A return to the classics - Editorial - Brief Article

American Fitness, Nov-Dec, 2001 by Meg

I've just taken a tour of classes from coast to coast and I'm delighted to report something new and exciting--a revival of classical form in the fitness field. The fitness movement is about 33 years old, if you date it to the launch of Kenneth Cooper's book Aerobics, the ensuing success of Misset's Jazzercise[R] and Sorensen's Aerobic Dancing. That's just one generation--long enough to undergo a revival of earlier form and substance.

The longing for beauty, grace, form and classical fitness technique that was part of the original intent of early innovators in the "physical culture" or the physical educators of the mid-20th century is being revived. Their ideals were sculpted in broad shoulders, hourglass figures and smooth muscles. "Scientific exercise" and specific, repetitious labor-intensive techniques were their tools.

This revival of form-married-to-technique has a lot in common with the way Broadway produces classic musicals and standard hits every generation or so. A pendulum swing of emotional content and aesthetics lifts instructors and enthusiasts back to the original movement. You can see hints and glimmers of this classical revival in the way instructors are now teaching--there is more emphasis on biomechanics, proper execution and style.

In Miami, Florida, I witnessed a love affair of salsa, mambo and tango that has infiltrated aerobics classes. In Manhattan, New York, there are strains of exotic ethnic beats and rhythms laced into low-impact classes. In Chicago, Illinois, yoga classes are finally emphasizing coordinated breathing and inner focus, along with proper form. In Los Angeles, California, expressive dance accompanied by live drummers create highly stylized weight-and-aerobic classes. However, without fail, the most significant evidence lies in our new infatuation with conditioning the core of our bodies.

The settlement of the Pilates lawsuit last spring is probably to thank for this new surge of interest in workouts. Once innovators were free to offer instruction that tones, tightens, stream-lines and slims the entire physique--particularly the core--we began to see an explosion of creative classes.

Weight training classes also have nostalgia for reviving an old classic. I saw Super Slow weight training take off in Washington, D.C., and San Francisco, California, helping people who seemed to never lose weight through aerobics, suddenly scale down. Weight training coaches believe this is a revival of earlier eccentric weightlifting techniques first promoted over 15 years ago by Nautilus innovators like Elliot Darden.

Repackaging old ideas is often accomplished by simply putting a new line or two of promotional copy over a resurrected form. What I appreciate about this revival is how it capitalizes on new research and the careful assessment of real-life results. Then again, not everything should be revived--be sure to leave the ol' swinging windmills and fire hydrant kicks undisturbed in their well-trodden graves.

Love, Meg