New fitness studio!

[littlecitynames.livejournal.com]

There is a new privately owned fitness studio in Teele called soul.train.
The grand opening was last weekend (although they've been running classes for a month now, and have apparently been open in some way or another since April). I just went to their Zumba class this morning, which was fun but PACKED. I talked to the instructor, Erica, afterwards and she said most of the people there have attended her Saturday morning classes for years and followed her as she's moved, but that the other classes (Mondays and Wednesdays at 6:30pm) are less crowded. If any of you go to Boston Sports Club in Davis, that's where she used to teach. She said that signing up and paying ahead of time on the website is the best way to reserve a spot.

They also offer other group classes, in vinyasa yoga, some kettlebell and other weights classes, and an outdoor boot camp class. The yoga classes sound really fun, although I haven't gone to any - Erica teaches those as well and they're high-energy and set to rock and hip hop playlists. It looks like there's also a traditional vinyasa class. Then they offer personal training as well, for individuals or pairs.

This is a great idea to me, especially since World Rhythms seems to be gone. I've been looking for Zumba classes for ages that I could attend without joining a gym or signing up for a terminal 8 week course. The only one I could find (Zumba with Jess) I didn't really like, plus it's way down in Union Square, so this place opening up 4 blocks from me is really exciting.

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For all the good things I have to say, it's still rather expensive for this part-time working grad student ($14 for one class, $60 for 5, or $100 for 10, and I would happily go 3x/week if it were unlimited) so I also wanted to use this post to ask if anybody's been to the Zumba classes at the Work Out World on Boston Ave in Medford, which would be much cheaper for me in the long run, but they won't let me try a class before paying a $50 joining fee and committing to a $20/month membership. I am very picky about my Zumba classes, so I don't want to make that kind of commitment without knowing anything about them, and that's the only thing I'd need the gym membership for.

(Also, speaking of new things in Teele, there's a new consignment store there as well called Talya's Place. I haven't gone in yet but it looks cute!)

Comments

[elerz.livejournal.com]

Just wanted to put in another good word for Soul.Train. The studio is beautiful, and Erica is such a supportive and creative teacher! Both her Zumba and her yoga classes are a ton of fun--this coming who didn't work out at.all.EVER before taking her classes. I haven't tried the other classes or the personal training, so can't speak to those, but the instructors all seem like they really care about their students/clients.

It is a little on the pricy side--if you go to a lot of classes it ends up being a bit more than a gym membership--but totally worth the money if you can make it work. And $10/class seems to be on the low-end for studios in Boston from what I've seen.

[emcicle.livejournal.com]

I haven't been a member at work at world in a few years, but I do remember that their exercise class schedules changed really frequently/constantly to different times/days or different instructors, often with no warning. I don't know if it is still that way, though.

[mamabunny72.livejournal.com]

Have you tried a Zumba class with Jess Perkins? She teaches at Dance Union in Union Square. $12 per class, but if you can swing a 10-class punch card ($100), then it's $10/class.

I also like Steven Adcock and his wife Cheryl Casquejo; they are at the Cambridge Recreation Department: Zumba Toning on Mondays in the summer (8 weeks, non-Cam resident fee is $75); Aqua Zumba on Wednesdays is pricier (7 weeks, $85 for non-Camb resident.)

[mamabunny72.livejournal.com]

Whoops, I just saw that you tried ZwJ and didn't like it.