Roll With It!

Exercise is always fun when it takes place on wheels. The San Diego Derby Dolls offer a no-contact, one-hour, twice-weekly fitness class downtown called Derby Por Vida. The class alternates one-minute bursts of skating a flat track with strengthening exercises like planks, sit-ups, and wall sits, all with your skates on. It’s challenging, but a great soundtrack and go-girl camaraderie carry you through. Of course, roller derby is a fringe sport. “It takes a certain kind of person to put on skates and do the hot dog,” says head coordinator Penny Rodriguez, referring to a drill in which you lie on the track whenever tagged by a chaser. Hey, we like any workout where the instructor isn’t afraid to mention hot dogs. $10, gear and skates available on loan, sd.derbydolls.com

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Roller derby

Photo by Jay Reilly