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I showed up at the gym tonight ready to teach.

Just one thing: BODYPUMP is Tuesday, Thursdays and Saturdays.

But my name was still on the schedule, and I was still teaching :)

The gym owner had to do some shuffling as one tumbling instructor is injured and another was going on her honeymoon, and she asked whether I'd be interested in putting together a specialty class. The classes improve strength, endurance and cardiovascular health in addition to burning fat. They are often taught in an interval/boot camp style.

My answer? Well, yes, of course.

While I'm not a certified personal trainer (again, an idea), I felt confident teaching a class with the knowledge I've gained going through BODYPUMP training, taking classes and studying fitness in my spare time. My goal was to keep the heart rate elevated while working on strength. I considered doing tabata-style workout but as we have a lot of fitness levels, I didn't think that the style would allow me to adequately demonstrate proper technique. Instead, I went with a circuit workout that allowed participants to learn a move in a modified format then repeat it up to speed later in the circuit.

Note No. 1: I had the regular teacher, a certified PT, look over the workout before leading it.

As one of them said, the workout made her feel her muscles and got her sweating.

Start with a 5-minute warmup - we did a march, heel digs, toe touches, arm circles and front kicks - and then begin the circuit. I did a lot of this on the bench to channel my inner Jane Fonda and maybe have a reason to pick up the clearance leg warmers I saw at Target. Because those would be hot.

Note No. 2: For the arm exercises, repeat as time allows. Feel free to repeat the circuit twice for time or just once for a quick workout. And don't forget to cool down stretch!

I'll be subbing again next week, and I'm excited to tweak this even more, adding some compound movements.

Do you have any favorite circuit exercises?