Derby Lite is a roller-skating workout, without the body slams

If you’ve ever watched a roller derby, you know the contact sport is fast-paced and super competitive. So who are those tough skaters whizzing by?

Sixty-three percent of roller derby skaters are 25 to 34 years old and 31% have children under 18, according to the Women’s Flat Track Derby Assn.,
the governing body for the sport, which has almost 100 member leagues across the country. (Read more: Women’s Flat Track Derby Assn.)

But what if you want the workout without the body slams? The Chicago Tribune
reports that women on wheels in Chicago are discovering Derby Lite, a fitness class “modeled on the skills, drills and culture of women’s competitive roller derby, minus the hitting.”

Derby Lite founder Barbara “Queen B” Dolan was a former derby queen who left the Windy City Rollers four years ago and found herself “bored, overweight and missing the action,” she told the Tribune. Now she and a business partner offer beginner and classes as well as twice-a-week classes that include stretching, conditioning, cardio and skating. Read the Chicago Tribune’s full story at

“Unexplained bruises? Aches and pains? They love it.”

--Mary Forgione / Los Angeles Times