Since I was 4 years old, I’ve been a dancer. I was a competitive dancer during middle school and high school, and then I became a professional dancer and danced throughout my college years. Once I stopped dancing every day, I needed to turn to alternative methods of fitness. A few friends of mine started teaching at Pure Barre in southern California. I tried it and I instantly fell in love with barre.
What is Barre?
Barre is a great fusion of ballet barre (where it gets its name from), mat Pilates, and traditional workout methods like free-weights, push-ups, and planks. It is low impact, so it’s easy on your joints, and it targets not only your larger muscle groups, but the smaller supporting muscles, that often get overlooked. The magic of barre is the low impact factor, combined with the high intensity of the workout.
History of Barre
Barre was actually conceptualized in England in the 1950’s by a German-born dancer named Lotte Berk, after she suffered a back injury and need to rehabilitate herself. She combined elements of ballet, yoga, and physiotherapy.
Barre Fitness Studios
Barre classes are usually taught in boutique fitness studios, that can be found around the world. There are big recognizable franchises like Pure Barre, Barre3, and Bar Method as well as countless independent barre studios. Every barre studio has a different flavor and style, but people flock to barre classes to create the long lean muscles and toning that the method targets. It’s a fun upbeat workout set to music, and the 45-60 minute classes (class times vary by studio and class type) tend to go by quickly because it is a fun and challenging workout.
Barre and Me
I have been taking barre classes for about 17 years now, and I still enjoy them. They definitely are a nice little full-body burn that reminds me of my days as a ballerina at the barre. I love the workout so much that I conceptualized and opened my very own barre fitness studio in 2012, and it was a fantastic experience.
Today I incorporate barre into my weekly fitness rotation, and I try to take at least two barre classes per week to get the true benefit of the workout.