Getting fitter - where next

[TxtSpk]

I’ve recently (4 months ago) got back into exercise after many years of inactivity by joining a local dance/aerobics class similar to Zumba. My fitness has steadily improved and I’ve since branched out to more difficult classes such as mini trampoline fitness classes.

I’m thinking of leaving the dance aerobics class for a few reasons but have noticed that my fitness tracker shows I burn the most calories at these classes despite me finding them fairly easy now. I’m confused by this as I definitely feel like I’m working harder at the other classes. Is this important though?

I’d like to start taking things a little more seriously and trying to decide what I’d like to do. I’ve signed up to a pole fitness course which I hope will help build my upper body strength. I’ve also considered a gym/PT but still feel a little nervous about a gym environment and not sure if I’d find it fun compared to the other classes.

What sort of things should I be thinking about if I want to improve my health, strength and muscle mass please? I’d be so grateful for any advice.

IME doing what you love is a great direction to go in!

I'd ignore the calories- calories burned during exercise are never that high, compared to being generally active i.e. getting a good daily step count in. Unless say you were doing a super long cycle, but then you'd just be hungry and want to eat more. As long as you are doing something getting your heart rate up into a higher fat burning zone.

Pole sounds great for mobility and strength. I think if you want to build or maintain muscle mass you need some kind of progressive overload but it doesn't have to be a gym, you could achieve a lot with things like kettlebells and dumbells, doable at home .