How barre has changed my life
Without being too dramatic, discovering Barre has quite literally changed my entire career/life and I'm now happier, healthier and filled with more purpose than ever before. When it comes to fitness, everyone is motivated by different things be it group workouts, outdoor running, circuit training or low impact methods like Barre and Pilates. For me, Barre totally changed the game in terms of being able to stick with something and create a consistent fitness routine for the first time in my life! This blog post gives you a little insight into how discovering Barre has changed my relationship with fitness and how it can for you too.
Fitness has always featured in my life in some way, shape or form. In my early 20's, I did a lot of the Les Mills sessions including Body Attack, Body Pump & Body Combat as well as going for very infrequent runs. Work wise I was a Marketing & Creative Operations lead for a luxury menswear brand which took up most of my time so fitness really worked around that whenever it could. Just by chance I came across Barre in my gym and with years of ballet training under my belt, I loved the nostalgia of some of the ballet positions and movements. This all quickly escalated and I found myself signed up to the instructor training programme of one of the UK's first boutique Barre studios. After 4 months of training I qualified as an instructor and taught in their studio every weekend and on weekday evenings for about 2 years. Fast forwards to 2020 and I leapt straight out of the corporate world into the fitness sphere to teach Barre full time.
There were a handful of reasons that made me certain I'd discovered something pretty special with Barre;
It was the first time I'd ever looked forward to taking a class / working out. It's like exercising without feeling like you're exercising!
It was the only fitness class I'd taken where I didn't clock watch. I loved all the new choreography that came with each class and couldn't believe how quickly the sessions went.
I finished the sessions feeling such a huge sense of achievement and it was the first time that I really understood what it was like to feel empowered by fitness.
I was the strongest and most confident I'd ever been and the results I got way surpassed anything that I'd got out of other gym sessions - both physically and mentally.
Although Barre has grown significantly in popularity over the last few years, it still feels quite undiscovered. One of my favourite things is teaching a total Barre newbie. It's a rollercoaster of emotions from "this will be easy" to "oh my lord why do my arms hurt so much", to "I didn't even know I had those muscles" and finally..."that was the best thing ever, when can I do it again?!"
I love that the pandemic has made Barre so much more accessible and it's amazing to be able to share this fitness method with so many of you via the online platform. You get all the great things you got in the studio, from a wonderful community of Barre gals, to personalised instruction and technique guidance, all from the comfort of your own home. These winter months are a wee bit trickier when it comes to motivating yourself to workout but I think we've all absolutely struck gold by being able to do such an effective and empowering workout without even having to step outside on a chilly morning!
If you are new to Barre and want to join the gang then sign up today to become a member and enjoy a free 7-day trial. Your monthly subscription gives you access to live classes as well as a whole library of Barre workouts to do in your own time. You'll become part of the most encouraging and supportive team of Barre babes and even join us for regular challenges and Barre retreats.
Sign up now to get started or contact me at gen@thebarrecoach.com for more information.