Trial and Error: The Bar Method

A Real Life Thank You Card

In an effort to find my next exercise addiction, I'm trying out a bunch of different kinds of group classes. A couple weeks ago on a Sunday, I decided to try a Bar Method class. I'd been hearing about all these classes that involved ballet barres and how intense they were, so I finally decided to give it a shot. I found a place about 30 minutes from me. There is another location in Montclair which is closer to my home, but that entire town is vaguely intimidating and there class was full at that time, so I opted to make the trek a little further north in New Jersey.

The space was wonderful. So bright and calm. The staff was incredibly friendly and welcoming and while I was nervous about what was in store for me, and if I'd be able to hang, I was excited to try the class.

And while I was sitting in the sunny room with lots of mirrors and a soft off-cream carpet feeling out of place, two very fit, but very pregnant woman walked in to take the class. I figured if it was safe for pregnant women, how bad could it be.

And it wasn't that bad. The teacher was nice and offered suggestions to everyone in class. I needed a bunch of reminders to point my toes as yoga has sort of beaten that habit out of me. We did a lot of push ups and that sort of thing. The key though was that this was for toning so all of the arm lifts and leg lifts we did weren't hard, but involved many more reps than you'd normally have to do. Just lots of little pulsing movements.

It wasn't the impossible feat that I'd been lead to believe, and after I got over the hurdle of getting my leg up on the barre (I was concerned I wouldn't be able to), the rest of the class was fine. I did feel worked out, but not disgustingly sweaty like I do after bootcamp. My biggest complaint was that my socks were too slippery for the carpet. I needed those little kid socks with the grippy footpads on them.

As I'd told the woman at the desk I was testing things out, neither she or the teacher gave me the hard sell, but instead told me that I'd be welcome back for individual classes as my schedule permitted, and they gave me their information. And then a few days later I got a thank you card from them. A THANK YOU card. In the actual mail. It was very sweet. It made me wish that I had loved the class so much that I'd want to go back all the time. But unfortunately I just really can't afford to do a class regularly (it was 25 bucks a class) unless it is my total obsession. I appreciate all of the toning and see how it could help with sculpting (and I may try the dusty Pilates DVD that's been sitting in my closet for years) but I think I'm still seeking out something either a little more high-impact or high-energy.

March Madness - Day 6: Private Party

The continued challenges of my "March Madness" quest to exercise every single day in the month. 

I had a workout planned for today, but this afternoon I got a wonderful invite from my friend Kathy that I couldn't refuse. Lest you think this means I skip my workout, I didn't. I just changed my exercise plan. Instead of the elliptical and more jumping jacks than one person could really stand, I got in some power yoga. Kathy was getting a private class from my beloved yoga teacher Adrienne and she graciously asked me to join them. It was such a wonderful treat. I almost don't even have the words.

The class was full of Adrienne's wonderful power yoga moves and she really pushed us both, but to be in a space with just two people with an instructor really devoted to you is just so special. Especially when that teacher knows what you can and can't do and how to push you. And Kathy had this amazing padded floor, that made my wobbly crow attempts a lot less painful when I crash landed.

Anyway, I'm sure my hamstrings and forearms aren't going to love me tomorrow morning, especially since I have to get up super early for a personal training appointment. But whatever. My trainer Tara is used to me doing something wacky and coming in all sore by now.

Day 5

Day4

Day 3

Day 2

Day 1

March Madness - Day 5: Working Out With the World's Cutest Personal Trainer

Ready to work!

Isabel is doing a Tortoise and the Hare skit at her after-care where my speedy little girl is the Hare. She told me some of her lines which involve calling the tortoise a slowpoke and saying "eat my dust." I laughed and said that was what happens when she and I run together. It's sad, but true. She's fast. 

So I think she was feeling bad about that, or about the fact that I didn't get a proper workout in, and she decided to not only train me, but to participate in some of the exercises. I had written out two different workouts, one that was from my friend Jodi and looks impossible and one that I found on Facebook or Pinterest or something. Even my seven-year-old was wisely able to spot the easier one and decided we'd do that one.

