I’ve gotten into a rut when it comes to working out. Previously, my go-to method of exercise was running, but since hurting my knee my fitness options have been limited. Even before my injury, I was looking for some variety at the gym.
Looking through the Group Fitness schedule at the Plex, I came across a class called Barre Fitness. A relatively new fitness trend, Barre is a full body workout incorporating ballet, Pilates and yoga to tone muscles, improve stability and posture, and increase flexibility. Barre is low impact with high intensity strength intervals to help develop a strong, lean, dancer’s physique.
Upon arriving at the MPR of the Plex for the 1:15pm class, I watched the seasoned barre-goers gather their equipment: yoga mat, ball, light hand weights, and I followed suit, going through the motions so I didn’t stick out too much as a newbie. I looked to one of my friends for guidance and I was also pleasantly surprised to see some of my fellow Her Campus BC staffers there as well.
The workout began in a deep horse stance, lifting the heels to warm up the calves. A lot of squatting was involved, going from an upright standing position back into the horse stance. It wasn’t long before I could feel the fatigue in my legs. We moved to the barre to focus on other parts of our legs, squeezing the ball between the back of our thighs and our calves and using the barre for support. This part of the workout mainly used our own bodyweight as resistance.
Next, we returned to our mats and picked up our hand weights. As a person with minimal upper body strength, I took the 3 lb. weights (the lightest the Plex has to offer in storage) in preparation for the arms portion of the workout. After doing several reps to work the biceps, triceps, shoulders, we finished with abs strengthening and stretching.
Coming out of the class, I felt pretty good; throughout the session my knees were shaky and my muscles burned, but it gave me a feeling of accomplishment. The next morning my legs and my glutes were so sore, but the good kind of sore. I definitely plan on incorporating barre into my weekly workout routine; it was such a fun, new experience, I’d encourage anyone to go and try out a class. And it’s free for BC students, it can’t get any better than that!
Photo Sources:
http://www.barrefitness.com/frequently-asked-questions/
http://trinaharrisphotography.blogspot.com/2012/02/ballet-barrefitnessfun.html
http://www.dreamstime.com/royalty-free-stock-image-ballet-barre-image26352096
http://sphericality.com/pages/intro-offers
http://www.skinnyfatlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/barre.jpg