Surf’s up in this land-locked shopping plaza anchored by a QFC and Rite Aid.
Inside a mirrored fitness studio, “Uptown Funk” blasts as kids spin, carve and duck dive on surfboards.
No wetsuit needed. No shoes. No water.
Bare feet brace on a surfboard propped on bouncy balls to mimic waves.
It’s Surfset, a fast-paced, music-pumped exercise regimen on dry land.
“Take it up. Take it down. And up. Roll it. Do the swim. Up and over. Oh, yeah!” instructor Laurie George tells the youngsters who fearlessly tackle imaginary big waves, dips and sharks.
Knees wobble more in the adult classes than the juniors’.
“If you fall, no one cares,” George assures surfers of all ages.
You won’t drown in anything but your own determination to get back on the board.
The 6-foot boards are 22 inches wide and rock about a foot off the ground.
That’s part of the challenge and the thrill.
“You rock back and forth so you’re having an off-balance this way and then you’re having an off-balance this way, so everything is super shaky,” George said. “We say ‘Embrace the shake.’ ”
George, 42, owner of Mukilteo Fitness Bar, has never surfed on water, but she knows a good workout when she sees one.
Surfset was created by a pro hockey player who wanted to keep that toned physique of surfing in the offseason. No other workout could compare, so he designed a surfing device to replicate a ride-the-waves regimen. A stint on the show “Shark Tank” and some backing from investor Mark Cuban helped take Surfset to the next level and to fitness centers worldwide.
Fitness trends keep going off the deep end. There are giant inflatable balls adults roll around in for bubble soccer and fabric slings that hang from the ceiling so ordinary souls can feel like Cirque du Soleil performers. The list goes on: pole dance, booty barre, butt board — anything to get away from those ho-hum static workouts.
George added Surfset fitness to her Mukilteo class lineup last October to become the only Seattle area studio to offer the workout.
“It’s a different kind of workout,” said class regular Kelsey Yared.
Surfset incorporates basic core training.
“We do everything from surfing moves to stand-up paddleboard,” George says. “Anything you can do with yoga you can do on this board.”
Without a wobble, she gracefully stands on one leg and juts the other straight out to the side horizontally, grabbing her toes.
With enough practice, she says, anyone can do it.
Got bad balance?
“That’s a good reason to be on the board,” George said.
Heather Brady embraces the shake.
“It makes working out more fun, something to mix it up,” Brady said. “I’ve fallen out of poses, but not off the board. It takes a new set of skills. My kids do it. They love it, too.”
Andrea Brown: 425-339-3443; abrown@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @reporterbrown.
Surfset
Mukilteo Fitness Bar is at 11700 Mukilteo Speedway, Mukilteo. For more information, call 425-263-6793 or go to www.mukilteofitnessbar.com.
Classes: Mukilteo Fitness Bar offers Surfset and Surfset Junior (ages 8 to 14) classes.
It also offers Surf &Turf, which combines Surfset with TRX, a suspension training bodyweight exercise, and Tidalwave, which fuses Surfset with indoor rowing.
Another class, Riptide, brings together TRX, Rip training, which utilizes a lever bar and resistance cord, with Surfset for a total body class.
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