Lift, Tone, Burn at Pure Barre

When it comes to fitness, finding the right class for me has always been a struggle. My paranoia of breaking my left ankle again (it's been 11 years…) dampers my success of going "all-out" in cardio-based classes like kickboxing or even Zumba. I needed to find a class that would still give me that full body workout, but have a lower impact on my ankle.

I watched videos about barre classes – the ones that feature workouts on a ballet barre – but was hesitant to try since I felt that I wouldn't hit my goal of that full body workout. I looked at Pop Physique (in SF), The Dailey Method and Bar Method before landing on Pure Barre.

First perk: there's a studio five minutes away from my house, so it'd be easy to head there after work, and not a huge trek to get home after class. Second perk: they offer a new client special. So, I took the plunge and signed up for a month of classes at the new client rate.

Before even taking my first real Pure Barre class, I signed up for a class called Breaking Down the Barre, which is a 75-minute class where you can ask questions about form and different moves during the class instead of before or after. This helped me immensely prior to my first real class. Keeping up with the instructor was easier and I didn't have to ask questions about what a word like tuck meant. After the first few classes, I really understood Pure Barre's mantra Lift. Tone. Burn. and what "embrace the shake" really means. You feel the burn in each muscle during class, and you can feel your body changing after every class.

After taking classes four times per week for the last three months, I am happy to say I have found my workout. I feel my body getting stronger and my energy level has increased significantly since starting Pure Barre. Pure Barre also just launched a class called Platform, incorporating that extra bit of cardio that might be missing from a regular class. I have taken two Platform classes, love the intensity of it and am hoping the San Rafael studio will be adding more Platform classes during the evenings.

If you're curious about Pure Barre and want to try it, Shannon Piro, owner of Pure Barre San Rafael, is extending an offer for a free class to all our Marin Magazine readers. Only redeemable at the San Rafael studio, use code: MARIN when purchasing online.