Sorry that this isn’t the longest or most witty of posts, but I’m heads down in revision for my impending Nutritional Sciences exam on the 6th February. I think keeping up the exercise is important though, so I’ve taken a break from the Kreb’s cycle to go to a step class this week!

Ah, step. I first started going to step in my teens. As soon as I could drive, I used to head to the local leisure centre every Tuesday evening for a class. That must have been the early ’90s, when the de rigeur outfit was a pair of cycling shorts with a thong leotard over the top. Yes, I actually owned such an item.  Note that the picture is for illustrative purposes only, my leotard was grey (from M&S believe it or not) and all pictorial evidence has been destroyed.

25 years later, step is still one of my favourite classes. For the uninitiated, it’s basically an aerobics class where most of the moves involve climbing on or off a step. You can adjust the height of the step using “risers”, and obviously the constant climbing makes it a great workout for your glutes (butt to you and me) and means that the calorie burn is generally higher than normal aerobics.

Step comes with it’s own lingo, so if it’s your first time, a good instructor will explain what a repeater, spider or around the world mean. If you’ve never been or your co-ordination isn’t all that, you’re probably best going to a class aimed at beginners where the routines are less complicated and the pace a little slower. The instructor usually teaches several short routines in each class, breaking them down into their components and then building up to a more complex set of moves. Most instructors will do the same routine for a few weeks so you become more familiar with the moves if you attend regularly and then they’ll switch it up to keep in interesting.

The class I go to currently is really choreographed, so definitely not ideal for beginners. I love it though, it’s more or less like dancing using a step, so an hour seems to fly by. It’s funny, but as the time goes on, you seem to develop muscle memory and your legs just do the routines, without having to think about it too much!

So, if you like dance, wear a fitness tracker (unsurprisingly you clock up a lot of steps!) and look good in a thong, this could be the class for you!