Admit it, tell the truth, how many fitness gimmicks have you been sucked into? Is there a dusty old set of dumbbells hiding under your bed, or maybe Mr Motivator’s workout video? There has been a plethora of crazy fitness fads come and go in our time, and below are some of my personal favourites.
Karaoke Spinning is a stationary cycling class, where the microphone is handed around the room and people sing along. Most people can barely breathe, let alone sing in a spinning class. ‘Jukari Fit to Flex’ is the latest result of an ongoing collaboration between Reebok and the Cirque du Soleil acrobatic dance troupe. With Fit To Flex, the only tools needed are long, stretchy Jukari bands that can be used to stretch, tone and even dance with. Like dynamic yoga, but much more fun.
Pole Dancing is perhaps the best way to make your partner proud. You can learn the moves, strengthen your upper and lower body, get flexible and get covered in bruises. If you’re a fan of the ‘sexiness’ then ‘Flirty Girl Fitness’ is another group fitness class focused around the sensual woman. Flirty Girl Fitness offers many styles of fitness dance such as the chair strip-tease. This class introduces the art of the sexy chair dance while giving you the best core workout you’ve ever had.
Not so sexy, the British Army provides ‘Army circuits Outdoor’, a military-style group circuits class. You can take the short, sharp shock route to fitness, with improvements guaranteed provided you are consistent. Another option is Adventure Bootcamp, run by the Olympic gold medalist Daley Thompson and former Gladiator and Commonwealth champion Kate Staples. Conducted in parks nationwide, the sessions promise to help you to lose up to 12lb in weight and up to 5 per cent body fat if you do 20 sessions over five weeks.
A fan of exercising in the great outdoors? Bored of the weights-room? Then Urban gym is probably for you. Based on the principles of parkour, or free running, this outdoor workout uses everything from park benches to lampposts as novel exercise tools. The hour-long classes are held in the early evening and are designed to take the body by surprise by introducing different moves in each session. There’s plenty of running to keep you warm and partner exercises to make the whole thing more sociable.
Anti-gravity boots, also known as Air Kicks, are springy boots that are just as fun as they sound. Made from plastic that fits over your everyday shoes – think more trainers than stilettos – Anti-gravity boots have a rubber spring base that transforms downwards energy, bouncing you upwards like a trampoline. The ‘I Gallop’ is a personal favorite, as it simulates horse riding in a bizarre manner. Definitely one to do behind closed doors! It is meant to tone your abs, hips, bum and thighs.
Celebs such as Jennifer Aniston and Cameron Diaz are often snapped surfing the waves to keep fit. But what if you can’t breakaway to the beach every weekend? Online company Tasty Adventures have come up with the Land Ski – a board that has been designed to replicate surfing on the street. With two rows of wheels at either end of the board, you can glide along the pavement and work your muscles as if you were surfing the waves in Hawaii.
Body Togs are the lazy girls answer to fitness and the working girl’s ticket to weight-loss. Body Togs are wearable weights that fit easily on your arms and legs, so whether you’re shopping, working, or even sitting at home, you can actually be burning off calories. In fact, using Body Togs for up to 10 hours a day is said to be as effective as a 2 mile run!
Is this even too much effort for you? Well why not try out the Japanese Dumbbell Phone? The art of useless Japanese inventions known as ‘Chindogu’ brings us a dumbbell attachment for the telephone. If you wish you were building biceps instead of sitting at your desk at work, then this stupid fitness gadget might be the answer to all of your problems. Sure, you’ll look like an idiot, and everyone in the office will make fun of you, but that’s not as important as those giant 12-inch guns you can develop every time you pick up the phone.
