The gym class I like was canceled last Saturday so I decided to suck it up (and in) and try the Aqua Aerobics class. The only things I knew about the class were (1) you wear a swimsuit and (2) the women I've seen in the locker room getting ready for it wear water shoes too. The only people I'd seen getting ready for this class were at least 70 so I had a sneaking suspicion that I would be a little young for it. I tried to convince Becca to go with me to "old lady aqua aerobics" so I wouldn't be the only novice/youngster/wet-behind-the-ears-neophyte but she had things to do that day (uh-huh, sure you do, I believe you). So in my usual "gak! class starts in 10 minutes and I'm still at home in my PJ's" style I rushed over and changed into my swimsuit and water shoes and ran into the pool in time to see what equipment everyone was grabbing before they got into the water and before I could change my mind.
Here's what I learned:
- The only male was the instructor.
- Most of the women were older and liked to pick on/flirt with the instructor.
- Apparently the women had complained about the music last week so this week it was all old 80s pop and Taylor Swift. (Can you really work out to that stuff?)
- I wasn't the youngest but I was the least connected. Even the 30-somethings brought a couple friends (darn you Becca) so it was like one big hen party except held while standing 3 feet of water.
- My towering 5-feet-7-and-three-quarters-inches (if you ask Iggy and his friends I'm at least 5'10" but I'm telling you what the doctor told me) made the workout much easier for me. The poor 4'9" woman next to me had to struggle through all of it -- but most especially the "ok, now run 2 laps" segments. At one point she gave up and just did a dog paddle to keep her head above water.
- Speaking of running laps, you do this in the water, of course. 30 women can create quite a current if they all choose to run the same direction around the pool! At some point the instructor will call out "ok, switch directions". If you're lucky you get caught in the whirlpool where the water is trying to change directions with all the ladies -- it's a lot of fun when you're tall enough to keep your feet on the ground. Not so fun (again) for the cute little lady next to me.
- The instructor tried to have us work our abs. Whatever technique he was talking about was incomprehensible to me. I kept getting my head under water. I think this is a big no-no. Everyone else had perfect hairdos (and dry hair).
- Even at the end of the senior ladies' water workout session there is the plug for personal training purchased through the gym (really? an octogenarian wants a personal trainer? maybe he wants to feed his ego with some one-on-one harmless flirting?) with the twist that "we can hold the sessions in the pool with kickboards and waterweights."
- I was surprised to find I was a little sore in my legs the next day.
It was a fun new experience, but I can't see me doing this regularly until, oh, another 20-30 years...
