I’ve been avoiding writing about the series of barre classes
that I tried for 2 straight weeks…I almost bumped it again to next week because
I went on a fun, bargain-hunting shopping spree for workout clothes this
weekend, and I really would much rather blog about cute fitness
clothes (including photos from my personal fashion show). Oh well, you all have
that to look forward to next weekend. Get excited.
Alas! I must write about these barre classes while they are
fresh in my mind. I took my last class in my 3-pack series this week, and the
memory of the workout will surely whither away with another week. I bring up
this avoidance because I think it really signals that I just wasn’t too jazz-ed
about these classes. In the past, there has been such a buzz surrounding barre
workouts. I tried one a couple years ago, and I really disliked it. However,
I’m all about 2nd chances, and I bought a Groupon for 3 barre
classes at Pop Physique for $29.
So what are these barre classes all about? As a seasoned
veteran of many types of workout classes, I thought that barre workouts really
fused together elements from pilates, yoga, and ballet. All of the quick
repetitions of the exercises were done simultaneously with short exhalations
that reminded me of mat pilates classes. Between the quick
repetitions of exercises, we often cooled down in yoga poses such as child’s
pose, downward dog, spinal twists, happy baby, or planks. Much to my dismay
that I lack personal experience doing ballet, the exercises at the barre and
doing splits align with my vision of things that happen in ballet. This fusion
has the potential to create an effective workout, but overall these barre classes did not meet my high bar.
On a positive note, I will say that the studio I tried out, Pop Physique, has done an excellent job of
branding themselves into their own fitness entity. Anytime I see this butt in
scrunchy underwear, I think of Pop Physique (or a creepy American Apparel
billboard).
Butt seriously, this marketing logo bewilders me. Is this
what I should wear to class? Underwear that scrunches up my butt crack with
sweat wristbands? Or is this what I should pose in my before and after barre photos? I’m not really sure. They are clearly
marketing primarily to women…once women inquire into their studio, they are
also targeting women with some mula. As you’ll read below, I don’t think Pop
Physique passes my cost-benefit analysis, but it must for lots of women as this chain seems to be growing!
Strength Factor
I would say that barre workouts primarily build strength through their quick bursts of repetitive exercises that focus on the
various parts of the body. At Pop Physique, the classes seemed to start with
some planks for abs and exercises using lightweight dumbbell for arms. Then, we
would move to the bar for an ounce of stretching and tons of exercises focusing
on legs and butt. I can honestly say I’ve never experienced my legs
uncontrollably shaking quite so much. I figured this was partly due to the new
kinds of exercises, and the teacher reassured me that it’s “good” if my legs
are shaking. I get that to a certain point, but I felt like I was having a
seizure on the lower half of my body. After the exercises at the barre, we
rounded out the class with another burst of abs, which were super awkward
positions. I expected to be trying new things, but typically I can naturally
ease into whatever the teacher directs since I’ve been to so many classes
before….not the case here! For me, aside from the shaky legs, I felt like as soon
as I was starting to feel my muscles get a little tired, the exercise would be
over, and we’d move on. However, right when my muscles start to fatigue
slightly, that’s when I would like someone to push me a little harder. That’s
why I pay to take a class: to have that extra external push when I would likely
give up at home.
Soreness Factor
Even though I didn’t feel like I was pushed as hard as I
would have liked in terms of strength, I did wake up sore the following day
after my first two classes. However, my body must have already started adapting
to this new workout because I did not get the morning-after soreness after my 3rd
class.
Stretch Factor
I think I had higher expectations for the stretch factor
since I had always assumed that barre workouts stemmed somewhat from ballet,
and all ballerinas I know are freaking flexible! The stretches we did were
super short, and therefore I felt like I couldn’t fully sink into any particular
stretch (e.g., folding over raised leg on ballet barre, splits, happy baby).
Sweat Factor
Because of the format of the class, I did not get sweaty at
all. There would be quick bursts of repetitive exercises, then a cool down
stretch, rinse, and repeat. As soon as I would start to heat up, we would cool
down. I could actually just cruise into work after that class because I really
did not get sweaty or gross.
What’s the deal?
Um what’s that you see in the background? It’s missing the
scrunchy butt underwear, but do you see their branding in full effect again?!
As you can see the regular prices at this particular barre
studio range from $20 for drop-in
and $180 for 10 one-hour classes. Being on a budget, if I’m going to pay $20
for a one-hour workout, that workout better kick my butt (in or out of scrunchy
butt underwear)!! These barre classes did not cut it for me, especially because
this workout would need to be heavily supplemented with other stretching and
cardio activities.
A penny for your thoughts…
- How would you describe barre classes?
- What are some of the strengths of barre classes?
- What other studios have you tried barre classes?
- Do you think I should give barre workouts another chance?