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Studio: Trainology Fitness, 309 W Chicago Avenue, Chicago, IL 60654

Class Focus: Similar to the studio’s Trainology class, GLIDEology participants alternate 15 minutes on “glide boards” and 15 minutes with toning and strength exercises. Constantly switching exercises ensure you and your muscles won’t get bored.

Cost per class: $25

Money saving offers: 

▪   $0: First class

▪   $112.50: 5 pack ($22.50/class)

▪   $200: 10 pack ($20/class)

▪   $165: Unlimited monthly

▪   $445.50: Unlimited for three months (one-time introductory offer)

The Fab Fit Take:

It’s hard not to grin when you walk into the Trainology studio (next to Dunkin’ Donuts off the Chicago Brown Line) and see the glide boards glistening on the studio floor. For me, the sight triggered instant flashbacks to elementary school PE units where my friends and I would shed our shoes and slide on the boards in our socks, giggling the entire time as we struggled to maintain our balance while doing the Running Man.

But don’t get me wrong- the GLIDEology workout is quite a few steps up from fourth grade gym, and Michael Wollpert (studio owner and head instructor) plays the part of tough gym coach to perfection. Affable yet intense, Michael makes a point to learn the names of everyone in his class and is quick to step in with a helping hand or suggested adjustment.

Our GLIDEology session started off on the namesake glide boards. After donning the necessary booties (think a set of elastic scrubs that fit over your tennis shoes), we warmed up by simply sliding back and forth on the boards, using our outside feet to push off and propel ourselves to the other end of the glide board. About five minutes into the workout, I could already get a gauge of how sore I would be the next day- the motion really targets your outer and inner thighs, as well as your butt from the low stance.

Michael put us through the paces, maintaining the skating motion and altering it slightly by adding arm movements and a 4lb ball to hold in various positions, which forced you to use your core strength as a stabilizer. My thighs were screaming, especially during one segment when we kept one foot off the board, and slid the other foot back and forth while in a lunge position. Michael smugly informed us that we were lucky to be doing this exercise so early in the workout- and I gotta say, my already-burning muscles agreed.

When fifteen minutes were up, class switched over to the treadmill section of the gym, where resistance bands and weights beckoned to us. We moved quickly from exercise to exercise with little recovery in between- rows with squats, pushups, shoulder presses, pulsing lunges (my thighs, y’all, my poor thighs), and the occasional cardio interval. My favorite part of the workout was the quick pace. Rather than doing bicep curls for minutes at a time, the class format allowed us to focus on one muscle group (or more- many exercises combined muscle groups) and really hit it hard during that short interval.

Fifteen minutes later and we were back to the boards and turning the intensity up a notch. As a masochistic barre fan, I loved/hated Michael when he had us stand in the middle of our boards and slide our feet out to a wide plié and back in to first position- then repeat the exercise with our toes pointed inwards. It’s one of those movements that you KNOW is going to stick with you the next day.

After a final set of strength and toning, class ended with a super round dubbed “The Dirty Thirty”- ten squats, ten pushups, and ten tricep dips, repeated as many times as possible in two minutes. I left sweaty and with a smile on my face, excited to sign up for another class soon. It may have been the novelty of the glide boards that got me in the door, but it’s the fast-paced, ever-changing workout that will keep me coming back.

Date taken: 1/26/14