Thursday snippet

Ugh, I had to cancel the long ride today, I have too much work to do! In the meantime, a piece about the trend in fitness classes. I am old school, if I go to a class I want it to be straight-up yoga or sculpt or whatever (I like boot camp classes, though!) - but this bit made me laugh:

Gender does play a role in boutique gym classes, many of which are targeted to women. New York Sports Club, for example, offers Catwalk Confidence, in which a podiatrist teaches women how to walk properly in high heels, and Pilates Together, where mothers use their babies as weights.

Men are strangely undeterred from Knockout Bride, an intense cardio-kickboxing class at New York Health and Racquet Club that is designed to get brides in shape for the big day. (“Remember, all you have in the end are the photos,” said Ms. Donner, the group fitness director, who devised the program.)

“All my co-workers make fun of me for coming to Knockout Bride,” said Kevin Nadolny, 27, a structural engineer, at a recent class in the financial district. Mr. Nadolny is marrying in August, he said, “but it’s a coincidence.”

Craig Walker, a lawyer from Brooklyn, said he “had no idea” that the class was geared toward brides. All he knows is that “it’s torture” and that it has helped him whittle his body fat.

The class, which can last from one to three hours, entails constant motion of the arms and legs, usually on a small trampoline called a rebounder and always to a jarring medley of music (from 50 Cent to Marvin Gaye to Mr. Mister).

Members have been known to break down and cry, said Leo Wright, the instructor, who started his fitness career by teaching boot camp at Fort Dix. “People run out when they can’t take it anymore, but they always come back,” he said.