Tonight, we had the second Biggest Loser workout at the J.  This is the 3rd year that the J has had the contest, but this is the first year that more departments other than the Total Fitness Center are involved.  This workout was in the pool.

27 participants showed up for the workout.  I thought that was a great number to have.  There were two instructors, Bobbie and Adam who are both trained water aerobics instructors.  There were 3 lanes open and I felt like we had plenty of room.

The water was super cold.  On Tuesday, it was warm, so I was quite surprised with the temperature.  We started with a few announcements and introductions and quickly moved into the warm up.  The warm up was all done in a big circle.  I hated that part.  We tossed a few balls around, jogged in a circle, skipped in a circle, etc.  It was challenging to get caught in the current in the deep end.  For the most part, I felt crammed and didn’t like that we couldn’t see or hear the instructor for much of the warm up part.

Once the warm up was complete, we received the heavier water dumbbells and began a circuit workout.  The circuit included about 10 different exercises.  We did each of them for 1 minute and then repeated the circuit 2 additional times.

The circuit included exercises such as jumping jacks, frog jumps, cross-country skiing, seal jumps, rocking horse, etc..

One challenge that I have is knowing the modifications to make the exercises harder.  For the most part, I know that it’s more challenging to do them faster, without touching the bottom, etc..  I’m thinking of doing a personal training session in the pool to learn more about intensity when using the water.  When I workout in the water, I am tired when I am done, but I don’t feel sore or fatigued in the same manner as a land workout.  I’m glad that I include it in my weekly workout mix.

Back in college, I used to swim laps.  I have swam a mile before.  I’d love to get back into lap swimming.  I’m not sure the best way to approach it since the pool at the J is usually pretty busy and I’m sure I’ll need to brush up on my strokes and pool etiquette.

I had about 2 hours of workout out today, and I’m beat.  I’ll be sore tomorrow, but in a good way.