7 Studio Classes to Mix Up Your Fitness Routine
San Francisco is a fitness-obsessed city, so we need ways to get through those chilly winter days (and those chilly summer days, for that matter), when we can’t be on the trails, slopes, and beaches. Luckily, there are hundreds of options for ways to work out while staying in. Here are our top picks for tough-but-worth-it workouts in the city.
Barry’s Bootcamp
With locations in the north part of the city (on Lombard) and south (in South Beach), nationally adored Barry’s Bootcamp alternates weights and cardio in the form of a treadmill run. It’s known as a limit-pushing workout in a clean, beautiful facility. Each day of the week is devoted to a particular part of the body: Monday is “Arms + Abs” and Thursday is “Hard CORE Abs,” for instance. Weekends are a daunting “Full Body” workout. Every day of the week is about “shocking” the body into better cardiovascular health, muscular fitness, and weight loss. Another perk: the instructors are consistently rated as “hottest in the city” by Yelpers.
Our best advice: Wear shoes with good treads. You’ll be running a lot, and the floor can get, er, slippery.
Burn
A Bay Area workout sensation, Burn has four intimate locations across the city and one in Oakland that offer a program uniquely connecting Pilates, weights, and cardio in a fast-moving 55-minute hit. Every Burn class has three sections. The first is a whole-body cardio session using weights and resistance bands. The second relies upon a springboard workout that focuses on upper body and leg work. The third amps up the “spring work” and fast-paced cardio. While it’s a fast-paced and challenging workout, Burn is accessible for all levels of athlete, from the absolute beginner to the professional athlete.
Our best advice: Book ahead. The rooms are small and they book out ahead of time.
Core 40
With marketing that promises no less than “personal transformation,” Core 40 has a lot to live up to. Their Lagree Fitness® method on state-of-the-art Megaformers might intimidate the workout neophyte, but it’s really just a fancy twist on cycling pilates that reinvents core strengtheners, lunges, squats, planks, and pushups in a quick 40 minutes. It’s an intense albeit low-impact session with a lot of built-in variety so it doesn’t get boring. One Yelper calls Core 40 “Pilates on speed.” Core 40 is a relatively new fitness system, but already, five studios have sprung up in San Francisco, with another slated to open in Hayes Valley soon. Get in on this action while it’s still cutting edge.
Our best advice: Book a class in advance, and don’t even think of cancelling (they have a 12-hour cancellation policy).
Lavation
Lavation mixes it up with two types of class: intense cardio cycling workouts and high-intensity interval training (HIIT) that stacks 90-second workouts one on top of another. Over the course of 45 minutes, you hit 15 stations for a full-spectrum cardio workout. This is a great neighborhood spot for those who live in the Haight, the Inner Richmond, or Cole Valley, and unlike some of the other classes on this list, it’s a mom-and-pop shop — not a booming franchise. That makes for a personal experience with a neighborhoody vibe. And you can swing into Kezar Pub on Stanyan for a post-workout nosh.
Our best advice: Bring your sunglasses. It’s bright.
Love Story Yoga
San Francisco’s newest yoga studio is open, the long awaited project of beloved local vinyasa yoga teacher Stephanie Snyder. In this progressive city, yoga is one of the top ways we love to work out — but it’s also way more than a workout. Perhaps more than any other class we’ve mentioned, yoga calms the mind, heals the body, and connects us to the sacred. Love Story Yoga has a great vibe, a strong community spirit, and — wait for it — showers. Because at the end of the day, it is a workout, and it’s a sweaty one.
Our best advice: Open your mind and don’t forget a change of clothes.
Pure Barre
If you’ve never tried Pure Barre, the best way to describe it is a mixture of Pilates, ballet, and yoga — but in truth, it’s a method all its own. Specifically geared toward ladies and “the areas women struggle with most” (their words, not ours), Pure Barre is an intense 55-minute workout that alternates strength exercises with stretching while requiring 100 percent concentration and effort. There are Pure Barre studios nationwide, but only two in San Francisco. One is in the Marina, and the other in West Portal.
Our best advice: Wear nice socks — but if you forget them, they’ll sell you a nonslip pair.
Soul Cycle
Soul Cycle is certainly not a San Francisco phenomenon. Studios are sweeping across the country from New York to Aspen to the West Coast. But here, in the birthplace of biking culture, Soul Cycle seems right at home. With locations in the Castro, on Union Street, and in SOMA (as well as across both bridges), you don’t have to take an Uber far to get your cycle on. It’s a tough workout with a quick payoff. The spirited community vibe and the revved-up music elevate this 45-minute workout beyond your average spin class.
Our best advice: Wear deodorant. It’s hot, popular, and very crowded.
