European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - April 23, 1991, Darmstadt, Hesse                                To your health new twists and turns in aerobics by Gerri Kobren Baltimore Sun. You have seen football players do  dance Quot and the Quot end zone  now they Are doing aerobic dance. A. A a. A at the . A Al Academy in Annapolis met for example the football team Learned to do the Standard aerobic dance Cross Steps and Back Steps All to the rhythm of top 40 music during the Winter unexpected perhaps but football players Arentt the Only team players stepping in time to the music. And throughout the United states rom studios and weight rooms to playing Fields fitness aficionados of All sorts Are developing  twists a and turns a on aerobics Quot the change i be seen is that we Are incorporating a wider Range of movement a said Carol Friedman aerobics director at  athletic club in Baltimore Quot even traditional aerobics has become More sophisticated. We re bringing in some movements from classical Ballet and  Quot any kind of new music or movement is Good Quot said. Kathie Davis executive director of san Diego based idea the association of fitness professionals. Quot the a reason i feel that Way is that people tend to get bored and something new lends variety to the  a a a not that learning aerobics is easy for everyone the. First time the football players tried the grapevines and glides Tahare old hat to longtime aerobic Zers they.  the moves. / o a a a a a  of course encompasses More than dance studio workouts. A word coined in the 60s by exercise guru Kenneth Cooper Quot aerobic Quot exercise gets your heartbeat into the Quot training Range a for healthy people that Means pushing your pulse up to 60 percent to 90 percent of what you get when you subtract your age from 220. To get a heart helping Quot training effect Quot you have to keep it there for at least 20 minutes at a time three times a week. A. You can do that by jogging jumping rope walking. Briskly swimming cycling or Stair climbing. In aerobic dance arid exercise classes warm  stretches and body toning exercises Are packaged around pulse. Raising routines done with music that hits you with an. Insistent rhythm of 130 to 160 beats a minute a a those routines can be , with a lot of ballistic up and Downs like jumping jacks and can can kicks,.or. They can be Low Impact with bigger horizontal Steps that take the exerciser horizontally across and around the room one loot is always on the floor. A a. A whichever you choose you la find that variations v. Abound these Days. A a a a a a.  a sport specific aerobics can Benefit wrestlers and. Baseball softball football basketball and Tennis players according to Carol Boyer a representative for idea. Experienced players Are Likely to get the hang of it. Quickly t a a a Aqua aerobics is done in a Pool. The water provides body cushioning buoyancy but. Because of its resistance forces you to work hard just to move your arms and legs. Bench Box or step aerobics see related Story keep you stepping up and Down on a Low platform Bench or Box highly demanding because you Are continually lifting your body weight up onto the step this exercise qualifies a a As Low Impact because you do not leap with both feet off the floor. Appearing about a year ago step workouts Are. Now Quot big big big big a Boyer said. A a a Funk aerobics is looser More like soul dance and less Tike exercise than some of the other forms. The music is by performers such As Paula Abdul Janet Jackson and . Hammer. Low in Impact but High in intensity it Quot has really caught on Quot , circuit aerobics combines traditional aerobic exercise with weight training the pounding music and the exhortations of the instructor have you lifting quickly. A enough to keep your pulse at its exercise induced High. Salsa Robins which i gyrating out from the nations mid Section lets you Rumba and flamenco your Way a through exercise dances Sot to the hot tempered rhythms of the  a a i i a amps photos by Lynda Davidson wooden boxes by Deedee Arrington Doke Kaiserslautern Bureau r Obin Adelmann topped the Scales at 165 pounds last october before her baby was born. Now a trim 118 pounds she credits the rapid recovery of her Flat tummies figure to Bench Quot. Aerobics a one of the newest exercise workouts to hit american gyms in Europea. A. You know you re burning calories when you do that Bench. It feels Good Quot said Adelmann barely sweating a after a morning class at the North Side gym at Ramstein a Germany a a. -. A a a roomful of Bench aerobic Zers looks like a precision a Stair climbing team practising a firm definite movements of wooden boxes to music a workout incorporate combinations of easy step up step Down step sideways moves up Down and around