If you've never fenced before, it is great exercise! It requires a lot of balance and mental focus, which are things I really enjoy in physical activity. Seriously, I do! That is probably why I liked riding and yoga; you can't check out mentally if you want to do them well.
We began with basic foot movements and positioning. The basic stance is a lot like Warrior 2 in yoga. Then we learned how to advance, step back, and my favorite, attack! We worked on those for a while and then, they dressed us!
Women begin with a plastic bra thingy. I put it on and immediately decided that I never wanted to take it off. My and a Finnish woman my age may have been acting like 12 year olds about it, but only for a minute and it made the instructor laugh. Here is a picture of one. I'm sure you can see the appeal.
After that, is a white jacket and then another pad over the front of your chest and a big wire mesh head mask. We all had fun getting dressed and pretending we already had foils in our hand. We practiced our footwork for a bit to get comfortable in the clothes and then we actually got foils! We practiced some pretty basic moves and then got to practice a simple attack. My partner was from Peru and we had fun sparring and speaking Spanish. The instructor told me I "have very good control over the weapon for a beginner."
The hour and a half went by very quickly and I am looking forward to my lesson next Monday. I definitely connected with several people in the class and I know it will be a fun group to learn with. Everyone was so friendly and patient with me in terms of language. I think this will be a good way to learn and practice Finnish and make some new friends.
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