It was basically a cardio-esque workout that involved jumping rope for 30 seconds and then doing other exercises (lunges, squats, high knees, jump squats, etc…) She hung in for a while, loved the jump roping and the high knees and the squats but if we had to do 20 of something, around 15, she'd slow down and just start counting. By the time we got to the end with the burpees (with a pushup in them), she did three, and just started counting and clapping. I thought this was adorable. Until I realized she kept saying one more, like four times. I told her I'd done the required 10 and she's like, "yeah, but just one more, come on." Hard to argue with that little face! Around 20 I finally made her stop.

Unfortunately because she picked the easier workout, it only took about 20 minutes or so (even with the added burpees), and I was hoping for more exercise. So I hopped on my elliptical for 30 minutes while she laid on the floor and watched Jessie and complained that Suri had a cellphone and she didn't.

Then I told her we should end with some sit-ups, just because its always good to do a little bit of core, so she rolled out the mats and laid down next to me. We did regular crunches (which the little stinker is really good at), then crossover crunches (with one leg crossed at the knee with alternating elbows), then suitcase crunches, then bicycle crunches. We did 25 of each, and she tried all of them, but didn't really like the coordination involved. But her rolling on to her face trying to do the bicycle ones really made me laugh and distracted me from the soreness in my abs.

Then I added some old school sit-ups. Hands over the head and all the way up to the floor. I love them so much, but she struggled, but because she's stubborn like her mommy, she finally got it.

On the ground after our tough workout

And we ended with a few planks, from the up-down ones (where you go up to straight arms and down to your elbows), to some mountain climbers (which they do at gym and she's amazing at and made me feel old), to just a final plank hold for a minute. She wanted to drop so badly, but said she wanted to hold it as long as I did. And she made it. I was so proud.

So we got in a great workout, with a wide variety of exercises and then I let her have some ice cream… I've got to pay her somehow and I'm not a total tyrant. Might I also add, she passed out before bedtime, so I consider today a big win all around.

Day4

Day 3

Day 2

Day 1

March Madness - Day 4: Something Is Better Than Nothing

The continued challenges of my "March Madness" quest to exercise every single day in the month. 

Monday's are my hardest days logistically to get in a proper workout. I work early in the mornings, wake my kid up, get everything together, get her to school, head to the city for work and then rush home to get her to girl scouts. Add to the fact that it is cookie season and we had a delivery to make and some company (her uncle came over to pick up his order) and then bathtime and bedtime. By the time I get the house sort of settled, it is after 10 and then I have to be up early on Tuesday to work again.

This isn't a complaint or really an excuse. I love my time with my kid and I love my job. It is just that on certain days they both take up a great deal of my time (as they should) and finding even twenty minutes to work out before I pass out is a little bit on the challenging side. 

Still... I did a little bit. I squeezed in a bunch of sit-ups for five minutes when my groggy kid didn't want to get out of bed. It was like a snooze button of sorts. Then I had to carry a heavy bag of cookies about a mile across the city on my walk to work, which I'm counting, because carrying cookies and not eating them is a miraculous feat, especially when done while dodging tourists in Times Square.

And then walked the same route home, which even though it is my daily routine, still means that I get close to two miles of walking in every day, and that's not a terrible thing. And I made sure to take the stairs when that was an option. Running - even dashing a bit -  in and out of my apartment to get her girl scout vest and then back in and up two flights of stairs because my phone got forgotten in the car, did give me a little cardio boost.

My favorite "exercise" of the day was doing a few yoga poses with her Girl Scout troop as part of their learning about other culture badge. We did a butterfly pose (not as easy to do in skinny jeans as it is in yoga pants), a nice long child's pose and then worked on our trees. It wasn't my vinyasa power yoga, but the amount of laughing I did must have burned a few calories. And it probably didn't help me in my Tough Mudder quest, but hopefully it is making me a Cool Mother.

Day 3

Day 2

Day 1

March Madness - Day 3: So Much Jumping!

To make up for yesterday's pathetic efforts, I decided to start the day off with a strong workout.. No Excuses. So my friend Jodi (aka JHOP) who is a trainer/fitness guru from my home state of Maine, had posted what she called the 100 Workout, and I decided to give it a try. It is essentially jumping jacks, crunches, squats and leg lifts in insane amounts. Like really insane.