each individual s Bench or wooden Box. ,. A a. The lower Torso a which. Includes hips thighs and rear end a benefits the most from a Bench stepping. A  la notice the difference in a couple of weeks Quot said Faye Waller who teaches Bench aerobics at Ramstein a. Waller was one of the first aerobics professionals to introduce the workout in Europe Bench aerobics got its Start in the United states a year  men love it Quot Waller said a it ,�?T it does no to look like they re  it. Col. Bill Horne Deputy director of assignments at he Safe likes Bench aerobics because the Bench Quot gets the heart rate up faster with less stress on the body a limbs. This keeps me fit j Don t have to worry about being  a a one of a handful of men in a late afternoon class a a. Horne views the course As Quot kind of a unisex thing Quot the key to feeling coordinated on the Bench he added is practice Quot a a a workout starts with simple repetitions of stepping on and off the Bench then moves up to More. Complicated routines. Variations on the Forward step up and backward step Down include stepping up on one leg and kicking up with the other stepping on the Bench sideways and crossing to the other Side or walking Down the benches length. One should never however Wal Forward off a Bench because one could lose balance with the momentum and fall. Getting used to the variations a and the backward step that s used to change directions a takes a class or two. But it s often less difficult than perfecting the Grapevine step and other dance moves that characterize Standard aerobics classes. Hand held weights add another dimension to the workout for More advanced students who want greater muscle definition in arms and shoulders. Bench. Aerobic Zers using hand held weights Burn up at least 30 percent More calories in one session than do participants in traditional dance aerobics according to a test cited by idea. The association of fitness professionals. A the workout Waller said has Quot the same intensity As running seven Miles an hour but the same Impact As a  -. A a a a a. A Quot. Most exercisers Combine classes in Bench aerobics with regular aerobics for example two classes each week in Bench and two regular. A Normal Bench class consists of a 45-minute workout with the Bench and 15 minutes of floor  also can step up the workout by increasing the length of the class or raising the intensity level by caking for larger moves with Knees High  raised said Amy Harper a Frankfurt instructor a Bench is about 4 feet Long 14 inches wide and varies in height from 6 to 12 inches depending on the exercisers height and fitness a level. A plastic Model is available commercially in the a United states but Waller is among those who prefer. Wooden benches she and her husband made the benches used by those in her classes. At military facilities it s up to to teacher to provide the benches. One teacher had a civil. A engineering unit make the benches for her class a Waller was one of the first instructors to introduce Bench aerobics in Europe. Quot we like the Wood ones because they give you a firm platform Quot said Waller who introduced the Bench workout to Ramstein in january 1990, a she received her Bench training in the United states. And has since trained / instructors throughout a Germany to teach the new. Workout. A a. A common misconception is that Quot bigger is better Quot in terms of Bench height v. Beginners should Start at 6 inches. Only tall people should Advance to a 12-Inch Bench the top height recommended for a Bench. Quot the majority of people should not even be on a 10-Inch  Waller said. _ a even Waller at a very fit but Petite 5-foot-2, Sticks Wilh a an 8-Inch Box to make sure that her knee maintains a 90-degree Angle with the Bench to avoid placing Loo much stress on the knee. The Best music to Bench by is comparatively slow about 120 beats per minute with a Strong driving beat a a recipe for much of today s popular music. Rap especially is Good accompaniment for Bench stepping. Regardless of the music Bench classes draw a wide spectrum of Ages and fitness Levels of both sexes Rose Carlson suffers from rheumatoid arthritis but she has found that the workout helps her keep off weight As Well As ease her pain. A a i have a lot of pain in the mornings but when f come Here i feel so much  Carlson said Quot and i can keep my own Pace Quot. The Bench craze has t yet spread to every Corner of Europe but it has taken hold in a number of a communities. At least tour instructors in the a Kaiserslautern Rar Stem area alone for instance have added Bench to their fitness regimens Quot i think it la be with us for a  said Fra hurl s Harper Quot ii s proved its Worth Quot Page 14 the stars and stripes tuesday Panl 23, 1991 the stars and stripes Page 15