Dana Mace laces up her pink boxing gloves and gets into fighting stance. With her gaze set firmly upon BOB, she delivers a swift one-two punch to the sides of its face.
Back into position, she swings her back leg forward into a powerful roundhouse kick, planting the ball of her foot on the boxing dummy’s right oblique.
There’s something incredibly satisfactory about punching and hitting things, she says.
Mace is the owner of St. Albert’s newest workout, the 30 Minute Hit. The half hour circuit for women incorporates the techniques of boxing, kickboxing, general self-defence, and core stability training.
Members rotate through 13 stations at two-minute intervals, which include skipping, punching and kicking, and knee thrusts. When they aren’t hitting the bags, participants are engaging their core muscles with floor work using Swiss and medicine balls.
The 30 Minute Hit utilizes the concept of high-intensity interval training to increase cardiovascular fitness as well as muscle strength.
“We're going to push you to do as much as you can (and) you should be completely exhausted,” said Mace, trainer. “Thirty minutes is all you need.”
She explained the circuit appeals to women of all ages, from the after-work crowd to new moms and retirees. It’s especially attractive to people who want to exercise but don’t have a lot of time.
“It's something fast and efficient. People are busy … I have three kids.”
One of the things that drew her into the workout, said Mace, is being able to have her kids at the facility with her without the added expense. At the St. Albert franchise on Circle Drive, there is a designated area for children while their moms and caregivers can sweat and box their way through the stations.
There are no set class schedules with 30 Minute Hit, but a trainer is on the floor at all times. Women make their way through the circuit in a similar fashion to a group personal training session.
The workout begins with skipping, to warm up the body, then continues right to the punching bag with a jab cross combo derived from boxing. Participants will also learn how to deliver a roundhouse kick, a swift hook to the side of an opponent’s face and how to manoeuvre yourself when an opponent or attacker pins you to the ground.
Mace explained that unfortunately some members have had to use the techniques used in class for their own self-defence.
“We don't ever hope that they do, but at least they know,” she said, adding that acquiring new martial arts and self-defence techniques has increased her own confidence when it comes to having to protect herself, and her children, if the situation ever arises.
The turtle kicks station, for example, simulates an attacker getting on top of you, she noted. Participants hold a weighted bag between their thighs and practice punching as well as kicking the back of the bag with their heels, which on an attacker would dig into their spine and kidneys.
“This is pretty much your last effort to get away, so you're going to use everything you can,” she said.
The circuit ends with a flesh coloured boxing dummy named BOB, the last station where members can let out their innermost frustrations.
“BOB is the culmination of everything you learn,” added Mace. “For the last 15 seconds, there is always a trainer standing here next you, (getting) you to push to your absolute hardest before you leave.”
The 30 Minute Hit requires no boxing or kickboxing experience and attendance three times a week is recommended in order to see results.
As stated on the company’s website, the workout appeals to a niche market of “women who wanted the benefits of what has become recognized as one of the best fitness formats available, (but) were stuck in a man’s world forced to tolerate inflexible class schedules, train with leering men twice their size, and pay expensive fees for training that was not always the right fit.”
The workout regimen was designed by the Vancouver couple Jackson and Deanna Loychuk in 2004 and has expanded to 33 locations across Canada and the U.S.
A yearly membership costs $49/month with a one-time $99 registration fee that includes a pair of 10 oz. leather boxing gloves.
