Fit To Fly

By Heather Lochner

How many times do we have to hear the words “exercise is good for us”? We are constantly bombarded with fitness regime messages: work out at least three times a week, for a minimum of 20 minutes. Strength training. Cardio workouts. Aerobic and anaerobic. Pilates. Yoga. The list goes on.

But really, how much fun is staring down the wall while running on a treadmill every day all winter long? And there is only so much yoga one can take before the downward dog should be tossed into the backyard. It might be tedious, but fitness needs to remain a priority. It keeps us healthy, wards off stress and helps put the break on the belly bulge.

I recently had the chance to see a new fitness craze — developed by Reebok and Cirque du Soleil — that is putting the swing back into working out. It is called JUKARI: Fit to Fly and its goal is to make fitness fun again.

Here’s the idea: remember those days when you clamoured at the back door, begging your parents to let you outside? As soon as the door opened, you made a bee-line for the swing-set. You’d do a few front twists on the bar, hang with your legs swaying back and forth and then try to perform acrobatic moves on any piece of equipment you could. Those were fun times.

Fast forward a decade or two and that experience — that fun — has been recreated in the comfort of a gym. Using a specially-designed piece of equipment called a FlySet (picture two long pieces of rope anchored to the ceiling with a moveable bar attached between them), women can now experience the sensation of flying while strengthening and lengthening the body through cardio, strength, balance and core training.

According to Lyn Heward, Creative Director of the Reebok-Cirque du Soleil program, “JUKARI: Fit to Fly gives women the feeling that they are performing while they’re working out. The moves and series in the class are inspired by positions and routines performed by Cirque du Soleil artists in their shows — but the workout itself is adaptable for all fitness levels.” Who wouldn’t want that? Me doing Cirque du Soliel moves? Bring it on. JUKARI: Fit to Fly has been around since 2008 and is available in 30 clubs across 16 countries. To see a demonstration of JUKARI Fit to Fly click here.

This hour long workout, accessible and scalable to all fitness levels, is sure to put a smile on your face.