SHED fitness review + SNOW

1.3 miles before we declared defeat to the ice. At least we tried!

Back in DC, we used to joke about how the city was unprepared to handle snow. Nashville is a whole new level, guys. Not a single piece of salt out there and solid ice for miles. Ha!

The roads have done that thing where they freeze, thaw, slush, and then re-freeze. Worse kind of stuff to try and run on — soft snow I can handle, slick ice I cannot! Anyone have a pair of size 8 YakTraks they can send to me? Actually you’ll have to hand-deliver them because all mail/postage services are down.

Anthony and I have a bit of cabin fever after sitting inside in our PJs all day yesterday. So when we got home from our failed run this morning we turned our house into a mini gym and did a 25-minute workout of push-ups, dips, burpees, etc. FYI a full container of laundry detergent makes a perfect at-home weight. I think Laundry Fitness could be the next big fad.

Since that’s the only news from the Lambkin household at present, let’s rewind to the weekend…

On Sunday Anthony and I had the opportunity to check out a new fitness studio in Nashville: SHED Fitness!

SHED offers high-intensity circuit training in a boot camp style class. Monday-Thursday classes each focus on a specific muscle group; Friday-Sunday classes are full-body circuit workouts. We checked out the studio’s partner circuit class.

About the studio: SHED is new, nice, and big enough for small-group workouts. It just opened in November 2014 and has a very clean, open feel to it.

They’ve got your basic free weights, some bands, steps/boxes, kettlebells, and some really nifty Curve manual treadmills.

The studio is “no-frills” for sure — but definitely doesn’t have that smelly garage/dirty cave feel that many small gyms and boxes do. SHED is classy! I mean, it is in Belle Meade, after all ;).

They’ve got showers in case you want to squeeze in a workout during the workday. They have swag, too!

Anthony and I checked out the studio and then got started on our workout. The Sunday class is sort of an open/freestyle session where you can drop in anytime between 8 and 8:30 to get started. The workout lasts about 40 minutes and consists of THIRTY different stations!

Between each station is 23 seconds of rest/transition time. It was a quick workout that definitely kept us entertained. About 20 people showed up for the class and the instructor, Brittany, offered guidance and explanations for newbies. I sort of wish the class had started all at once with everyone instead of being so freestyle, because it was a bit unmotivating at the start. But by the third station or so, Anthony and I found our groove.

Anthony and I were pretty familiar with most of the exercises, but some needed explanation (which, in turn, reduced the one-minute station into 30-45 seconds). We kinda wished we would have gotten to go through the circuit twice, actually — so that we wouldn’t waste time figuring things out the second time around. I would guess that once you become a regular, though, you’d get to take full advantage of each one-minute movement.

Also, running backwards on a manual treadmill is weirdly fun.

I felt like almost every station involved some sort of shoulder work. Another tough one was carrying weighted balls up and down the stairs. Ouch!

Our workout was done in under 40 minutes. We thought it was moderately challenging and definitely fun — perfect for a quick and easy weekend workout.

Here’s everything you need to know about the class!

SHED Fitness

Location Belle Meade
Class times 6 am – 7:30 pm
Class days Mon-Fri
Locker rooms Yes
Showers Yes
Price $10-$22/class (see pricing page)
Class duration 40-60 minutes
Music Yes
Vibe Welcoming, easygoing
Class I tried Sunday Circuit
Difficulty 6
Cardio-focused 8
Weights-focused 5
Motivating 5
Fun 7

All in all, SHED was a pretty good experience for us. Thanks for hosting, SHED! Glad we snuck in a solid workout before the snow hit.

Now it’s time to go drink my fifth cup of hot tea and get ready for another day of home-based work. Stay safe out there, Nashvillians!

• How long does your average gym session last?
• Locals: Anyone else try to run or drive in this madness?
• Tips for avoiding cabin fever?