The GuavaPass HK team started the year with a bang and crushed January’s #Guava18 Challenge. Between Alex and myself (Toni), we attended over 25 different studios and thought we’d take this opportunity to do a quick review of all these fantastic classes!
Check out all our adventures here:
The HK team review: Cardio, Crossfit & Circuit Training
The HK team review: Dance, Barre & Ballet
The HK team review: Stretch, sweat and de-stress with Yoga
The HK team review: Martial Arts (coming soon!)
We hope to give you a little insight into the range of classes offered on GuavaPass, and that reading about them might inspire you to step out of your comfort zone and give them a go!
See you in class! — Team GuavaPass HK
The HK team review:
Dance, Barre or Ballet?
Studio: Aerial Arts Academy // Reviewer: Toni // Class name: Sexy Chair Dance
What you can expect
A mix of exotic and chair dancing, this class teaches you how to “dip”, “drop” and look hot to seductive steps. The entire dance has already been choreographed for you so the instructor will help break it down into a few movements for you to practice and learn first before you progress and learn the next set of movements until eventually, you learn the whole sequence. You will then have a chance to perform it all together as a class in one go! This workout targets your abdominals, triceps, glutes and legs.
Difficulty level
(rank from 1 to 5 – with 5 being the hardest)
⭐⭐
The moves themselves are not difficult. You just need to remember them and actually try to BE sexy whilst doing them!
The best bit…
Getting out of my comfort zone and trying something completely new whilst feeling totally empowered at the same time! Not falling off the actual chair itself is also an added bonus!
Studio: Twinkle Dance // Reviewer: Toni // Class name: Adult Ballet (Complete Beginner)
What you can expect
Here you will learn the very basics of ballet, and gain familiarity with simple positions from 1 to 3 (perhaps even 4) as you repeat these moves throughout the entire hour. Other moves you will learn are pliés or demi-pliés (which is basically a knee bend with your knees turned out), tendus (a move in which the leg and foot stretch to point in a particular direction but the foot does not leave the floor) and perhaps even a pas de chat (a ballet jump in which the feet are lifted, one after the other, to the level of the opposite knee).
Difficulty level
⭐
You don’t have to be twinkle toes to join this class. Anyone can do this class unless you really do have two left feet!
The best bit…
Feeling graceful and light on my feet! It’s a huge contrast to any weights class and it’s amazing what a few adjustments i.e. point your toe, lifting your arm in an arch etc. can do to really transform your entire shape and movement.
Studio: WeBarre // Reviewer: Toni // Class name: WeBarre Fundamentals
What you can expect
The class focuses on four different parts of the body – arms, legs, butt and core with the use of some props such as barbells and a barre ball. Even though the movements are small, the repeated motion will really make you feel the burn and even 1kg weights will actually feel super heavy after a while! Overall a great workout and you can also expect to do pliés and tendus like in a ballet class.
Difficulty level
⭐⭐⭐⭐
I can’t remember the last time I sweated so much in a barre class. I definitely felt the burn in my arms, legs, and butt!
The best bit…
The full body workout! It was the perfect amount of focus on each muscle group.
Studio: Barre 2 Barre // Reviewer: Alex // Class name: Express Bounce
What you can expect
This 45-minute class is a great one to squeeze into your lunch break. All the exercises are done on a mini trampoline – think a normal Barre class but on a bouncy surface (great if you have any injuries). If you’re unfamiliar with Barre, it’s a combination of postures inspired by ballet and other disciplines like yoga and Pilates. The barre is used as a prop to balance while doing exercises that focus on isometric strength training (holding your body still while you contract a specific set of muscles) combined with high reps of small range-of-motion movements.
Difficulty level
⭐⭐
Suitable for all levels, this class focuses on toning rather than cardio.
The best bit…
The addition of the mini trampoline made the class dynamic and fun! There were lots of smiles all round : )
Studio: Ballet Blanc // Reviewer: Alex // Class name: Dance Exercise
What you can expect
An hour of non-stop dance exercise – a great way to allow your body to sweat, build stamina, stimulate the mind and get in shape! This class is similar to Zumba with a mix of pop and Latin songs.
Difficulty level
⭐⭐
The dance moves are simple and quite easy to follow.
The best bit…
This was an overall fun workout that did not feel like you were exercising as you’re too busy following the dance moves!
Studio: Dee Dream Life // Reviewer: Toni // Class name: Pound Fit
What you can expect
What you can expect is a full body cardio jam! The class consists of continuous simulated drumming to a fun playlist, with each track focusing on different isometric/plyometric movements.
Difficulty level
⭐⭐
This is one of those classes where you can adjust some of the range of movements accordingly to make it as hard as you want. There are a range of songs of varying tempos so the slower the song, the easier; the faster, harder obviously – and this can be particularly so if you’re not so well coordinated, or rather musically inclined!
The best bit…
Jamming to some super fun tunes and obviously pretending you’re in a band if not playing Guitar Hero! Personally, I haven’t listened to Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” in ages, so that was an awesome flashback to my youth. If you’re lucky, Dee might even let you choose a track!
Like what you see? Start your GuavaPass journey and check out other great fitness classes and studios here!
