Residents wishing to spend time on a regular basis working towards keeping their bodies active and fit in a group setting during the winter are thanking at least two energetic Kamsack women.
Kathie Galye, who this winter marks more than 10 years that she has been leading a group in fun exercise, and Maureen Humeniuk, who has taken on the relatively new routines known as PiYo (pronounced “pie-yoh”), are at work with their groups in Kamsack this winter.
“Who says you have to jump, grunt, strain, and punish your body to get amazing results from your workout? Not with PiYo,” Humeniuk said last week.
PiYo combines the muscle-sculpting, core-firming benefits of Pilates with the strength and flexibility advantages of yoga, Humeniuk said.
“And, we crank up the speed to deliver a true fat-burning, low-impact workout that leaves your body looking long, lean, and incredibly defined,” she said.
“PiYo isn't like standard Pilates and yoga classes that make you hold long, intense poses, or lead you through dozens of repetitive, microscopic core movements,” she said. “PiYo speeds everything up, including your results, by introducing you to dynamic, flowing sequences that can burn serious calories at the same time as they lengthen and tone your muscles and increase your flexibility.
“With every action-packed PiYo session, you can burn excess fat and sculpt and define your whole body, as you minimize the aches and pains that can come along with high-impact workouts,” she said. “No matter your age, no matter your body type, PiYo will help give you dramatically visible, incredibly beautiful results.”
Humeniuk, who was certified as a PiYo coach by Beach Body Canada in February 2015 in British Columbia, has been leading the PiYo classes at 6:30 p.m. each Monday at the Victoria School gymnasium and plans to continue to the end of June.
“We’re looking at the possibility to holding a second class, maybe this spring or summer,” she said. “The students say they want more of it, that once a week is not enough.”
Although her sessions have had as many as 15 persons attend, Humeniuk said that the gym can easily accommodate twice that number.
It takes about three classes for one to “get” the moves, and “you just keep moving,” she said. “I really find that this is a great workout but it does not feel like a workout. It’s a fun workout, not jumping around.
“In PiYo you use your own body weight to strengthen muscles through the whole body. It develops muscles everywhere and tones the body everywhere.
“Maybe we can do something at the Madge Lake Rec Centre if there are enough people interestedand it would also be nice to do something outside during the summer.
“To do PiYo, you have to bring a bottle of water with you because you do put on a pretty good sweat, but it does not exhaust you.”
Doing PiYo since last year, Humeniuk said she has been able to burn off access fat from her body.
“I have sculpted and defined my whole body,” she said, explaining that she had moved to PiYo LIVE because she had been finding aches and pains with a more high impact routine. “People of all ages are doing it.”
Humeniuk said that beginning February 1, she will be taking further PiYo instruction via the Internet. She was one of 20 from 200 applicants to take the course that will be led by Michelle Park, the person who choreographed the PiYo routines.
“I’m doing that so that I can get better at modifying some of the moves,” she said.
In addition to instructing the PiYo class once a week, Humeniuk attends the instruction being offered by Kathie Galye, and Galye attends Humeniuk’s classes.
Galye, who in the past has led groups in step exercises, belly dancing, high-low aerobics and Zumba in addition to other types of strength training, continues under the name of Wabi Sabi.
Wabi Sabi is not an exercise, it’s just the name of the classes, Galye said. Wabi Sabi means “embracing the imperfections.”
Strength training is important especially as we get older, Galye said. “In the classes, we try to get all the major muscles exercised.”
Galye has group fitness certification from Saskatchewan Parks and Recreation Association and is also a certified Zumba instructor.
“We’re currently doing interval training,” she said, explaining that sessions begin with a dance-related warm-up, weights, cardio exercises and the sessions end with a cool down and “a nice stretch.”
She has been able to purchase weights, bands, exercise balls and steps for use in the sessions.
“We’ve done drumming using the exercise balls.
“And all the exercises can be modified for a particular participant,” she said.
In addition to the classes, Galye has offered other instruction, including dance.
“Last year we did Latin After Lunch at the seniors’ centre,” she said. “That was a lot of fun.”
“Come; attend our exercise sessions. It’s never too late,” she said. “We mix it up every week.”
