one month of pure barre.

A month ago, I started my Pure Barre journey. I shared my thoughts on how to survive your first barre class a few weeks ago. My goal with my unlimited month was to attend as often as possible. In that month, I averaged a class every other day. While I am no expert after a month of classes, I can certainly attest to the magic of Pure Barre. Here are a few of my takeaways from my first month...

#1: When they say small movements, they mean it. For the first few weeks of class, I couldn't control my movements to "just an inch". I don't nail it every time, but I spend more time focusing on this control with each exercise.

#2: No class is exactly the same--and that's great! I loved having classes with a multitude of instructors. Each instructor teaches the same movements slightly differently. In doing so, I was able to learn the movements a little better. When I got deeper in my "tuck", I realized why the small movements  (from #1) mattered. During class (and the morning after), I definitely felt the difference.

#3: It gets harder. Really. I truly believed that after a month, I would be a Pure Barre rockstar. I like to master things. After this humbling month, I knew more about the flow and speed of a class, but I could never predict which exercise would "get" me on any particular day. 

#4: Pure Barre helped my running. After my stress fractures in the 2011 and 2012, I was forced to run every other day--rather than every day. By integrating Pure Barre into my workout routine, it sometimes meant that my running took a backseat. When I did run, I looked forward to my road time. I ran a 10K and I felt stronger than I have in years. 

#5: You'll see changes in places you don't expect. My legs shake each and every class--and I love it. I definitely see the change in my legs and butt, but the place I see the most change is my arms. As a runner, I never spent any time focused on my upper body. The Pure Barre warm-up makes sure I devote time to my entire body. I love seeing little bitty biceps in the mirror!

#6: I stopped looking around the room--and focused on myself. As a competitive person, I found myself frustrated after the first few classes because I wasn't able to lift my leg as high or nail the "bend stretch" movement. I decided to find a place in the studio where I could always see my movements in the mirror. By doing this, I focused on my movements--and no one else.

Are you a devoted Pure Barre fan? If so, what have you learned from your time at the barre? This month of Pure Barre convinced me to stick with it. I feel stronger--and I'm so happy I gave Pure Barre a chance. Many thanks to the ladies of Pure Barre Cranston for encouraging me each and every class! xoxo {av}