Get a kick out of dancing

‘Disco Dojo' sounds more like an exotic recipe than a fitness class, blending a medley of martial arts with dance for the ultimate cardio workout. This, a fitness convention brochure says, is ''where ninja meets funk, tae kwon do meets salsa, and kickboxing meets jazz''.

First there was cardio fusion. Then spinning fusion and yoga fusion. Now, meet martial arts fusion.

Adding a punch

Sparked by a growing infatuation with competitive mixed martial arts and a desire for more athletically challenging classes, fitness instructors are blending traditional fighting moves with aerobic routines, dance steps — even yoga.

''The younger generation coming into fitness,'' says Kathie Davis, executive director of San Diego-based IDEA Health and Fitness Association, ''is more interested in the mentally and physically demanding martial arts.''

Disco Dojo, taught at the Well Spirit Fitness Centre in Palm Springs, California, might seem like a cocktail of moves, but it is not for cardio lightweights.

Demanding routine

Scott Cole, a Palm Springs-based fitness instructor who developed the class about six months ago and taught it at IDEA's recent World Fitness Convention in San Diego, shows students how to bob and weave, throw diagonal punches, kick from hip level and do spinning kicks. While almost all cardio classes require some degree of focus and control, the martial arts demand even more. Correct body placement and core strength are imperative.

Cole called upon his dance training and more than 10 years of martial arts study to create Disco Dojo, believing that ''not much separates dance and martial arts skills''.

The physical benefits of martial arts moves can be tremendous, says Dr Joseph Estwanik, a North Carolina-based sports medicine physician and a member of the American College of Sports Medicine's task force on boxing and the martial arts. The body moves in a 360-degree range of motion, requiring what he calls ''functional coordination''.

''You have to have the finesse, timing and proper sequence of muscles firing to conjure those offensive and defensive moves,'' he says.

Venting aggression

''It's an excuse to really get out some aggression,'' Estwanik adds.

''It gets your mind off things so you don't even think about aggression,'' says Max Chen a medal-winning competitor in the Chinese martial art Lei-Tai San Shou. ''Thinking about punching and kicking makes you focus on what you're doing. If you're just doing some repetitive movement, your mind starts wandering and you start thinking about what's making you angry.''

A string of action films, complete with elaborately choreographed fights, have helped greatly in boosting the appeal.

Reel high

''The martial arts are cool. Some people are excited about the idea that they're going to be acting or living out what they've seen in the movies or TV,'' says Cameron Shayne, the Los Angeles-based founder of Budokon, which blends elements of yoga and martial arts. The class, which debuted a few years ago, is now offered across the US and internationally.

Going the fusion way has been beneficial for Brenda Curreri, who has been taking Cole's martial arts-infused classes for about three years.

''When I started, I looked at myself and laughed,'' says the 59-year-old teacher. ''Now my form is better.

''It's a good catharsis. I look forward to the hard work.''