Students feel the rhythm with cardio drumming

Large rubber exercise balls sat on the hardwood floor of classroom 202 in the Recreation Center-North. A group of students lined up behind the exercise balls and hit them to the beat of blaring high tempo music with wooden drumsticks.

The class is called cardio drumming and is it is one of the new additions to the fall group fitness classes offered to students and other recreation members at Southeast Missouri State University.

Southeast fitness instructors attended a fitness convention last fall and brought back new ideas for this fall. Cardio drumming, kettlebells, roll it out/foam roller exercise and the fitness and wellness lecture series are all part of the updated list.

Kelsey Teichman, a recreation science major, said she participated in a cardio drumming class at Fit Fest in Ohio and decided to try and incorporate it during the summer.

"People look at me stupid and ask how this is cardio, but it is," Teichman said. "You just have to do it."

After a successful summer, the class progressed to a spot in the fall lineup.

The class requires five exercise balls lined up in the shape of a W, which all overlap between the participants. Kelsey said that there are multiple variations of cardio drumming, but she tries to incorporate cardio by adding in squats and bouncing. She also teaches her own version of dance and core.

Fitness instructor Michael Parritt teaches the new kettlebell class and the roll it out exercise class as well as the returning yoga and water aerobics classes.

Kettlebells are rounded weights, varying in size. Parritt describes the kettlebells as a cannonball with a handle.

"It creates a high velocity movement," Parritt said. "If you want to get toned up and you want to lose body fat, that's the way to do it. "

Parritt used to teach a high intensity interval training class during which he implemented the use of kettlebells. He then taught a kettlebell class to a sorority group on campus. He said that the feedback for the classes were positive, so he pitched the idea to his supervisor. Recreation Services then decided to purchase several kettlebells for the class.

"Using kettlebells will increase your cardiovascular system as well as build muscle and flexibility," Parritt said. "It's kind of an all-around tool to use."

The roll it out/foam roller exercise class provides a lower intensity work out. The purpose of the foam roller is to stretch areas of the body that are harder to stretch, like the Iliotibial band. The IT band is a layer of tissue that connects the gluteus maximus to the tibia. It also helps break up fat cells and increases balancing of smaller muscles.

Parritt also explained that the water aerobics class he teaches is a great lower intensity workout that a lot of athletes participate in. Runners use the exercise to run in the water in order to run against the water's resistance to build muscle without the concern of tripping or hurting oneself.

The Recreation Center-North also has seen some slight changes for the semester. Offices on the second floor have been emptied and revamped as private exercise spaces that are equipped with weights and kettlebells.

Anyone who is interested in joining any of the fitness classes can find the schedule at semo.edu/recservices or at the entrance of the Recreation Center-North. Classes scheduled during lunchtime are free while a visitor's pass is $5 for a class and a semester unlimited pass is $40.