Activity-A-Week: Go Dance!

I once thought I wanted to pursue a career in musical theatre (huh?). I still kind of do, but that ship has long sailed. But I did finally get to dance on-broadway...well a little off broadway anyway, but who's looking at details? The latest stop in our Activity-A-Week series takes us to The Broadway Dance Center in New York City where I was able to drop-in on a 90-minute Broadway Jazz Class ($18).

The funny thing about dance is that you never really forget how to move your body in a class, but you might just be a bit slower at it. The class starts with a series of foot and leg exercises for warm-up and then moves into longer stretches and floor work. After about an hour, the instructor starts teaching a fairly basic routine - which we put to music at the end of our class.

Activity-A-Week: Go Boxing!

There’s no better workout than boxing!  And ladies, this isn’t boxercise. With Miranda Jollymore’s class, you learn real boxing technique with the proper equipment. 

Miranda (MJ) is a retired amateur boxer who now teaches the sport to adults and kids through her charity, Mentoring Junior Kids Organization (MJKO). I've attended her women’s boxing class for over two years, and I've never had a better workout.Make sure you wrap your hands to protect them in the gloves. For a warm-up, we start with a skipping, stretching, and stair-climbing. 

Activity-A-Week: Go Spinning!

Spinning has always scared me.

Why you ask?

Well! You're telling me...I am going to pay someone to yell at me while I'm riding a bike that doesn't move? Well okay then. I am also sort of a lazy low-impact activity kind of person. Not one to knock something before I try it, I decided to give spinning a whirl (see what I did there?) and paid a visit to Soulcyle, a spinning studio with a cult following in New York, Los Angeles and Miami.

First things first, Soulcycle is all about positive affirmations with a kick-ass soundtrack in a dark candlelit room. Sure, it's a bit romantic for a sweaty group spin...BUT - if you're newbie like me, no one can really see you slacking in the corner while your butt aches. Just don't plunk yourself down in the front row. Go at your own place and rev it up when you can. The average class is about 45 minutes and frankly that's all about I can take. You get in, get out and get worked out. You also know it's going to be a rough go, when you see a roll of plastic bags attached to the wall for your sweaty clothes post-spin. So what did I really think?

Activity-A-Week: Go Bowling!

Ok I have to admit, Activity-A-Week has fallen a bit to the wayside these last couple weeks as Wendy and I have been off travelling. But we're back in the saddle again as the Hip + Urban Girl team goes bowling in our latest attempt to live actively. Tamika (above) schooled us all with a bunch of strikes at the start of our first game at The Ballroom in downtown, Toronto.

Bowling burns around 150+ calories an hour, but it's also a great excuse to get out with your girlfriends and catch up between turns instead of staring blankly into an entree. To keep the momentum going I ordered the Cherry Cola (above, right), which surprisingly made me a better bowler. Toasting to a Wednesday with our travel writer Lisa Jackson (above, left).

Activity-A-Week: Go Rock Climbing!

Lisa Jackson is our guest blogger this week for our activity-a-week column as I recover from a cold. Hope it's a source of active inspiration and gets you out to try something new.

This week, I headed to Rock Oasis, an indoor rock climbing gym located in Toronto’s east end. There’s no better way to spend a Saturday morning than scaling a wall. This was the most fun I’ve had exercising in…well…pretty much ever!  

To start out, I took the introductory lesson with Noel, a certified climbing instructor at Rock Oasis. At first, I was really nervous about climbing since I’m such a klutz. But Rock Oasis puts a huge emphasis on safety. Climbing partners constantly perform checks on each other to ensure their harnesses are secured and the safety rope is tied properly. With guidance from Noel, I got the hang of climbing in less than an hour and a half.  

Activity-A-Week: Go Zumba!

I'm usually in a bad mood when I know I have to exercise. I walked into City Dance Corps last week expecting to take a hip hop class. As fate would have it, hip hop was sold out and my only other choice at that time was Zumba.

Zum-wha?

All I know is that I committed to trying a different activity-a-week for one whole year and I'm sure I would have to face Zumba eventually.

So Zumba it was.

So what happened? I couldn't stop smiling through the one hour class and it's because of the energy radiating from Zumba instructor, Jessica Bowman (right). She makes the class with her sense of humour and passion that pushes us outside of our comfort zone.

Yelling at us over the music, "Is you hair in a ponytail? Take it out ladies!' says Jessica as she proceeds to whip her hair back and forth getting us to let loose with a mix of latin, Bollywood, salsa, soca dance moves. Expect a lot of booty shakes that you'll laugh through.

Activity-A-Week: Go Play Ping Pong!

