Thank goodness Lisa showed up

I went to my first night class last night; my second was tonight.

I'll always be late for these classes, because it's whenever I can manage to get off work for my dinner break, but I think it might be a good thing to squeeze in a few times a week.

Last night was fabulous, because I came in late enough that I was fresh for the plank, which I held for the full three minutes for the first time ever. Ever! I am woman, see me hold very still ... And then leg lifts with a friendly, chatty person I'd never met before, and then the super(wo)man, which I held for the full three minutes without collapsing. I felt like a rock star. A few more things, some footwork drills ... and then I had to change clothes and skedaddle back to work.

Tonight: Not so tough, not so fresh, not such a chatty partner. In fact, I'm pretty sure I ticked my partner off during the sit-up-pass-the-medicine-ball thingy. I'm a weenie. Ouch. I was late, making it in time for leg lifts, and He Who Had Been Partnerless wound up with me instead of a punching bag.

I did make it through the three minutes of leg lifts without needing a break (a first for me), but then it was time to pass the ball, and I literally gasped and squeaked and grimmaced my way through those three minutes, looking every inch the wimp that I really am. Sheesh.

Plank. Collapsed three times.

Jumping jacks/mountain climbers/knee claps. Side stitch that felt like a knife in the final 40 seconds and had to sit out a round or so.

Super(wo)man. This is one I aced again, thank goodness, gasping encouragement and a countdown to the guy next to me.

Tonight was muay thai (last night was boxing), which involved learning a clench - a way of grabbing your opponent's head and holding them close to keep them from hitting or kneeing you and, therefore, to take them down one of several ways.

And that's when I was really glad that Lisa and her daughter had shown up. Without them, I would have been the only girl in the class and would have therefore had a strange man's head grasped between my forearms and thrust into my chest. I might have had time to introduce myself first, but ... who knows. It's a fast-paced class.

I got twisted, turned, thrown, pulled and pushed.

And then I had to go back to work. It's kind of a weird move between worlds to go from a room full of a dozen or so sweating, gasping people who are punching and kicking and throwing each other to my relatively sedate, sweatless, physically non-combative office.

But it feels good to get some of that mid-shift frustration worked out, too. I think I like this a lot more than being the solo act in the mornings. There's encouragement and competition when you're trying to hold a pose for a few seconds longer than the guy next to you; when you're trying to make it one more rep withouth crying or yelling too loudly; when you're trying to squeeze out one more sit-up. It's a whole different kind of motivation to keep yourself going when it's just you, whatever CD you brought that day and your coach checking in occasionally to make sure you haven't passed out yet.

Viva the night class.