Benefits of the Barre:

• Suitable for all ages and levels of fitness - simple choreography and modified movements to suit specific needs
• Tough on muscles, gentle on joints; the super-controlled workout reduces pressure on your joints, tendons, ligaments and spine
• Strong and flexible; increased flexibility is one of the greatest benefits of the barre. You only need to watch a dancer perform to realise that a barre class will develop a body of equal strength and flexibility. A body built of equal flexibility and strength will give you an active life free of injuries.
• Forced muscle tone; tiny movements, many pulses and lots of squeezing all designed to fatigue muscles – when those muscles are quivering and shaking, you’re forcing them to tone!
• Weight loss; many of the barre routines target the larger muscle groups in the body e.g. thighs & glutes. The larger the muscle, the more calories burned. More important than weight loss, the barre class will help you drop a dress size by redistributing inches on your body and target those “problem” areas!
• Increased range of movement and endurance; Barre classes target core muscle groups, that are neglected in conventional strength training, in a variety of different ways. For example, on the sports field you may notice enhanced knee alignment, improved balance and greater quad and hamstring recruitment. Golfers or tennis players could experience greater hip openness and movement allowing for a better swing. Runners too may benefit from increased endurance, faster PR times and reduced impact on joints.

How do we use the Barre?

• At Pilates Lifestyle, our barre class is a fusion of Pilates, dance, & functional training and the workout is based on the techniques & principles of both Pilates and ballet.
• Typically classes are just under an hour long and each class incorporates a warm up, standing workouts, mat workouts, cool down routines & stretches. 
• The equipment varies per class but typically at the barre we would use in combination or on their own, arm weights, resistance bands, soft gym balls & weighted toning balls. 
• No ballet shoes required, only a pair of grip toesocks! Simple, easy to follow choreography so if you consider yourself to have two left feet – it’s not a problem at the barre!