You Can Call Me....Svetlana!

There's nothing like a bunch of 12 year olds in leotards and a stomach full of Tasti-D-Lite to make you feel old and fat! This was all before my adult gymnastics class at Chelsea Piers even started. It was then about fifteen minutes into the class when I contemplated throwing up on the trampoline, therefore regretting my stupid idea to 'step out of my comfort zone.' There is a reason why it's called a comfort zone...it feels good to be inside it...everything else is a little scary!


For those of you just tuning into my life, here is a little back story. When I was three years old, my mom enrolled my in gymnastics classes. I then proceeded to make myself so nervous that I puked on the trampoline and was carried out by the teacher where she told my mother not to bring me back! Apparently they didn't have the time to deal with my potential issues on their equipment. Fast forward 20 years and you have the gymnastics drop out (ME), who is mildly retarded when it comes to anything acrobatic (ME), and who decides it would be a good idea to take an adult gymnastics class as part of her New Years Resolution (Yep, Me)! Thanks to Jenny and the staff at Chelsea Piers, I was able to test my skills on the floor and had an amazing time. I'm pretty sure that even my earlobes will be sore tomorrow, but it was so much fun and well worth the pain. We dancers/gymnasts/athletes are masochists in the way that we feel a sense of accomplishment when we are too sore to walk! 


I have to give all those little 12 year olds I mentioned earlier a serious amount of credit...this shit is hard! I was NOT made for this kind of physical activity.  I watched my instructors demonstrate the moves with such ease that I went "duh; of course I'll be able to do it with as much grace"! Yeah right! There's something so different from being a gymnast and being a dancer, and that's the element of the size up. Ask a dancer to look around the room at an audition and they will be able to size up the competition in 30 seconds. Well, I of course did this before we started our adult class.  Even while we were starting our warm-up I made the assumption that I would be kicking some major ass in this class (not that there was a prize, but I like to win even if it's just in my head- HI, I’m slightly competitive). It was once the instructor went from dive rolls to round-off, back handspring, back tuck, and was serious, that I new I was once again the gymnastically re-tard and not in the beginners class!  Apparently, intermediate does not mean that you can do a cartwheel in both directions, it means you can tumble.  This is something I should have thought more about before signing up for this class!


The class did leave me with a couple of highs. I walked on my hands, did a couple successful front handsprings, I got a bit closer to an unassisted aerial (this is on my bucket list, so I'm working hard) and I did a back handspring (with some help) ... and didn't kill anyone! I also received two of the best compliments a dancer can get: "you are tall, use those legs" (at 5'5'' I've never been tall, but in gymnast world I'm a giant), and "your back is so flexible" (too bad I can't get my arabesque up any higher). One would think that these two things would be helpful to a gymnast, but as I learned, not so much. They don't make champions out of Shawn Johnson for nothing!



I'm very proud of not only my successful class, I determine success in this instance by the fact I didn't die, cry or throw-up, but the fact that I get to cross something off my list! Next to tackle: a date this week...bum bum buuuuuuuuuum!

To prove I actually did this, here's a picture with Joe and my tall drink of water (when you can't remember their name it's best to compliment).
Check out the Chelsea Piers Field House Website for class descriptions, rates and times! Adult Gymnastics