Barre classes?

dujennifer

I just got a groupon for barre classes. Anyone tried them? What did you think?

bahacca

I haven't done any of the barre classes that seem to be en vogue as of late, but I took ballet for several years as an adult. Personally, I cannot picture how doing barre work for 1 hour or whatever 1x a week is REALLY going to help THAT much.

muffindowd

I disagree!! I do barre fitness classes and it's a lot different than traditional ballet warm ups. Basically it's ballet/pilates inspired exercises and it is VERY effective!! It will tone you up and get you looking long and lean. Which studio is the Groupon for?? I do DVDs at home...Bar Method, Physique 57, and Barre3. I have a friend who is a Pure Barre instructor and her body is INSANE!!

tifftaffy

I'm jealous of anyone able to attend Barre Classes at a fitness location- I'd go in a heartbeat. I, too, use Barre inspired workouts (i.e. Ballet Beautiful, Ballet Body, The Dailey Method, Burn at the Barre, Physique 57, etc) and love the feeling I get from them. I use them with my Fluidity Bar.

If you have a pass to go the class/program- I'd say give it a try. Wear comfortable gym clothes (I'd guess yoga pants and top would be fine too, as long as they're comfortable)... and get ready to sweat.

Also, what's great about the class is, that once you get proper instruction from the person teaching the class, you know better form than those of us who rely on the dvds... If you find you like the style of barre workouts- give one of the dvds we mentioned in the thread a try. I prefer Ballet Beautiful and/or The Dailey Method as they give really good form reminders, but there are oodles of barre workouts out there.

As far as the 1 hour, 1 time per week... I think that goes with any fitness regime. If someone is only doing _____(insert whatever fitness name you want) 1 time per week, for 1 hour session... you're not going to get any result from it. The idea is to do anything fitness related, i.e. walking/running/pilates/whatever for 30-60 minutes at least 3 x per week, you'll see results (if you're eating clean, i.e. at or slightly below your daily needed calories). If you find a fitness thing you like doing, you'll probably want to do it more often than 1 time per week... and if the class is once weekly someone can always supplement on their own with a dvd or try to repeat it at home on their own.

I'll get off my soapbox now, but to the OP- I say go for the class, see if you like it :-) As far as the other dvds, I'd suggest checking out youtube videos of some samples of the other dvds we've mentioned and see which one catches your interest..

edena1987

Just went to my first barre class on Friday night and HOLY CRAP! I am still sore today (Monday) from it. What a workout! I loved getting drenched with sweat from the class. I am going to start with just once a week (until I get more comfortable moving up to the regular barre classes). The only thing that sucks is that the barre basics class is only offered twice a week: Friday nights and Tuesday mornings (10am). I work full time as a teacher and obviously I can only go to the classes on Friday nights. Wish they offered it more!

KayVee

I am addicted to barre! I couldn't believe I burned 580 calories at my last class!

altinker

I do barre dvds at home. I have a Fluidity Bar and the Fluidity DVD's, the Lotte Berk Method, Bar Method, and Dailey Method. With an HRM, I burn between 175 and 300 calories doing a home class, but I'm mostly doing beginner and intermediate DVD's. I haven't quite worked up to the advanced yet -- but I'm getting close. I have been doing them 3 to 5 times a week for about 8 weeks. I don't really see this exercise (if it is the sole exercise) as being a way to drop tons of weight, but it is a great toning exercise. I love it. I have added in some aerobic on off-days to help burn some calories.

I have attended a barre class at a local gym. I bought a 10 class pass, and I have 4 sessions left, but classes start at 5PM. I leave work a little too late to get there for class, hence working out from home. I just got a Groupon for 5 Dailey Method classes for $35. I will probably wait to use that until March or April. It will be a special treat!

The cost for classes in Northern California -- is about $150 a month if it is pulled out from your account. I am noticing some changes in my body. My legs are tighter and firmer (that's where I've noticed it first), and my butt is firmer and more bouncy. I am not quite noticing it in my abs yet. Burr Leonard says it takes 3 months to find your abs.