Patti Steinhauer (third from the right) and the instructors at barre3.
Ballet for fitness? You bet. Ballet is one of the most demanding physical regimens around, and using its music, aesthetics and poses for fitness has become known as “barre,” after the parallel bar classical ballet dancers use in practices.
Barre workouts incorporate yoga, Pilates and ballet, using music and props to motivate students during a 60-minute class. In the last two years, Pure Barre and barre3 opened studios in Madison — the first Wisconsin locations for these national companies.
Barre exercise debuted in Europe. Dancer Lotte Berk, who left Nazi Germany for Great Britain in 1938, invented the technique, which aims to increase strength and flexibility.
Pure Barre’s studio in Hilldale Mall opened in August 2013. A handful of Madison-area yoga and fitness centers put a sprinkling of barre sessions on their schedules, but Pure Barre gives the widest range of class times on a daily basis.
Madison native Patti Steinhauer, who took barre classes while living in New York, opened Madison’s barre3 facility on University Avenue in January 2014.
“Madison is a hip place,” Steinhauer says. “You see so many yoga studios, and people are working out, biking and running — it’s one of those fitness-type towns.”
A workout at barre3 is about community as well as health and exercise.
The low-impact barre workout focuses on three elements — the hold (which builds and strengthens muscles), small-range movements and large-range movements. Each class has six segments: warm-up, leg work, arm work, seat work, core work and cool-down period.
“You’re able to get cardio in there, but we’re not jumping, and we’re easy on the joints,” Steinhauer says. “We mimic a lot of the motions of jumping, and functional movements that you do throughout the day. Throughout the workout, we’re trying to build muscles up to that nice primary posture, so you’re always standing taller.”
A sense of community and whole body health are emphasized at barre3, which also offers an online component that includes recipes, a lifestyle blog and a wide range of video classes spearheaded by creator Sadie Lincoln.
Maggie Grabow found barre3 four years ago through its online classes, and became one of the Madison studio’s first members. A runner, Grabow has been plagued by injuries but says since starting barre her overall strength has improved, and tasks like moving furniture and carrying objects are easier. She also appreciates the modifications instructors have suggested during her pregnancy.
“I’ve also noticed that my posture has improved,” Grabow says. “Even sitting at my desk for eight hours during the day, I don’t have the back pain that I used to have. Everything in life is more manageable because I feel better and stronger.”
Pure Barre manager Megan Harris says the barre method is accessible to all ages and ability levels. “It’s no-impact, which also helps people who have injuries or people who are a little bit older and their joints are weak,” Harris says. “It’s safe for them. They’re not going to throw their backs out because they kicked super high.”
Though women are the primary audience, there are dedicated male students, and Pure Barre has a male instructor.
“I think maybe we are a little less intimidating than a big gym where guys are throwing up big weights and dropping them on the floor,” Harris says. “Our members become friends with other members, and we try to build relationships, as opposed to come in, work out and leave.”
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