Barre workouts are a special hybrid form of a workout inspired by ballet moves. It also combines elements from Pilates, dance, yoga and strength training to create a truly unique form of exercise where you perform a lot of isometric movements. It focuses on low-impact, high-intensity movements that are designed to strengthen and tone your body.

Our other article about barre fitness goes into details about the ins and outs of barre. you can check it out here Barre Fitness 101. This particular article will go into details about the different barre fitness classes.

Each barre fitness class is different from each other. You may feel overwhelmed by all of the options. But don’t fret! In this article, you will have a more clear understanding of the different barre classes and hopefully, you’ll be able to pick the class suitable for you.

1. Pure Barre

The technique was designed by Carrie Rezabek Dorr, a dancer, and choreographer, at Birmingham in 2001. It is currently the most successful Barre establishment in the United States. In pure barre, you perform small isometric movements by utilizing ballet barre. It is a full-body workout that makes you lean and toned everywhere. You can achieve incredible results at a short amount of time. It effectively targets the thighs, hips, butt and the abdomen. Pure barre is very effective for losing weight. You’ll be shedding pounds in no time, even without a diet change. It revs up your metabolism.

Although it may not look that difficult, pure barre will get your heart rate up and burn a lot of fat and build lean muscles. If you’re afraid of workout-related injuries then you’ll be relieved to hear that with pure barre, there’s a low risk of injury. The workout is low-impact so it doesn’t put any pressure on your joints. There are no sudden or unnatural movements involved so if you have back, shoulder or knee problems, you don’t have to worry.

It’s even safe for pregnant women. During workouts, you’ll groove to upbeat pop and funk music so the classes are really fun! Pure barre has a faster pace than its competitors, so if you like to move fast, this is the workout for you. In terms of cons, Pure barre classes tend to be very expensive. It is also pretty difficult to do at home.

2. The Dailey Method

Created and founded by Jill Dailey in 2000 at San Francisco. She used her knowledge of kinesiology and The Lotte Berk Method to create her method to transform the human body. It is the original multidiscipline barre fitness class that is always up to date with the latest trends.

The daily method has several different types of classes like The basic barre and interval training. They now also feature a new class called the Dailey cycle class where you spin for 40 minutes and work on core strength and upper body for 20 minutes. The Dailey method puts a lot of focus on the neutral spine so that you can have a better posture and alignment.

3. The Bar Method

The bar method is a low impact workout but effective workout. It is the safest choice among all the other barre fitness classes. It ensures proper body mechanics and the use of proper modifications courtesy of it being designed with the help of physical therapists. The bar method tends to be very hands-on with a lot of verbal adjustments.

The instructors will make sure that your posture and form is perfect. There are also endless modifications to the moves depending on where you have an injury or whether you’re pregnant. If you have back pain, the bar method is perfect as it will give you stronger core strength.

It will also improve the form of your arms. You will be able to increase your overall stamina for better endurance. Due to the workout being low impact, you can choose not to take a break and attend classes four to five times a week.

4. Cardio Barre

Cardio barre is a full-body high-intensity workout. It combines different elements from Ballet, Contemporary Dance, Strength Training and Pilates to create a highly effective workout that is great for raising your heartbeat and for toning, sculpting and stretching your muscles.

It can also be modified depending on your fitness level. Cardio barre also includes working with weights alongside quick isometric movements. It can be pretty challenging and will most probably leave your legs very sore!

5. Flybarre

Part of the more popular flywheel Sports cycling fitness studios, Flybarre is a barre style class that focuses mainly on small “pulsing” isometric toning movements. Flybarre classes tend to be very different from other barre classes. A lot of time is spent on the ground with resistance bands wrapped around the barre.

There are very little standing poses and dancing. Each small part of a muscle is exhausted before moving onto the next muscle. Some of the moves can be pretty awkward, especially the ones done on the floor. The warm-up is probably the best among all barre classes. It is full-body, multi-directional and very functional. The moves tend to change slightly every few months to keep things new and interesting.

Flybarre combines deep-muscle conditioning and concentrated movements with a lot of stretching. Because of this, you get terrific results very fast. You can expect lower levels of body fat, firmer thighs, improved posture, flatter abs and toned and lifted butt within 8 to 12 classes.

Flybarre will help you out in other areas too like running, tennis or cycling. One major con of Flybarre is that it can be pretty difficult to get into. Some moves can be hard, especially for beginners. However, if you do it properly, you will feel stronger, healthier and more sculpted.

6. Barre3

Most of the Barre classes are closely tied to the Lotte Burk Method. Barre3 has been sculpted from yoga philosophy and borrows from a lot of other different fitness forms. Barre3 is a full-body workout that combines strength conditioning and cardio. It has way more cardio compared to other barre classes.

Barre3 focuses a lot on primary postures. Primary postures place very little stress on the joints which makes it very accessible for a lot of different clients. Barre3 also offers a lot of modifications for each posture. It completely burns out the muscles by incorporating holds and by utilizing a small and large range of movements.

The small range of movements helps to fatigue the muscles while still providing them some relief. The large range of movements helps to remove the lactic acid out of the muscles. This helps to offer some relief so that the muscles can continue to be burned out. Barre3 also incorporates heart-healthy cardio segments.

7. Core Fusion

Core fusion is a heart-pumping workout that focuses on the core strength of a body. It is a full-body workout. In core fusion, you use your own body as resistance. You’ll also be using resistance bands, playground balls, and weights. A lot of emphases is put on position and alignment to create long lean functional muscles.

With Core fusion, you can expect to have long lean thighs, high round glutes, six-pack abs, and chiseled arms. Your posture and alignment will also greatly improve. If you’re someone interested in yoga or dancing, doing core fusion classes is a great idea as it will increase your body flexibility. The most challenging part of core fusion is that you need absolute concentration throughout the whole class.

Conclusion

Hopefully, you now have a better idea about the different barre classes. Each class offers something unique and interesting that is sure to catch your eye. See which class most suits you and quickly join a barre studio near you!