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Editorial Review
Are you one of the millions of Americans that suffer from Ballyphobia—the fear of getting off your couch and joining a huge chain fitness center? Well, you’re not alone. People all over New York are afraid of the judgmental environment and the flat out boredom associated with belonging to a big-chain fitness center. But don’t fear—there is hope. Fabulous, fun classes, filled with interesting and accepting people, are waiting with open arms. But where can you find them? Well, somewhere between the treadmill at your Equinox and the Dropkick Murphys show, you’ll find Punk Rope—a high-energy, music-fueled jump rope class.
Certified personal trainer and punk music enthusiast, Tim Haft, created the class in October ’04 with the intention of combining his favorite workout with his favorite leisure activity—jumping rope and rocking out. Now being taught at three YMCAs in three different boroughs and coming soon to NYU, Punk Rope has generated a word of mouth buzz that has really helped the class to take on a life of its own.
So how does one Punk Rope? What is the class actually like? Tim will say that Punk Rope is like recess on steroids (although Tim does not promote schoolchildren experimenting with performance enhancing drugs—say no to Barry Bonds). But that’s pretty much what you can expect. It’s a high-energy, 50-minute class consisting of about 14 intervals set to 14 different punk songs. Maybe you start the class to Green Day and an interval of jumping rope, starting with the basics and progressively working in little tricks and different techniques that focus on different muscles. Then, you’ll hit up an interval to the Ramones, where all kinds of fun activities can happen. Tug of war, relay races—you name it. This is what really brings the class together, where you really get to laugh and play with the people around you.
Picture trying to jump up and bounce a ball off the backboard of a basketball hoop for the person behind you to catch. Easy enough if you’re in the NCAA finals, but I probably hadn’t caught a ball that wasn’t thrown by my 4-year-old niece in who knows how long. And I probably drop half of what she throws me. But that’s the great thing about the class—nobody expects you to catch the ball. As long-time student and assistant, Shana pointed out, “It’s not like step aerobics, where everyone has to be in synch, so you’re not messing up the person next to you. This class gives you more freedom to have fun.” Punk Rope is as far from those kind of regimented or competitive expectations as possible. In fact, some of the balls were so misshapen, Michael Jordan couldn’t catch them if he tried. They were flying all over the place. You drop the ball; you laugh your ass off and chase it. Everyone smiles and laughs, and you give a high five to the person next to you. It was awesome. Seriously, when was the last time you saw people high-fiving on the treadmill at your fitness center?
So you’re a treadmill runner. Great. There’s nothing wrong with that. In fact, it’s quite impressive that a marathon runner can keep a solid pace for 2 hours, but a boxer keeps that same pace for over an hour while punching and getting punched in the face. Believe it or not—professional boxers are probably some of the most in-shape athletes on the planet. And how do they train? Jump rope. Wrestlers too, and we’re talking Olympic, not Hulkamania. Jump rope is a focal point in the training routines for really any sport that combines endurance and agility, while trying to maintain a weight class. Take a note from these world-class athletes. Jumping rope is probably the fastest way to get in great shape and sweat off the pounds.
Of course, running up Mt. Everest is probably a great workout, but nobody wants to do it. The key thing about Punk Rope is that after the class is over, you can’t wait until the next one. Students were raving about it. There was quite a buzz in the room—a non-alcoholic buzz, of course. Though the students often go out together after the class and grab a beer to celebrate holidays, birthdays, Tuesdays—whatever they can find to celebrate. And when you’re sore in muscles you didn’t even know you had, why not grab a beer?
The class also tends to celebrate just about everything, with themed nights at appropriate times of the year. You’ll hear Irish punk around St. Pattie’s Day, political punk on the 4th of July, punk about social rebellion around Martin Luther King Day. But you don’t have to be old-school in the punk scene, it just provides a quick beat for your jump, and a whole lot of energy for your workout. But if you are old-school punker, combine all that jumping with crazy punk music, and I almost felt like I was at a show—moshing in the pit like I did when I was 17. It’s like going to CBGBs in your sweatpants. What could be cooler than that?
Looking for a class closer to your neighborhood? Check out these spots for pricing and class schedules:
Chinatown YMCA
14th St. Y
Staten Island South Shore YMCA
Or go to PunkRope.com for more information. |
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Punk Rope
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