As I approached turning 30 a couple years ago, everyone kept telling me my body would start changing. I wouldn't be able to continue eating endless amounts of chocolate, shop for butter in bulk or drink my beloved coke without feeling it on my waistline. I didn't want to believe these nasty warnings until 32 hit and I started seeing these changes for myself. For a few months, I did what any reasonable person would do and complained to Luke about my changing body on a daily basis. Then, after mourning and complaining (and maybe a few eye rolls from Luke), I knew I needed to make a change. Since I had no intention of changing my diet, I knew a change in my exercise regime was the only option.
For months, a friend of mine had been telling me about a new workout in Columbia called Pure Barre. As usual, I kept ignoring her recommendation knowing that I was not a fan of exercise classes or paying for something I could do on my own. (To be transparent, paying for exercise FAR outweighed my dislike of classes.) Fortunately, after meeting my friend for a lunch of a massive Five Guys burger and fries, she politely invited me to join her at Pure Barre one last time. I accepted and immediately fell in love.
Seriously, friends, this class is amazing! I hurt in places I never knew I could hurt and used muscles I didn't know I had. Pure Barre is an hour of strength and toning exercises. The class is strangely relaxing and ridiculously hard at the same time. At every class, I am able to fully focus on the task at hand while everything else in my life seems to melt away. When I leave I am equally happy it is over and anxiously awaiting the next class.
Here's the deal: in Pure Barre, you use a Ballet Barre for a lot of the exercises, but you do not have to have any dance history. For the record, the only dance class I have ever taken was when I was five years old and I quit after the first class. I am painfully uncoordinated and couldn't touch my toes before I started taking Pure Barre. I also mess up at least once in every class, but the instructors are amazing as they walk around and gently correct form and technique.
At first, I signed up for a month of unlimited classes and after taking 24 classes in 30 days and seeing a 3% decrease in body fat, I signed up for six additional months of unlimited classes.
Friends, if you are looking to change up your work out or start something new, I highly recommend looking for a Pure Barre studio in your area. If you are one of my three Columbia friends reading this, visit Lauren at the Pure Barre studio in Columbia and try a class. I promise, you won't be disappointed.
