Sixth Review: VideoSync @ Body & Soul

I’m that person that goes to the club or to a house party with a sole purpose in mind: cutting up a rug. So much so that, more often than not, I find myself leaving wherever I’m at embarrassingly drenched in sweat and confused as to why. Then, I recall that when a banging remix of “Sorry” came on I instinctively pushed my cranberry vodka to the side and commenced breaking it down like one of Madonna’s back-up dancers for no apparent reason. Over time, it’s become increasingly clear to me that I just love music (and dancing to it). The VideoSync class at Body & Soul is the perfect way for me to get my sweat on while busting out some, what I consider to be decent, dance moves. Essentially, VideoSync is a hip-hop fusion dance class and cardio workout that leaves you breathless.

Jay Marcos is the class’ charismatic, larger-than-life leader, whom I believe to be a lovechild of Beyoncé and MLK Jr. with a Buddha-like consciousness. Jay comes from an extensive background of dance, performance, and leadership, which radiates through his teaching.

Body & Soul in and of itself is simply a beautiful, clean, boutique gym. The individual classes take place in a large, mirrored studio with the mantra “Rock Your Body, Move Your Soul” in yellow graffiti overlooking the whole room. Each VideoSync class begins with Jay leading a thought-provoking stretch to an inspirational song; this week’s choice was “Stay” by Rihanna, a personal favorite. The peaceful nature of the first few minutes of class couldn’t be more starkly different from the other 55 minutes of intense, vigorous, lively dancing.

From “Work” to “Work From Home,” Jay plays all the hits and never fails to match them up with an equally infectious, and relatively easy to follow, dance routine. At first, you feel like you’re truly just at a party dancing the night away. Then, after about the third song, the sweat begins to pour and your thighs begin to burn from the extensive amount of pop, locking, and dropping you’re doing. About halfway through the class I always find myself incredibly out of breath and needing to take a mini water break after each song. However, due to the distractions of amazing music and fun dance moves, it’s easy to pick right back up where you left off and continue shaking it. About ¾ through class, Jay motioned for me to come forward and lead the class to Beyoncé’s “Partition.” Now, there’s no way he could have known that I coincidentally have a choreographed routine to this very song from a Greek Week event I did at school. Actually, nobody in the class knew that so I just looked really talented for about 30 seconds.

The best part about VideoSync, in my opinion, are the nuggets of wisdom and inspiration that Jay sprinkles throughout the class. During a particularly tough part of the class I found myself looking down at my sneakers, which were soaked at this point, and feeling pretty damn tired from the workout. Right then is when I heard Jay on the mic, “don’t ever look down in life. Keep your head up.” I tiled my chin up towards the ceiling and kept on dancing.

 

Stay sweaty,

Michael

 

Sweatspiration of the week: “Shake it off, shake it off.” –Taylor Swift