Some might be wondering how this came to be, because people probably don't immediately associate me with any kind of dance, especially burlesque. In fact, pretty much all I know about burlesque is that Cher was in a movie about it a few years back. Not that I saw it, so that reference doesn't really help. Anyway, the aforementioned Kim knows Freya, the owner of Nashville's burlesque studio, Delinquent Debutants, and took a class there recently. Our friend and fellow East Nasty Susi read Kim's review about it and thought it would be a great way to celebrate her birthday. (Sidebar - I love that I have friends who celebrate birthdays by taking exercise classes!) As a result, about 12 of us converged down at the DD studio on Charlotte for the "Bumps and Grinds" class.
Pre-Bumpin' & Grindin'! Happy Birthday, Susi! (Bottom left)
As stated, I really didn't know what I was getting myself into with this class. However I did know, though burlesque is known for feathers and glitter, what we were going to be doing was pretty tame by their standards. Very basic stuff. No swirling of tassels or anything like that. Which is good because the basic class had me nervous enough! (FYI - there IS a class on tassel swirling in case anyone is interested...)
But once the class started the nervousness went away and the hilarity began. Y'all - I don't think I've ever had so much fun in an exercise class. Some of the moves are the same things you'd see in other exercise classes, but they're REALLY exaggerated (the bigger the better in burlesque!). Example: "Bumpin'" is a hip thrust. We do that all the time for core exercises in triathlon. Granted, we also did some "shimmying," which is, and I'll make this a PG as possible because my mother reads this blog, the controlled shaking of your upper body. I can't really envision a use for shimmying in triathlon, but hey - maybe it'll help with swimming.
After learning some of the basic moves, we learned a little dance routine. Fortunately, we were facing away from the mirrors, so I have no idea how I looked doing this thing, but it was a lot of fun. Everyone had giant smiles on their faces the entire time.
Strike a pose! (Yes, I'm imitating what the instructor because I have no idea what I'm doing!)
Long story short - if you want to take a class that is equal parts awesome and hysterical that will completely get you our of your comfort zone - take a burlesque class. What's really great about it (for me anyway) is that it's beneficial to be curvy in this class. Unlike triathlon, you WANT things to jiggle and shake. As someone who is not naturally lean and feels like a giant at races, this was a welcome surprise.
So, check out Delinquent Debutantes and take some friends. You won't regret it.
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