When we started looking at restructuring this program, it occurred to us that Barre is so much more than what most students think. While yes there is initially a certain “look” that students and clients envision when they imagine a barre class – graceful, athletic bodies moving around a stationary barre or floor with ease and efficiency – yet these same foundations of ballet and athletics are necessary for our functional, everyday movements and activities also. The attention and awareness on posture, muscle balance, building balanced strength in all areas of the body, and efficiency are necessary for our ADLs – activities of daily life – and that’s what we strive to bring to this program for all students.
Balanced Body Barre is a low-impact, total-body workout that is inspired by ballet and driven and progressed by Pilates and group fitness. We offer a unique approach to barre training, with cardio elements, strength training using body weight, and core conditioning through Pilates exercises and principles. This fusion of formats offers all the benefits of rhythmic movement, high repetition strength work, dance moves, and core work in all positions.
Easy to learn, and easy to teach, this program offers modifications for all levels in the group exercise environment in an in-person or virtual format. Divided into four modules to help students take in the work and teach it easily – Balanced Body Barre improves overall fitness levels while bringing out your inner dancer mixed with your outer superpower human strength. This program has been designed with a practical and fun approach, and you will learn the art of teaching a safe, effective, fun, and challenging Barre class for use in any setting.
In Balanced Body Barre we use both the ballet dance terminology as well as the fitness/athletic names to help your students and teachers feel more comfortable and at ease. By doing this we teach and move with cues that are infused with self-awareness (to help students and clients take on responsibility for their own movement) and the knowledge to educate students on the value of mindful movement. Throughout the course and in each module, you will gain general, and easily digestible information on basic anatomy and movement principles to help lay the foundation and scaffolding for functional movement.
Module 1 is all about the lower body – from the hips, through the knees, and down to the feet and ankles, we look at strategies for strengthening, mobilizing, and creating efficiency in the legs, feet, and hips.
Module 2 covers strategies and movements for upper body strengthening, mobilizing, and creating a strong upper body for daily activities, sports, and better posture in all positions from the floor to standing.
In Module 3 we combine the concepts of Trunk Integration and Whole Body Movement into a track that encompasses getting down to the floor and back up, along with the floor exercises from Pilates in all positions from the floor to standing. In this module, we get down to get up and get moving!
Module 4 is all about the music and how to work with music in a group setting. We move through drills and skills to get comfortable with working with music and moving and teaching to music and the beat.
All of the above makes the Balanced Body Barre program convenient, affordable, and fun by teaching and providing support and materials virtually with lessons on how to work with music, how to teach with anatomical efficiency and clarity, and offers ideas on what props and or equipment can be used, how to modify and/or challenge basic movement patterns to tailor your class to the person or persons in front of you and most of all – how to have fun with the music if you choose to teach to music.
Come meet us at the Barre, and let’s have some fun while moving and grooving.
