The pictures may read like a storyline for Law & Order, but unfortunately, I have no one to blame but myself for these battle wounds. In fact, I'm quite proud of their deep purple ugliness. Where were they obtained, you ask?

Primal Fitness is an amazing gym based in Washington, D.C., and the first to offer Parkour training in the U.S. This type of exercise was first developed in France. I was intrigued when I saw a video of some Parkour athletes on a friend's Facebook page, so I did some research and was happy to discover this landmark gym within driving distance of Philly!

Located in an old fire station, it was the opposite of the spa-like settings offered at most of the dance and yoga studios I've been visiting lately. So of course it's no surprise that I was the only woman in a class of about 10 guys. Much to my relief the main instructor was Amanda Henry, a woman who oozed confidence and true athleticism.

We began warming up on the floor with moves on all fours that were worthy of Army Basic Training Camp. Then we moved on to a series of balance moves and jumps that made me feel like I was doing stunt training!

By the time we hit the obstacle course there was a true sense of adventure that I hadn't felt since my Willard Elementary playground days. I was hot, sweaty, thirsty, scraped up, bruised, and craving some Wild Cherry Kool-Aid.