Another portmanteau exercise fad comes to a public sports hall near you, thanks to Sport Singapore’s Active SG initiative, launched earlier this year to bring hip new classes to the heartlands.
Created by Swedish jazz dancer, Viveca Jensen, Piloxing blends martial arts moves (uppercuts, roundhouse punches and high kicks) with the fancy footwork and rhythm of dance, and the reps and core work from Pilates. Oh yeah, and there’s butt-wiggling. Lots of it.
Practitioners from the heartlands who sign up for Piloxing classes on the Active SG portal can showcase their fierce, womanly moves in the one-hour classes led by the nation’s first certified instructor, Lucretia Cheng. To the armchair athlete, the repetitive and short distance movements pushed out at a fast pace look easy. But just like the quick reps you would experience at an Xtend Barre session, you’ll find yourself gritting your teeth and working extra hard to power through the build-up of pain while a soundtrack created for Piloxing shouts encouragement over a heart- pumping trance rhythm.
The quiet contemplation of Pilates isn’t very evident in a Piloxing session, save for the nose-in, mouth-out breathing and occasional move that emphasises the lengthening of the core. And those who can’t bust a move in a faster-paced Zumba class will find something to enjoy in this high- intensity workout with its easy-to- catch steps.
Active SG offers free Piloxing trials at local parks and at neighbourhood dance studios; for the converted, a set of eight classes is priced at a super reasonable $96.
Various venues. See myactivesg.com for class registration details.