Our Activity-A-Week series continues! We are trying a new way to stay active outside of the gym every week for one whole year. This week we headed to SPIN Toronto, a new ping pong lounge that opened up on King West last fall. I was actually surprised to learn that the average woman can burn around 230 calories/hour playing ping pong. Which for me, beats trying to burn that on a treadmill. Ok, I know, I know - ping pong is a pretty low-impact sport...BUT it's still better than me sitting in front of the TV eating nacho chips and scooping up salsa. I'm an advocate of anything that gets you moving, because every little bit counts.

I skipped the Caesar this time around...but it looked oh-so-good. Instead, I opted for a cranberry soda (trying to keep things light). Drinks at SPIN are served up in these awesome BALL (ha-ha) jars. For those looking to kick back, the bar is fully loaded with lots of interesting beers on tap. Susan Sarandon even approves of my new activity. She's a co-owner of the SPIN empire and Toronto is the first Canadian franchise.

You don't need mad skillz to enjoy playing ping pong. After about five minutes or so, I started to get the hang of it and your heart rate really gets going from focusing on that ball. All the hours you may have spent playing ping pong at camp, in a church basement or at some kid's house will come flooding back to you.

Activity-A-Week: Go Cross Country Skiing!

If you can stand up, hold two poles and move like you're on the elliptical machine at the gym, then you my friend CAN cross country ski. As part of our latest column to try an 'Activity-A-Week', we headed up to Horseshoe Resort just north of Barrie to get ourselves moving without spending all our time inside at the gym. We were lucky to visit on a sunny day and the weather was +5 outside, but did have to make the drive 90 minutes out of Toronto to find snow. Since you're in Horseshoe Valley, there's hardly any wind pushing you around, making this a nice leisurely way to be active outdoors and to enjoy winter. 

Skiing along the gorgeous trails (above) never got boring. There were lots of streams, rivers and trees to keep us occupied. Dress comfortably and warmly, but you will work up an easy sweat moving along the groomed snow. I recommend leggings or long underwear and then snow pants in case you take a spill. The beginner trails offer some incline, but you are mainly on flat terrain and it will unlikely be heading downhill.

Activity-A-Week: Go Skating!

My New Year's Resolution was to live more actively this year. I wish I could be one of those people that *loves* going to the gym. I get bored really easily and need a break from my everyday gym routine. Sooo welcome to our newest column, 'Activity-A-Week' where we will be featuring a fun way to get active without pumping those weights all the damn time. This week we suggest you embrace winter and go skating!

If skating in -20 degree weather is not exactly your idea of a fun day out, take advantage of the public skate times at one of the many indoor rinks operated by the City of Toronto. It'll take the stress out of skating in the bitter cold and you can relax and skate leisurely in a sweater while working up a sweat. Grab yourself a thermos of hot chocolate + Baileys! Ok, maybe not the Bailey's...skating can burn you up to 400 calories/hour. Here are our top picks for outdoor skating...

Unique Places to Go Skating in Toronto & The GTA:

Photo Credit - CityRinks.ca

Colonel Samuel Smith Skate Trail (Etobicoke) - An outdoor rink shaped in a large figure-eight that makes skating in circles look boring. No skate rentals, but there are change rooms and washrooms at this city-run skate trail. Free admission.

Photo Credit - Smart Destinations

Natrel Rink - Harbourfront Centre (Toronto) - Don't miss the DJ Skate Nights every Saturday at this waterfront ice rink. Bundle up because it does get cold right by the lake. We suggest making a day of it and going for Dim Sum first at Pearl Harbourfront inside Queen's Quay Terminal next door. Burn off all those delicious calories with a leisurely skate in the sun. Skate rentals, sharpening and hot chocolate on-site. Free admission.

Yoga In A Gorgeous Loft @ The Yoga Lounge

I once got crammed into a Sunday morning yoga class in a room the size of a closet with 25 other people. After almost doing a sun salutation into somebody's feet and having my neighbour splash sweat on me, I decided that this was likely the most unrelaxing way to spend your weekend. Maybe there was a group buy that week or Sundays are just a popular day to yoga. But the space was hot, claustrophobic, we were all facing a different direction and the instructor kept the door closed which made it feel even more suffocating.

Lucky for me, I came across the gorgeous loft space that is The Yoga Lounge and have never been back to that other studio since. The sunny open room is one of two studios on the third floor, above the Golden Thai Restaurant at the corner of Church and Richmond. Classes rarely feel cramped and the studio is incredibly zen and relaxing. The Yoga Lounge recently added Warm Yoga (29.5 C) which is a great way to detoxify and a nice refuge from the stormy weather outside.