Tabata? What the WHAT?

I've heard a little bit from friends about tabata-style training. In short, 20 seconds on, 10 seconds off. And during that 20 seconds, volume is at 11. Commonwealth Sports Club has a Tabata class on Mondays so I decided to check it out. We're talking max cardio for basically 40 minutes of a 60 minute workout. One of the best ways out there to burn fat. With the 6 Pack Abs deadline approaching, it's time to get in some serious burnage. What was notable about it?

-The class got barked at. Like Ranger School barked at. "WHY AREN'T YOU MOVING?!!" Simmer down instructor guy. 

-It was my first experience with aerobics and not quite the Eric-Prydz-Call-On-Me experience I hoped it would be. While the majority of the class was female, the look of desperation, pain, and regret was on the face of almost every person in the room. No sexy smirks. 

-Someone's good at everything. The girls on either side of me were not in awesome shape but not overweight. The one on my right could do the rear lunge til the cows come home and the girl on my left could do infinity burpees times a thousand. Diversify your workouts and eventually you'll find your own.

-Tabata class is no place for hardos. For those who are not familiar, a hardo is someone who acts tough at inappropriate times. Think mall cop, the grunting guy at the gym, or LeBron James. This was me for a minute in the class, modifying exercises to make them tougher when I thought, "Gee whiz, class just started. Surely you will get the workout you need, just stick with it." Sure enough, I broke a sweat.

-The very best part of class was the guy in the corner with no weights, no mat, no water, no shoes, and no concept of what normal is. Just picture a flurry of groans, long curly hair, terribly formed/overpaced exercises on a dude with a huge schnoz and zero fat in the first place. I mean everybody in the class looks like an idiot during the exercises but c'mon dude. At least TRY not to look like you've been locked in a cage in a basement in Pulp Fiction and recently escaped to burn lots of calories. I mean, just TRY.

Overall it was nice to get the hang of the tabata rhythm, definitely a concept I will be using in the future. However, I won't be going back to the class. There was a je ne sais quois to some of the exercises that felt extremely effeminate. I'm pretty sure some of the moves were taken straight from here (and I ain't talkin about the awesome part where Crazy Legs stunt-doubled in a leotard and windmilled his way into into our hearts). So I don't think I'll be going back.

Keep up the tabata,

LSF