Hi guys! I’m super excited for today’s post and I think you guys are too-considering a few of you requested it! I’ve been getting DM’s on Instagram asking me questions about Pure Barre basically ever since I started going regularly. I love getting your Pure Barre questions and I love hearing that I’ve even inspired some of you guys to try Pure Barre! That for me is one of the coolest things about blogging- being able to share what I’m passionate about with all my amazing readers!

I belong to Pure Barre Greenwich, which is located in Greenwich, CT (where I live!). Whenever I travel in the US I always try to find a nearby Pure Barre studio to take class! Foremost to stay in shape, but also because I love just being part of this PB community and seeing the unique vibe that each studio has. And I think with that- we’ve found ourselves the perfect place to start this all encompassing blog post! Explaining how exactly Pure Barre works! Keep reading to learn all about Pure Barre Classic and how it got me to love working out!!

This is Ashley, the owner of PB Greenwich!

 

Pure Barre Studios are part of the Pure Barre national brand, but they’re not connected beyond that. For instance, Ashley (she’s awesome!) is the owner of Pure Barre Greenwich (my studio) and Laura (she’s also awesome!) is the owner of both Pure Barre Westport and Pure Barre Fairfield. Let’s say I’m in Westport one afternoon and I want to make sure I do a Pure Barre class that day, my membership at Pure Barre Greenwich doesn’t work at Pure Barre Westport because as I previously shared, they’re owned by two different people. So they’re two different businesses, just under the same brand name! Although I pay for a monthly Pure Barre membership, I can’t just go to any Pure Barre studio in the country. So if I wanted to drop in for a class at PB Westport I’d just have to pay the class fee, which does vary a little bit depending on the studio, which makes sense! I mean, the amount of rent a PB studio pays in NYC is way more than in Roanoke, VA.

And now one more side note here- not all barre studios are the same. So the barre workout you do at the gym you belong to is going to be different than the exact workout you do at a Pure Barre studio. While I haven’t tried every kind of barre class out there, I’ve got to say, Pure Barre has it down to a science, which is why I’m partial to their brand of barre classes!

Pure Barre Classes are either 45 or 50 minutes and are offered throughout the day! There are currently 3 types of classes being offered regularly- Pure Barre Classic (my favorite!), Empower (45 min), and Reform. Reform is the newest Pure Barre class and it’s really cool (but also really hard!). For this post, I’m focusing on Pure Barre Classic classes. I’ve taken more than 100 of these classes since starting Pure Barre a little over a year ago. Lemme know if you want me to do future blog posts about the other kinds of classes!

Pure Barre Classic classes are split into a few parts- you start class in the center of the room doing floor exercises (stuff like planks, push-ups, leg raises), then, still in the center of the room you’ll work with free weights (I use the 2lbs weights and that’s plenty!). Class then transitions to the barre where it’s broken down into thigh and butt exercises. You always do your thigh exercises first and then your butt exercises. This is probably my favorite part of the class! I love how dynamic these exercises are, you can be standing at the bar, pulling off the bar, leaning up against the bar, the opportunities are endless and that always keeps me on my toes! (Ha! Literally sometimes you have to be on your toes during the exercises.) During these exercises you might work with a ball and/or a tube. These add resistance/make the exercises more interesting and more challenging. After your thigh and butt exercises you’ll transition into ab work, either staying at the bar or moving into the center of the room. Again, you’ll probably incorporate the ball and/or tube into these exercises. The class finishes with some final core exercises in the center of the room followed by a brief stretch.

My First Impression: I started Pure Barre with a free week trial and honestly, the first class killed me! I walked out of that class not being a fan of Pure Barre, but I came back the next day, and the rest of the week, and by the end of my first week I was hooked! So there’s your take-away, give it a week and you’ll probably get  with it by the end! This is coming from a girl who didn’t work out all through college. Working out was just not my cup of tea, but I was also never motivated or inspired to change my mindset.

Why This Workout Works For Me: There’s just something about this workout that lets you push yourself as little or as much as you want, but with that being said, you kind of always get motivated in class to push yourself a lot and again, that’s what I love about it! Another plus though- with Pure Barre Classic being a strengthening workout (vs. Pure Empower, which is more cardio based) you can literally do a Pure Barre class before work, change after class, and then be on your way without having to shower. Sure that might sound gross, but what I love about Pure Barre is that I can cram a class into a tight schedule without having to set aside an hour or so to get ready. Let me say though, you’ll also see plenty of women in class who really push themselves to their limits and walk out of class pretty sweaty. Again, that’s another reason why I love Pure Barre, you can push yourself how much or how little you’d like. (Obviously when I have time to shower after class I’ll make sure to push myself to the point of breaking a sweat!

How To Set Yourself Up For Success: In order to be as prepared as possible for your first class, make sure you arrive early! 10-15 minutes prior to class is probably sufficient. You’ll need the time to fill out some forms, meet the instructor, put your stuff away, and get familiarized with the terminology used in class (tuck, “an inch”, pulse, etc.). This is kind of a no brainer- but don’t go to class on an empty stomach! You’d be setting yourself up for failure if you did and that’s no good! As for water, obviously stay hydrated, but I personally don’t drink any water during class. It’s up to you! Bring a water bottle the first time and then go from there with whether you feel like you really need one or not. I guess it never hurts to have! And last, but certainly not least, go in with an open mind and a sense of humor. You’re probably not going to be amazing at it the first class and if that’s the case, the best thing to do is laugh at yourself and keep going. It’s okay if you mess up, if you’re confused, and if you are just down-right terrible (that was me!). It takes time to build strength and to get used to the Pure Barre lingo, so just be patient and give Pure Barre a chance!

What To Wear: You’re going to want to wear leggings (I prefer full length, rather than 3/4 length, but 3/4 length is fine), not shorts! As for a top, anything is fine. Most people wear tank-tops, but there will be a few people in a short sleeve t-shirt. I used to wear long sleeve shirts to class, but wouldn’t recommend that. Now the most important part- the socks! Sticky socks are important to set yourself up for success with Pure Barre. With that being said, I went my first month doing Pure Barre before buying a pair. My logic was that I wanted to make sure I was sticking with it before buying pairs of socks that you’d only really ever wear while doing Pure Barre. Now I own more pairs than I can count! Don’t freak out though about going into your first class without sticky socks if you don’t want to make that purchase right away (they’re not expensive!). As long as you have socks for class that’s all that matters, but you’ll want to stick with probably a pair of plain black or white ones to avoid sticking out. And lastly- I always wear my hair in a bun. Some people do PB with their hair down, but that’s not my style. Up to you though!

To prove I’ve done over 100 classes- here’s my signature on the 100 class bar!

Alright! Ah! I’ve worked so hard on this post to make it as comprehensive as possible for you guys. I hope it helps! Please let me know if you have any additional questions!

With love from PB Greenwich, 

Helen