Mind, Body and Soul

SoulFit Training combines relaxing yoga exercises with a high-intensity weight resistance workout.

By Savannah Waszczuk

I tried my first-ever class at SoulFit Training (417-379-8159, soulfittraining.com) at
8 a.m. one Wednesday morning. I’m not exactly what you’d call a morning person, so this was a bit of a challenge for me.
When I arrived at the women’s-only class, I was invited to take off my shoes and sit on a yoga mat. Being dressed in comfy attire and sitting on a padded mat in a carpeted room isn’t a bad way to start the day, right? It wasn’t. We started out by setting an intention with a motivational quote and then began the warm up, which was a solid 15 minutes of yoga poses and sequences. All was great. My mind was clear and relaxed. It was a nice, refreshing way to start the morning. I felt relaxed and energized. But this didn’t last forever. Things quickly changed.

After those very relaxing 15 minutes of yoga, it was time to begin the next portion of SoulFit: The 15-minute high-intensity weight-resistance workout.

This session is broken into five three-minute portions. We had repetitions of five exercises to complete within each three-minute segment. The exercises included 30 sit-ups, 100 jump-ropes, 30 kettlebell swings, 30 goblet squats and 30 lunges (while holding weights). It wasn’t too complicated. Instructor Amanda Laymon gave us some very simple instructions: Do burpees after repeating our assigned reps, and don’t stop until she says the three minutes are up. You have to keep moving. Simple enough, right?

Our first three-minute session included 30 push-ups. I was quite impressed with myself after finishing the push-ups with more than a minute to spare, so I was extra motivated to bust out as many burpees as possible. I was jumping from the ground to the air in what felt like milla-seconds. I think I did nearly 30 burpees in addition to 30 push-ups in that first three-minute session. It was a challenge, but I kept telling myself one thing: It’s only three minutes at a time! Well, after that first 180 seconds was up, I was ready to fall on the floor and catch my breath. And this is just what I was about to do, but then Amanda told us it was time to switch to the next exercise—kettle bell swings.

What! Okay, this is when I was in complete shock. I couldn’t believe we didn’t have a break. Of course Amanda told us we could stop at any time if we needed to, but I didn’t want to be a wuss! I huffed and panted my way into the next exercise, and Amanda explained that that’s the tricky part. It’s only 15 minutes of cardio, but it is an extremely intense, non-stop 15 minutes of cardio if you’re up to the challenge.

I worked my way through those dreaded kettlebells, and then three additional three-minute segments of jump ropes, squats and lunges. Then it was finally (with a capital FINALLY) time to rest. Wow! I think I burned more calories in that 15 minutes than I would in a 30-minute session on the treadmill.

Next it was time for the last portion of SoulFit: The yoga cool down. This is when Amanda instructed

us to do yoga moves to help us relax, and we were able to establish our breath and get our heart rates down. We ended with the Savasana corpse pose, and Thai massage techniques were used to adjust our positioning.

The SoulFit workout was created by Amanda, who is certified through Yoga Alliance and is also a CrossFit Level One trainer. “I was doing both and spending a lot of money every month,” Laymon says. Rather than continuing to pay two places to work out each month, she created her own at-home exercise routines that combined yoga, meditation and high-intensity exercise, all which complement each other. The whole concept of her workout is to realize that being fit comes from within and works its way out. “A lot of people yo-yo with their diet and weight their whole lives,” Laymon says. “This allows you to appreciate yourself where you are and love your body how it is. Then, when you appreciate how it is, the external changes can come.” I really enjoyed the class, especially the part where we cooled down with yoga.

In addition to SoulFit, Laymon also offers personal training packages.

The 411
What: SoulFit Training classes
When: Various times daily, check soulfittraining.com for exact days and times
Where: Springfield, check soulfittraining.com for exact location
Cost: One week free, then unlimited classes for $60 per month or twice-per-week for $45-per-month