There’s something enormously satisfying about slipping your hands into a pair of boxing gloves and punching away the day’s frustrations. But I have no desire to ever set foot in a ring. And I can’t afford another monthly gym debit order just for the occasional deadline face-off with a boxing bag. So when I heard Virgin Active was launching a boxing class, I was first in line to try it. Literally. Team Women’s Health got a sneaky preview of Rumble before it launches next month. Here’s what went down.
An Epic Soundtrack Gets You In The Zone
It took four years for the guys at Virgin Active to develop Rumble (a homegrown SA product, btw). They worked with a real-deal fighter, former SA pro bantam & featherweight kickboxing champ Josh Cassius Cloete. So the moves are legit. But kickass moves alone doth not a fun fitness class make. So they also got a DJ on board to customise a soundtrack. The result, which features mainly hip-hop, interspersed with a bit of dance is not your average pop-lite gym class play list. And with bells and sound clips from real boxing matches dropped in, you can’t help but get psyched. The class ends with the theme music from Rocky… cheesy as hell, but I dare you not to throw your fists in the air like you’ve just run up the steps outside the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
You Get To Throw Punches Without Getting Hit
Punching is the highlight of any boxing class, but you don’t want to face off with an opponent who might actually hit back. That wouldn’t bode well for the post-workout #sweatyselfie at all. Fortunately, in this class your only opponent will be a freestanding punching bag. Hit as hard as you like – the bag doesn’t even swing, so even if you have zero coordination, you’ll be unharmed. Cool MMA gloves protect your hands.
MMA boxing gloves make sure you’re properly suited up
You Will Burn Fat And Get Fit
Of course, the million dollar (see what we did there?) question with new gym classes is…how much of a workout is it really? The short answer: You might die just a little. Three-minute skipping intervals, going all Hilary Swank on the boxing bag and a hundred-or-so sit-ups per session combine to create a mass extinction of kilojoules (I burnt over 1 000kJ in just half an hour) and firm up your midsection. And just when you think your heart can’t race any faster, there’s a “Rumble” interval, which could be anything, depending on what kind of day your instructor’s been having. In our session the Rumble slots were shuttle sprints and mountain climbers. We got off lightly…I was expecting burpees.
Team WH survived the class…
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