Time to raise the barre
New exercise craze sweeping SA was co-founded by East London woman
While hitting the gym daily may work for some, others might find dumbbells, treadmills and the abominable abdominal bench to be an uninspiring entry point to their 2019 exercise routine.
Offering something a little different to kickstart the new year, Barre Time could be the perfect new exercise challenge for anyone, from ex-ballerinas to those with two left feet.
Developed by a former East Londoner, Lauren Jayne Hobbs (nee Cooper), and Kroonstad-born Sulene Ashton three years ago, Barre Time was first taught at Ashton’s studio, The Pilates Lounge in Pretoria, where Hobbs and Ashton both practise as qualified pilates instructors.
The syllabus fuses ballet, pilates, barre work and cardio into one unique routine that will have you working muscles you never even knew you had.
It involves a series of continuous exercises using challenging positions taken from ballet and dance. Each exercise is done to music with varying levels of cardio work added to some sections of the routine.
“The combination of ballet and pilates elements gives you that long, lean, muscular look while the cardio element helps with weight loss and toning. It’s also a really fun workout for everyone, even if you have never done ballet or dance before,” said Hobbs, who grew up with a ballet teacher mom (Heather Cooper), giving her a love of dance even before completing a B Tech in musical theatre at the Tshwane University of Technology.
Ashton, who is a qualified ballet and modern dance teacher, said creating the Barre Time syllabus was a natural progression for her and Hobbs as they both had a background in dance.
“We realised there was a huge gap in the South African Fitness market for affordable, supportive and excellent barre classes. One of our main considerations when putting the course together was to make it affordable for South Africans. We don’t believe in extra licensing fees or exorbitant costing for courses,” said Ashton.
Hobbs said: “As our clients got stronger, we realised we needed a technique that would challenge them and many of our clients also wanted a cardio element.
“We did some research and couldn’t find a suitable barre programme to join in SA, so we decided to create our own.”
The syllabus has since been introduced in various studios and is now available nationwide, with the first instructor training courses taking place throughout South Africa in 2017.
Last year Hobbs ensured that her hometown did not miss out on the ballet inspired workout, and the syllabus is now available at selected studios in East London, including Vicky Luff’s Dynamic Body Studio and Nicole Windell’s Steps of Style Dance Studio.
Offering Barre Time classes to the public from November 2018, Luff said that she loves the workout.
“It’s a fusion of both my passions – pilates and ballet. It’s fun, upbeat and different to your usual workouts. You definitely feel happier after a class and you know you have worked every muscle,” said Luff.
Since taking part in the instructor’s course Windell has been using Barre Time as a fitness, strengthening and technique developer for her competition team and will be offering classes to the public this year.
“As a dance studio, my students and I love the continuity of the class, keeping us on our toes while exercising to music, which always makes it that much more fun,” said Windell who recommends the class for anyone looking for something different.
“Anyone can do it. It builds up your stamina and works every muscle, and it’s a great mix of all the different disciplines with a unique twist,” said Windell.
Hobbs will be giving a Barre Time class on January 18 in East London at the Dynamic Body Studio for anyone interested in trying out. Space is limited so to book a spot please contact Hobbs at lauren@barretime.co.za . Luff can be contacted at info@dynamicbodystudio.co.za and Windell at nicolewindell@live.co.za.