RAISING THE BARRE

The ballet-inspired workout credited with carving long, lithe limbs is enjoying a second wind. Only this time, form and function take centre stage

Carve long, lithe limbs and boost your form and function with our full-body barre sesh

The last time barre was A Big Deal, David Cameron had just moved into No 10,

Will and Kate’s upcoming wedding was the talk of the town and #meatdress was trending on Twitter after Lady Gaga turned up to the VMAS in a, well, you know. That Natalie Portman jetéd on to screens in Black Swan the same year may have had something to do with the fact that barre was the hottest workout going. Or perhaps it was the enviable muscle tone of its dedicated followers, including this month’s cover star (Millie was an early adopter and vocal fan). Barrecore – a studio dedicated to the practice – opened the doors of its first branch in London’s Chelsea the following year, and barre has been a staple in the workout weeks of busy professional types ever since.

But fitness is nothing if not fickle, and as the cult spin studios credited with honing half of Hollywood moved across the pond, and functional strength training parted ways with its gym-bro rep, barre waited patiently in the wings for a moment when low-impact, low-kit workouts would be called upon once again. Now, a year on from the biggest shake-up to our collective fitness strategy since the invention of the treadmill, the ballet-workout hybrid is more popular than ever. According to Classpass, the number of users tuning into digital barre classes has tripled since October 2020. So, besides the change of venue (slick studio to living room) and the kit involved (ballet barres have been replaced by chairs, radiators and small children), what else is new?

SHAKE IT OFF

Barre is no fledgling fitness movement – it actually predates Portman’s black tutu by more than half a century. The workout was born in London, created by German ballerina Lotte Berk back in 1959. After suffering a back injury, Berk came up with the idea of combining dance conditioning with her rehab therapy to create a fitness class. She opened her first studio in a West End basement where, rumour has it, she taught the likes of Joan Collins and Barbara Streisand. In its purest form, barre is usually designed to be a muscular endurance workout – think low resistance, high reps. ‘You’ll find yourself doing lots of moves that involve pulses and holds,’ says Corinne Naomi, programme manager and barre instructor at Fiit. ‘That’s because barre relies on isometric contractions – when a muscle is held under tension for an extended period without any visible movement or a change in length.’ Think: planks, squat holds, plié holds and V-sits. Combine isometric contractions with high reps and you exhaust muscles quickly, which is where the infamous barre shake comes in. ‘These types of contractions are great at building strength and stability, developing control and enhancing your mind-tomuscle connection [the ability to consciously contract muscles],’ says Naomi – who adds that ballerina control and mobility is also at the heart of any good barre class – all of which are transferable skills for, you know, life.

While the core principles of barre haven’t changed since its conception, the discipline has come on leaps and bounds – led, in part, by the cultural landscape. ‘The way we approach exercise now is very different from how things were done in the 1950s,’ says Lotty Somers, a self-employed barre and Pilates instructor with stints at Barrecore and Core Collective on her CV. ‘Barre today is taught in a way that encourages clients to listen to their bodies and work in a way that feels right for them. The recent shift to a more holistic approach has resulted in instructors really focusing on working in a safe and efficient way, and offering additional modifications for certain movements to suit the individual requirements of those in the class.’ The language has changed, too. Promises of toning and honing are absent, replaced by talk of harnessing strength, power and control – less physique, more functionality. ‘Barre was initially marketed as a workout that helps you gain a ballerina’s body, and as such, it was accused of being intimidating to beginners, non-dancers, and anyone who felt barre “wasn’t for them”,’ says Britany Williams, Sweat’s new barre instructor and the creator of the app’s Barre with Britany programme. ‘Over the past year, the barre community has tackled this issue head-on and focused on creating an inclusive, beginner-friendly workout style that’s really resonating with the wider fitness community.’ Peloton’s new barre offering features bitesize classes largely tailored towards beginners, while Barrecore’s two-week virtual ‘New to Barre’ plan is perfect for those looking to build a strong foundation.

Such classes are still grounded in Berk’s traditional principles – you’ll find moves like pliés and arabesques in rotation – but instructors are also drawing inspiration from elsewhere. ‘Barre has evolved into a hybrid experience,’ adds Williams. ‘More barre classes, including my own, are taking cues from traditional strength training, Pilates, HIIT and even yoga.’ Take trainer Sarah Gorman, whose Blendbarre class on Davina Mccall’s workout platform, Own Your Goals, features boxing-style cardio bursts for a pulse-raising workout. Meanwhile, Naomi’s Fiit classes see pliés interspersed with slow and steady resistance band strength work and mobility-enhancing Pilates moves like leg circles. Williams’ own approach is ‘more athletic’: expect classic ballet moves, like working on demi-pointe (up on your toes) and the five basic positions, married with more traditional strength and body-weight training moves, such as lunges, squats and press-ups. ‘Classic barre positions will improve your muscular endurance, flexibility and mental focus, while the occasional burpee, squat series and plank challenge will test your strength, coordination and willpower,’ she notes. She’s speaking as both practitioner and patient; Williams has rheumatoid arthritis, and before taking up barre four years ago, her wrists couldn’t hold more than 7kg of load without serious pain. ‘Now,

I’ve regained enough range of motion in my joints to perform exercises I didn’t have the ability to do initially, such as press-ups, tricep dips, high-impact workouts and heavier weighted workouts. Barre allowed me to develop better range of motion

‘Barre has evolved, taking cues from Pilates, HIIT and yoga

‘Barre will improve your muscular endurance, flexibility and mental focus’

in my joints and improve flexibility and strength in my muscles without pain.’

If you’re looking to build strength and muscle tone without kit, it’s worth incorporating barre into your workout week. Trainers also note that it’s a particularly useful practice for women aged 40 and over, for whom strength work can help protect bone density, as well as the over-60s, for whom developing balance and coordination should be high on the agenda. For lowimpact, rhythmic workouts, look to Psycle’s virtual Signature Barre or Fiit’s barre offering; to take things down a notch, try Barrecore’s barre and breathwork mash-up, BARREBREATHE; and if you’re looking for more challenging workouts to build strength and fitness, WH recommends Williams’ plan on Sweat, which you can sample a taste of right here. In this workout, Williams shares six moves from her programme, which draws on exercises from other workout styles to help you make the most of your time on the mat – no kit required. To recap: that’s strength, mobility, flexibility, balance and control in one living room-friendly, low-impact workout. Ready to hit the barre?