Warning: Rants Ahead {A Three Things Thursday Post}

It’s almost here.

After months and months of planning, far too many hours of mapping on Google and weeks of hoarding snacks, my family and I are set to head off for vacation soon. We’ll be roadtripping from Indiana to Florida, making pit stops in Cincinnati and Atlanta, in the hopes of seeing as many family members as possible, seeing some new sights and avoiding tantrums at every turn.

However, in the past few weeks, I’ve been wondering if I needed to worry less about Miles and Silas throwing tantrums and focus more on me.

1. One of my favorite things to do when visiting larger cities is to check out group fitness classes/boutique studios that aren’t in my neck of the woods. I tried to find a couple hip places near where we’ll be staying in the Tampa area but it seems most of them are a good half-hour away. I thought all was lost until I spoke with a rep from OrangeTheory Palm Harbor. To my delight, an OT studio was opening in Trinity, just 15 minutes from where we’ll be, in time for the trip.

I went to the website and scoped out the schedule, and my streak of luck continued when I saw that there were 5 a.m. classes. Perfect! I could get in a rocking workout and be back before the kids were up. I immediately texted the studio to get a reservation.

Yes, you read that correctly. I texted.

Over the course of nearly four days, I sent more messages than I care to count trying to secure a spot in the Thursday class. And you know what? I still don’t have a reservation. I’m fairly certain there’s an opening but I felt like once they heard I wasn’t local and they weren’t going to sell me a membership, they didn’t care. I was sent a message that it was a $28 drop-in fee and I had no reservation. Like, they just assumed I couldn’t afford it. 

News, OrangeTheory: I could. I’m just going to choose not to this time. I don't have another four days to have a text conversation to reserve a spot. 

2. Thankfully, there is a YMCA location nearby and it will give our family 14 visits (not that we’ll need all of them). Again, though, I got excited only to be let down. The Y has a BodyPump license, and I was drooling at the thought of throwing some plates on a bar and squatting for 5 minutes. The hang-up? Morning classes are at 10 a.m. and evening are at 5 p.m. Though they do have a limited schedule early in the morning, nothing matches up with when we’ll be there. And I’m not skipping the beach (and kayaking in the Gulf) to do hang cleans – no matter how much I love them.

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3. Before you yell at me for being a whiny brat, all is not lost. I will be close to Jay B. Starkey Wilderness Park, which has a 6.7-mile paved trail. It opens at 6:30 a.m. so I should be able to get out while everyone eats breakfast. The pictures look absolutely beautiful, and I can’t imagine a better place to kick off marathon training!

I’m also planning to take my set of Aurorae resistance bands so that Mark and I can get in some training while Si naps.  

I Have a Theory: Trying OTF

I was flustered. Out of breath. And falling behind with each passing second.

It was 5:20 a.m. and the clock was ticking, and I had yet to make it past the registration desk at Orange Theory Fitness Broomfield. Thanks to some confusing signage, construction and a lack of coffee, I was late to the 5:15 a.m. class that I was so looking forward to.

When I was planning my trip to Colorado, one of the things I was hoping to do was sample a variety of group exercise classes. Not only did I want to continue my training I wanted to try things that are not available in northeast Indiana. My initial ideas had me searching for boutique cycling classes - Freecycle, Recycle, Expensivecycle - whatever they are called but I was falling short. There are a plethora of barre studios but I've done that and, to be honest, most don't offer a significant reduced rate for new attendees - something I was banking on when sampling classes.

And then I found Orange Theory Fitness. Less than 15 minutes from where we were staying, unavailable in Indiana and offering three free classes to newbies in July, it fit my basic criteria. The workout, I would soon learn, would be one that would challenge and excite me - something I've been missing since I began teaching group fitness.

Within 5 minutes of my arrival, I was strapped with a heart rate monitor and apologizing profusely to the instructor for being late. It's in poor taste, in my opinion, to be late to a group fitness class but with Orange Theory, it's definitely not good given the smaller space and the way it's organized.

From the website:

The Orangetheory Fitness training session is comprised of three components: treadmill interval training blocks, indoor rowing and weight room or resistance training blocks. The physiological theory behind the Orangetheory workout is known as “Excess Post-Exercise Oxygen Consumption,” or EPOC. By providing you with a heart-rate monitor and POD, we can monitor your 5-zone interval training sessions that we call the Orange 60. During the 60-minute workout, you will perform multiple intervals designed to produce 12 to 20 minutes of training at 84% or higher of your maximum heart rate, which translates to Zones 4/5. This program design produces workout "afterburn" effect, which is an increased metabolic rate for 24 to 36 hours after the workout.

Thankfully, the instructor was understanding and got me set up at a station in the resistance area. The workout, which came from OTF corporate, included three resistance blocks each consisting of three exercises. I did burpee rows and weighted situps, a new twist on plank jacks and TRX rows. An entire block was on the BOSU, with mountain climbers, sit-to-stands and lateral hops. It was challenging, and I felt like I was a weaker member of the class. However, OTF suggested to complete 2 to 4 rounds of each set and I definitely hit four each time.

After 20 minutes, it was time to hit the treadmill and rowers where we did a quarter-mile run and a 400-meter row, repeating as time permitted. The goal was to hit a push pace {OTF has three paces: steady, push and sprint}, and I did my best to be smart yet dedicated considering the previous day's 9-miler and the altitude. All the while, the instructor slyly corrected form, kept track of time and coached us to keep going.

My focus was on the monitor where live data via heart rate monitors was posted. OTF uses a generic maximum heart rate calculation based on age, which is used to determine which zone participants are in. The zones are color coded - gray (lowest), blue,  green, orange and red (highest intensity) - and the goal is to spend most of the time in the green but hit the orange and red. The chart should look like a pyramid.

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My chart looked like a pyramid ... if you were only looking at gray, blue and green. I felt like I struggled to hit the higher numbers, and I was frustrated to see that I was a low-performer when compared to the group. Only later did I realize that the computer had my maximum heart rate at 200 - that of a 20-year-old. I might be young at heart but my age is still 33.  But, with the report that is emailed {perk alert!}, I was able to determine that I did hit the orange zone and would have spent more time in the green. Also, I think there's a bit of a learning curve with some of the exercises and once I became more familiar, I would have been able to push harder.

Though I wished I would have pushed harder, performed better, reached higher, I was in love with the experience. The studio was welcoming, the staff friendly and the instructor really took the time to help me understand what it was all about. She actually spent a good 10 minutes going over the chart and assuring me that I did better than the chart indicated (she didn't know about the HR mishap).

And then there's the workout. Though I often include some of the resistance moves in my class programming, I loved the set up and the pace. I'm not sure it would fit into my regular training during half marathon season but I would more than happy to see how it works.

Now to scrape together the money to open a franchise ... if only!

SEE ALSO: My friend Jesica at Runladylike wrote a great post about her experience at an Orange Theory in Florida.