I have exercised/trained for a majority of my life. In my 20s I ran/biked/weight trained at a competive level, and was trained and boxed under Steve Acunto. I say this to establish some small crediblity that i HAVE trained very hard. CKO kick boxing is incredibly hard! You will get the most intense workout ever. The trainers are VERY talented and really know how to keep you moving and working hard, all in a great atmosphere. The energy is intense and it has an element of fun, which is NOT present in your typical gym. You have to work hard and it is worth it. It is totally addicting and the fact that you are hitting the heavy bag makes it great. You release all your pent up aggression and are totally«spent«afterwards. This has to be experienced first hand and I have tried to describe it to my weight training friends, and unless you experience it first hand, you wont understand it, it is definately a life changer. I also have take«kick boxing» class that dont have you actually hit any bag, its not the same. The CKO program utilizes lots of kick also which, i was not used to, but it helps with the total body work out and stamina. I am a convert! havent been to my regular gym in 3 weeks. sorry Golds!