop dance, cycling and yoga, boot camp and water aerobics.

Trainers say the new routines add variety for a gym-going population in constant need of a fresh workout.

"Plain and simple, people get bored," said Laura Crisman, group exercise coordinator for Good Samaritan Health and Wellness Center in Downers Grove.

"This is a great way to shake things up," Crisman said. "When I look at the schedules, the step classes are going bye-bye. These mixed classes are all over the schedule."

The mix-it-up workouts cater to a population pressed for time. A growing number of fitness club members want a class that will get their heart pumping, tone their muscles and improve their flexibility all in 60 minutes, according to trainers.

It's also a way to experiment in baby steps. People are more likely to try a new workout if it's mixed with an old favorite, said Tess DeBlander, an instructor at Buffalo Grove Fitness Center.

"You might not go to a full Bosu class or Body Pump, but in strength fusion you can experience a little bit of each," DeBlander said.

Participants can reap the benefits of multiple disciplines. In DeBlander's yoga-Pilates fusion class, Pilates aficionados find they love some of the Hatha yoga poses - particularly the body- melting "corpse" pose that ends the workout. Meanwhile, yoga devotees benefit from Pilates exercises that build core strength.

Some of the newest fusion classes are moving old-fashioned workouts into the pool, where water provides resistance for strength- training as well as joint-friendly cushioning. Besides bicycling, the pool has become home to kickboxing, boot camp, yoga and tai chi.

Darlene Galgan leads classes in aqua tai chi and water yoga- Pilates at Good Samaritan. The 92-degree water of the therapy pool helps participants move deeper into their stretches, similar to the super-heated rooms used for Bikram or "hot" yoga, she said.

Some trainers see the water-based fitness trend only growing as aging baby bomers seek the joint-friendly environment. But it's not just seniors in these classes.

"People have finally found out the secret - the aqua world is such a great place to be," said Betty Simmons, group exercise director at Centre Club, a Gurnee health center affiliated with Condell Medical Center. "It's just blossoming. It's nothing for us to have 38 people in the pool now."

But is all this fusion a good thing?

Overall, yes, says Cedric Bryant, chief exercise physiologist for the American Council of Exercise. But it also depends on how workouts are blended.

"It could lead to problems if you try to mix two disciplines that require a great deal of proper form," Bryant said. "Yoga and Pilates each require a fair degree of technique and skill to perform the advanced moves, and if you combine those with something else it can detract from the quality."

Participants should check to make sure the instructor is certified to teach in each of the disciplines incorporated in the class, Bryant said.

Look for certification from the American Council on Exercise, the American College of Sports Medicine or the National Strength and Conditioning Association. Yoga and Pilates instructors might be certified by the Yoga Alliance or the Pilates Method Alliance. Health clubs might also do their own training of instructors.

Crunch's Cyrus suggests looking for a class that combines several forms of physical fitness - cardio and strength training, for example, or strength and flexibility. Some classes mix all three.

Do some investigating before signing up. Trainers warn that some "fusion" classes might be more about good marketing than a new workout, especially if a gym is trying to get its money's worth out of expensive equipment. A class could have a creative name but nearly identical content to an older class.

Also, consider what your fitness goals are. Someone who wants to lose weight and improve cardiovascular health might want more aerobic activity than a fusion class with 30 minutes of spinning. If you get plenty of cardiovascular workouts on your own, look for a class that mixes strength and stretching.

Above all, choose a workout you'll enjoy, DeBlander recommends. If you can incorporate the exercises into your daily life, even better.

In her classes, DeBlander suggests yoga poses to improve your posture at work or while talking on the phone.

"In the mind-body world, we want you to become aware of how you're using your body and how you're breathing outside of the classroom, not just in yoga-land or Pilates-land," DeBlander said.

And if you ever need to ride your bike through water, you'll be ready.

Source: Daily Herald; Arlington Heights, Ill.

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