Lifestyle- Unconventional Workout

To each their own, but going to the gym is not on the top of my list of favorite things to do. When I do make the effort to go exercise, I feel that I am wasting time using the machines incorrectly, have a short attention span with the routines offered in group classes, and notice that most gym class instructors could care less if I can keep up with them or use the equipment properly. I often find myself more frustrated leaving the gym than when I came in.

I have had more success staying in shape leading an active lifestyle, then needing pearls of sweat as proof that I am making an healthy effort and choices in my life. The gym and eating right go hand and hand, but for me they are not the only things to focus on, people need spiritual, conscious, physical balance and harmony... aka a HEALTHY LIFESTYLE. The focus needs to be on all aspects and activities in one's LIFE.

So for me, I went through many trials and errors to find the right workout FOR ME and MY BODY. I was a ballerina for most of my youth and early teens. When I stopped, my body completely transformed and it took me a while to regain the same figure and balance; there were not many options at the time that offered a COMPLETE body work out that elongated the muscles like ballet does.

That is until recently, as the different forms of yoga and pilates continue to EVOLVE, there are many new studios offering INNOVATIVE excercises that incorporate the different principles of the former two with ballet, that simply leave students with the ability to DEFY their own capabilities and at times gravity, but also a new BODY & MIND CONSCIOUSNESS.

These are some of my favorite new studios and alternative work out programs:

THE BARI STUDIO

The workouts at The Bari Studio include a mix of barre work, suspension bands, small weights, and intensive abdominal work that has already inspired a following in Tribeca. The studio was founded by Alexandra Perez,  who took exercise classes across the globe, including Lotte Berke in London, resistance band classes in Holland, and ballet barre workouts in New York. The 25-year-old Venezuela native was inspired to establish her own fitness facility when she could not find a good workout that combined cardio, weight training, and yoga. So she opened the doors to her two-story, 3,000-square-foot space, Bari Studio, on Leonard Street in New York last month.

The philosophy behind the studio is, while the body is important, they hope to build more than just a fitness studio, but create a space that benefits the community and encourages total WELL-BEING. The space includes an in-house nutritionists, two large classrooms with exposed brick walls, lockers made from recycled wood, walls are adorned with a collection of work from local artists, a kitchen with fermented kombucha and fresh Joulebody Kickstart Cleanse juices, and an indoor Zen garden. Students can have a shot of concentrated green tea before class, and fill up their steel Bari Method bottles with filtered or lemon water. There are classes for mothers with children, and a map hangs on the wall that features local spots to find healthy food in the neighborhood.

Classes start at $35

For more information please visit their website at- http://www.thebaristudio.com/

BALLET BEAUTIFUL

Learn the techniques that earned Natalie Portman the best actress Oscar, in this online class taught by her Black Swan ballet trainer. Mary Helen Bowers, a former dancer with the New York City Ballet, is revolutionizing the fitness industry by making a ballerina body accessible to everyone. The Ballet Beautiful workout is grounded in the rigorous principles of professional ballet training, but modified to provide non-dancers with the techniques to quickly build and maintain the beauty, grace and strength of a ballet dancer's impeccable form. Ballet Beautiful is offered live, online in real time, from anywhere in the world.

Founder Mary Helen Bowers

A Studio will be open in Soho, NY soon.


Classes start at $30


For more information go to their website at- http://www.balletbeautiful.com/

However, you choose to work out and be physically active, remember to listen to your body and do what's best for you; create a lifestyle that brings you balance and most of all, JOY. Sports, eating and resting should be something you enjoy and look forward to.

A LA VIE!

Notes:

What type of exercise do you enjoy?

With Love,

Minou