I imagined, as my leg shook in an isometric hold position, that Pure Barre must be the solution for creating the perfectly sculpted little tush.
The tiny heinie that would look fantastic in a bathing suit. The best version of your butt.
I had heard good things about the Pure Barre technique and its new Nashville studio, and was eager to give it a try. A client described it to me as a “mix of pilates and yoga, with some basis in ballet.”
I knew this was going to be intense in a very different way than I was used to. (Personally, I would much rather bike or run for an hour before holding a pose for any length of time, so I was a little nervous about my first class.)
After a warm-up that included a minute-long plank, we moved quickly from exercises with light weights, to the barre, to isometric holds with exercise balls. When the hour-long class finished, I felt mentally uplifted, and definitely tighter and more toned. Two days later, my legs and butt were still sore, a nice sign that I’d awoken some muscles that hadn’t been touched in a while.
Q&A with instructor and co-owner Kady Decker
O&AN: I’m typically more of a runner, biker, aerobics-type, but this was really neat for me.
KD: That’s the thing about it, it’s a completely different workout. So people come in here and are huge runners and say they ‘work out all the time’ and I tell them, ‘that’s great, you’re in good shape, but Pure Barre is just a totally different animal.’
No matter what kind of shape you’re in, you’re going to have the shaking legs, the trembling, no matter what. The difference in Pure Barre is that we work the muscle all the way to fatigue, so we really work it until you can’t work it anymore, and that’s where the trembling and shaking comes in.
O&AN: What is the ideal description of what Pure Barre is?
KD: Pure Barre technique is a 55-minute total-body workout. We tone the arms, thin the thighs, lift the seat, flatten the abs. The goal is to work the muscle to fatigue, then stretch to make the muscles longer and leaner, and we utilize the ballet barre in doing that.
O&AN: How is this different from other fitness studios in Nashville?
KD: We try to keep the classes small, so there are never more than 20 people in a class. We do hands-on corrections, are personal and instructional. We want you to do the workout correctly, otherwise you’re not going to get the full benefits. We pride ourselves on getting to know our clients, knowing their names.
O&AN: How have people found out about Pure Barre and how long have you been open?
KD: We opened March 9, and really through word of mouth. We’ve only had three males come through our classes, so its mostly women. Word of mouth has really been our best way. People come and take a class, and it’s so different than anything else in Nashville, that people just talk about it. It is a great workout, and it works so quickly.
O&AN: As you saw, I was definitely in the “ major leg shaking” mode. About how long would it take me to build up the muscles to be able to hold the exercises without shaking?
KD: Within about three weeks you’ll get rid of the big shakes, but you’ll still shake. Those big, huge shakes where you have to stop, that’s where we’re changing the muscle. The muscle is used to working in a certain way and not working that intensely. The longer you do it, the lower you go, the deeper you can get into the position, the harder you can make it for yourself, so you’ll always shake some. Maybe not in the first two sections, but by the third section, you’re probably going to shake, but it’s still controllable.
O&AN: Any advice for our readers? Thoughts about giving it a trial?
KD: The good thing is that we have a new-client special, we’ll offer you a month-unlimited for $100, which is a really good deal. Any you’ll see results after about 10 sessions or around three weeks. We suggest you come at least three times a week to see best results.
Something that excites me is that we have people come in that are big runners, and the different benefits to them. It decreases their same aches, creaks, or back pain. A lot of people work desk jobs and they sit there, and after Pure Barre, they realize they’re sitting straighter throughout the day, or driving and realize their holding their stomach in. Because what we do in here really affects your posture, it affects your daily life and you feel better.