Wednesday, 19 October 2016

At 9am, we find our two groups rested and refreshed.

The girls leave to go climbing in the Fontainebleau Forest and we follow the boys to the AéroKick Boxing Ring.

The atmosphere is very relaxed and the changing room is noisy: everyone is messing around and life is good.

At the gym, the high spirits settle down because breath becomes short when Fred starts the warm-up. It lasts 30 minutes with usual postures. Everyone was looking forward to midday: the more athletic followed the program to the letter; among the less sporting, the bravest summoned all their energy whereas stragglers shamelessly gave up.

They seemed relieved to put on their gloves. The exercises followed on at the same tempo: Fred first of all explained the gestures, then the sequences. The attentive trainees succeeded, but the others made ungainly movements and manhandled their punch-bags in a total mess, guided by their inspiration. Fred brought the participants together and reminded them that they are responsible adults and that they must pay attention to instructions that they are given and how to implement them: “You’re not in the playground here, you’re at work. You must be as fastidious when your boss sets you a task. “

The relationship with employment is evident and Kevin, an attentive trainer, watched on with a smile that spoke volumes. “Pulling up your socks” paid off and serious action began throughout the room, each according to his ability, but with commitment.

When leaving the gym, it’s just possible that Fred gave them a good mark.