Trying A New Workout on the Trapeze
Although I love having a workout routine, I’m prone to boredom. I feel like a robot going to the gym, getting on an elliptical machine and lifting weights. If my mind and body aren’t challenged, I’m not getting the most out of it.
I’m currently on the hunt for ways to mix up my workout, and one physical activity I was dying to try was the trapeze. I may be klutzy in real life, but clearly, on the bar, I would be flying with the most graceful of ease, right? Sadly…not.
Trapeze is NOT as easy as they make it look in the circus tent. First, you’re in a harness that is so tight, you feel like you’re wearing a corset (thus the need to re-learn breathing effectively), but I guess it’s good to have safety first, breathing second.
Then, you have to climb up a ladder to a platform 27 feet above the ground (without curling up in the fetal position in fear) and the nonce you’re harnessed in, you jump. The feeling of jumping and then swinging is pretty surreal…and scary. I knew this wasn’t going to be a cardio workout, but the trapeze was the most intense arm, core and upper body workout I’ve ever had.
Your arms are holding your entire weight, and no matter how big/small you are, your body is heavy. In order to pull your knees up and around the bar, you use your core muscles and momentum. At the time, there was so much adrenaline going through my body that I couldn’t feel the discomfort. But the next day – holy cow. My body was bruised from the harness and my arms and abs were so sore that I had to roll out of bed.
So right now, I’m limping and having trouble moving due to the pain, but for the first time in a while, I feel like my body got a solid workout. The bruises were absolutely worth the adventure.
What kind of workout have you tried to push your body to the limit?
Jessica Braun wrote this post for Together Counts on behalf of Edelman Digital. When she’s not
trying to join the circus, she is checking out Chicago’s restaurant scene and trying not to burn down her kitchen learning to cook.