Cardio Kickboxing: Why Everyone Should Try It

You might be thinking: how in the world could I ever punch and kick something? Sounds a lot like me almost a year ago. I'm probably the last person you would expect to be throwing jabs and uppercuts for fun, yet here I am.

I took my first kickboxing class at the iLoveKickboxing.com studio in Bayport, NY on January 26th, 2017. I've been going back ever since.

I didn't know what to expect from my first class. All I knew was that I wanted to get in shape any way I could without having to step foot in a lousy gym.

From the few times I went to the gym, I didn't really like anything about it. I felt out of place—like everyone belonged there but me. I felt like I didn't know what I was doing on any machine, so I stuck to the treadmill. How boring.

Sitting on the couch one day, I actually saw a commercial for Tiger Schulmann's, claiming to be a "Gymternative," which piqued my interest. I signed up without thinking, and the nearest studio turned out to be almost 30 minutes from my house. I cancelled my first class and did more research on kickboxing. I found iLoveKickboxing and a studio that's only ten minutes from my house. I went on their site, put in my information, and received a call soon thereafter. I was ready to take my first class.

Thinking back to that first day, I was nervous, although I may not have looked it. Everyone around me seemed to be much more in shape than I was. The whole class seemed like a lifetime because of how strenuous the workout felt, but at the same time, it went by pretty quickly because of the fun I was having.

I really do believe everyone should try kickboxing at least once, and here's why:

1. It tones your muscles.

I went into this hoping to lose weight fast, but this journey helped me to realize that there is no healthy way to quickly lose a lot of pounds. You have to create a healthy lifestyle and routine in order to lose the weight and keep it off. My legs are as muscular as I've ever seen them, and, if I do say so myself. I have pretty nice arms (and all those jump squats and jumping lunges serve to shape me a nice booty!). I wouldn't get this from running on a treadmill for an hour.

2. It's a stress reliever.

Although I wasn't too stressed to begin with, punching and kicking the bag really helps not only your physical health, but your mental health, as well. If I'm having a bad day, I tell myself all I have to do is picture my problems on the bag, and I feel better.

3. It's a confidence booster.

Kickboxing makes me feel like a badass. While you're falling asleep on the elliptical, I'm wrapping my hands to get ready to throw hooks and spinning backfists to the bag.

4. It's an intense, full-body workout.

At iLoveKickboxing.com, your warmup is the first 15 minutes of class, and it varies day to day, including squats, burpees, push-ups, and various moves like these. This part of class gets you sweaty and gets your blood pumping. After this part, we get our gloves on and get ready to punch and kick stuff. Regardless of where you take a kickboxing class, the act of kickboxing itself requires all your muscles to be engaged. You can't kick the bag correctly without engaging your core. Even throwing a cross punch requires you to turn your body to hit the bag right.

5. It increases your flexibility.

In order to kick better and stronger, we stretch every class. We do the same stretches to be able to see progress in our flexibility. A year ago, I couldn't get far down in a side split at all, but in class this morning, I realized that I'm so close to being fully on the ground.

6. It's fun.

I will admit, sometimes I'm not in the mood to get up out of bed and go to class, but when I'm there, I always realize it was worth it. I signed up for kickboxing as a good way to workout. Not only do I get a good workout in, but I also get to enjoy it and now consider it a hobby of mine.

Everyone should try cardio kickboxing class, whether it's to get in shape, have fun, or kick your way into a healthier life.