Take Flight with Wing

To Be or Not To Be….a Ballerina

I have never had any coordination, but I have always been interested in those who do, whether it be athletes, dancers or the like. Even taking a yoga class has had its challenges and that’s just elaborate stretching, right? Nonetheless, I like to try new things, and in an effort to get back in shape as most people do at the start of a new year, I decided to try out a barre fitness class. Until recently, I didn’t even know what a barre class was since I’ve never been a dancer. So for those of you who don’t know either, a barre refers to the horizontal bar or pole along a wall at waist height that ballet dancers use when practicing their techniques because it gives them leverage for balance as they dance on their tippy toes.

The barre fitness class is described as a high intensity, low impact full body workout set to upbeat dance music. I guess I didn’t think much more into the description because I merely imagined we would be doing squats and other easy maneuvers. Man, was I wrong. I’m not sure why I seemed surprised when the instructor started using terms like “plie” and insisting that I not only point my toes, but turn my leg out to ensure proper elongation of the body. The speed at which we were conducting leg lifts and plies was so fast that I felt like a fish out of water, flailing around trying to figure out which direction we were even supposed to be facing at times. Then to hear that we’d be doing push-ups against the bar while standing on our toes, whoa. Stop right there. As soon as I thought that was bad enough, then the instructor told us to pick up 2lb weights for the other arm exercises. I have never been so wrong in thinking that dancing was mostly about leg and core strength. By the end of the one-hour class, I could barely move my body. My legs felt like jello and my arms decided grocery shopping was going to be too strenuous an activity after working out. Regardless of it’s challenges, I’m glad I tried it.

5 Reason to Try Barre

· It’s a killer work out. You strengthen your entire body (legs, core, arms, etc.) while also doing cardio.

· It’s fun. Whether you have any ballet or dancing experience, I think most people could enjoy a change once in a while. Plus, the work out is set to really energetic, fun dance music.

· The heaviest weight you’ll be lifting is 3lbs (and that’s pushing it). Anyone can do that, right?

· You learn sweet ballet moves that you can use like self-defense moves, such as kicking backwards, sideways and out front.

· You will learn ballet terms that better allow you to understand the movie, Black Swan.

Honestly, I don’t know how ballerinas do it. The fitness studio where I took my first level 1 barre class, Barre Relevé, also offers level 2 and 3 classes, but how anyone manages those classes if they are not already ballerinas is beyond me. I must admit that working out that hard actually feels good even though my muscles were feeling all sorts of pain that doesn’t seem normal. Bottom line, would I do it again? Yes. Mostly because it’s almost easier (in a sense) to attend that class and have an instructor push me beyond my limits, than having to push myself at the gym where I control the levels of the machines myself.

You win today, barre, but maybe one day I’ll surpass you.