Nandipha Dilla
Every week, Perdeby sends their journalists to experience something out of their comfort zones. This week, Nandipha Dilla attended a Grove Grind Workout Experience at the Jasmyn Recreation Hall.
May has come with the pre-exam tests and assignments that can cause a lot of anxiety and depression among many students. One of my favourite ways to destress is to find creative ways to work out without heading to the gym. That is why I tried Groove Grind, a free, fun, fitness workout for ladies that integrates dance with high intensity interval training (HIIT) that was started by UP students Yolisa Singaphi and Zenande Booi.
On Thursday last night, I made my way to the Jasmyn Recreation Hall, excited to try out this no-gym workout. As we shuffled into our places, the upbeat house music filled the venue and set the mood for the rest of the session. The first half hour of the session was the dance component, with fast-paced routines that would most likely overwhelm any beginner with two left feet.
As someone who enjoys dancing, I was able to catch the routines at the most important parts, following the cues that Yolisa would give regularly.
The energy during the dance session was tangible, with many smiling through the sweat glistening on their foreheads as they danced. There were many of us tumbling into each other at a misstep and a missed beat but it felt like it didn’t matter as we didn’t need to feel embarrassed about it. Instead we all kept going by following those who actually knew what they were doing.
The mood was dampened a bit when one of the dancers were injured. However, the matter was easily handled by Zenande who has a background in sports management. This part of the workout was very deceptive, the music and the high energy made me believe the instructors when they referred to it is as the “fun part”. However, it soon became very clear (soon being when we were dancing from side to side while holding the gruesome plank position) that this part was definitely not the fun part. But the collective suffering made me feel a lot better about myself and how unfit I am because we were all on the same boat.
The cool down stretch was a welcome end to the session as I was tired and had forgotten to bring a water bottle to quench my thirst. However, I was happy, and I would definitely recommend it as a great way to destress during the exams.
For more information about the classes you can contact Yolisa at 076466692.
