Core Fusion as a CrossFitter

Earlier this month, Exhale invited the FiTMAPPED FitReps to come try a complimentary Core Fusion Class.  We also received a pass for another class and a discount offer on a spa treatment.  Core Fusion is a ballet barre-based class (a la the Lotte Berk Method) that combines pilates, yoga and dance elements.

The first thing that struck me about my first Core Fusion class in well over two years was the quiet when I entered.  The class was full, and women were gathering their dumbbells and staking out their spots in the room, but aside from a few hushed conversations between pairs of friends, no one was talking.  The instructor was the only one who introduced herself.

I grabbed 5 lb dumbbells and found a spot towards the back of the room.  Much to my chagrin, those stupid dumbbells felt really heavy after a few minutes.  I remembered the arm sequence being hard, and I had spent two hours at the box lifting that morning, but still.  I wondered if the other women in the class realized that they could handle far more weight in another context, with more efficient movements.  

We moved to the barre and the rhetoric jolted me out of my musings.  The instructor - who was excellent in so many ways - kept talking about "feeling the burn" and "calories."  She preached the value of core strength for runners and spinners.  I was out of my element.

I enjoyed my time at the barre.  I liked the challenge of trying to get through each sequence without stopping.  I was pleased that most of the movements came back to me, and, at the risk of sounding oddly narcissistic, it was nice to look in the mirror for thirty minutes.  I admired my traps.

I used to do these workouts four or five days a week.  (I was a Physique 57 person more than a Core Fusion person, but the differences are less striking from a distance.)  I loved these classes.  I enjoyed the challenge - and how they made me look.  I liked feeling graceful, long and lean.  

In my early CrossFit days, I was loath to drop Physique entirely.  Physique offered a welcome counterbalance to what I saw as a sweaty, grunting testosterone fest.  In time, though, my perception of CrossFit changed.  I came to recognize beauty in strength, and grace in well-executed lifts.  I learned that overhead squats are the best core workout.  These days, the only length I care about is hitting triple extension in my Olympic lifts.

"You can't go home again," I sighed as I gathered up my things.  My thoughts wandered back to my snatch. 

-Gym Belle-