They say variety is the spice of life and this is especially true when it comes to fitness. It is easy to get bored so I am determined to mix it up this year.

Mike Clancey is a new fitness trainer at the Powell River Rec Complex. He teaches a 6:15 class three times a week that works well with my schedule so I decided to check it out.

Mike’s boot camp wasn’t what I expected. I am not sure what I expected but I didn’t think it would be this hard. It is hard. I was sweating after 10 minutes and really really sweating by the end of the 45 minute class.

Mike’s gentle manner is lovely in the morning. I don’t think I could handle an over zealous energizer bunny type of instructor that early in the day. We alternated between floor exercises on a mat, 60 seconds of cardio and strength training. I liked how Mike kept changing things up. It gave my heart time to slow down!

Mike incorporates a lot of core work. He gives us a choice of how to do certain exercises depending on our fitness level. I like this. With some exercises I started out on level three but ended up on level one. Works for me!

I also like Mike’s class because it isn’t too dancy. By that, I mean he doesn’t incorporate a lot of aerobic steps into his class. I’m not good at dance type classes and find myself frustrated whenever I try to do them so I am grateful that Mike’s classes aren’t dancy.

More on Monday morning….