Isabel was super game to help me out with this, since I told her about my "March Madness" plan and she thought it sounded... challenging... but she was game to try. She read the piece of paper with the instructions, and got to work on some serious counting. Starting off with 100 jumping jacks, going down to 90 crunches, then 80 squats and 70 leg lifts. She was massively unimpressed by how long it took me to the do the leg lifts, but my lower abs are definitely still a weak spot. About the time we got to 40 of whatever, she said "Oh, I get it, we are counting backwards by tens"... so a math lesson in the middle of a workout is always good.

She happily sat on my feet while I did my crunches and diligently kept track of how many squats I was doing. But at the end there was a ten minute run or jump rope. Since I don't have a treadmill in the apartment, I opted to jump rope but as a courtesy, decided to do it out on the patio. It's still pretty brisk outside, so she sat indoors with my iphone stopwatch counting down for the allotted time, and every couple minutes she'd come out and yell, "Six minutes left... stop tripping so much." Jillian Michaels had seriously better watch her back.

After I finished she gave me a high-five, and then we went to run our errands. But I had planned on taking her and her friend to this awesome place called Rebounderz in Edison, NJ. It is a good thing it is like 40 minutes from me, or I would be there all the time. It's an indoor trampoline gym, and there are just so many things to jump on, or do flips off of (naturally, I can't flip, but I loved jumping and touching my toes and getting some serious air time). I didn't do so well in the foam pit... or rather, I didn't do so well getting out of the foam pit, so that's obviously a weakness for Tough Mudder I'm going to have to work on.

Isabel and her friend had a blast, and I loved that the trampoline for nearly an hour was an excellent workout. If they hadn't been exhausted, I would have added some extra time, but that's a lot of bouncing for little six and seven year old legs.

If you have a Rebounderz near you, I highly recommend going. The waiver is scary, but its just bouncing! And who really doesn't like bouncing?


Day 2
Day 1

March Madness - Day 2: Does Carrying Girl Scout Cookies Count?

I know that the month JUST started, and I've somehow already fallen off the wagon, both in terms of exercising AND blogging. Ugh. But I've learned in my health and fitness journey that it is important not to let one meal, or one missed day set a trend. Better to just promise to do better tomorrow. And that's what I'll do.

Now why didn't I get in real exercise? Well, I got up in the morning and couldn't move at all. I had gotten home from my double day of workouts and it was like 1 in the morning. I set the alarm gamely for 6:30, and was ready to go running or spinning, but I was just worn out. Sometimes, sleep is an important thing. So I laid in bed until I could move my insanely sore oblique muscles. Even though it hurt all day long to cough.

And then my day was a whirlwind of kid-friendly stuff. From taking her to a birthday party 40 minutes away, then rushing back to get to the girl scout pick up. Then lugging 11 boxes of cookies in and out of the car, up stairs, into the elevator, into my apartment, sorting them and then lugging more out of the house and off to their various destinations. Then back out of the car and to people. It's a lot more work than I thought, even though those boxes are light.

And then we had some unexpected company (people hear Girl Scout cookies and they come running), which was delightful, but by the time that our friends left, I barely was able to tuck her into bed before I passed out myself. Even though I was willing myself to go on the elliptical.

Moral of the story: Do the sucky early AM if you are tired, even if you don't want to and are sore... otherwise you'll be trying to figure out how to calculate cookie carrying, and that's not on any app I have.

Day 1

March Madness: Day 1 -- Bootcamp and Hot Yoga

I've decided that for the month of March I'm going to try to exercise every single day, even if it is just for 30 minutes on the elliptical machine. It's my own fitness version of March Madness... with far less brackets.

I started out strong. Yesterday morning I got up at 5 am and went to my hourlong bootcamp class. Tara kicked my butt with a lot of twisted sit-ups and planks. So very many planks! Those nasty ones where you have to dip your hips from side to side are just plain evil.

Then last night I took a trial class at Pure Yoga on the Upper West Side in New York. It was quite a lovely place, and the class was a hip-opening extravaganza. My personal favorite thing. I enjoyed the heated room and the hour and 15 minutes of various hip stretches. I was dripping and disgusting, but the spa like environment made me feel a little better about my disheveled state. A class with 50+ people was a big switch from my beloved Thursday night yoga with Adrienne, with a class with four or five people and a teacher who gives constant adjustments and even sits on me to get me into the proper position.

Still, it was good to try new things, and I'm glad that I got my March plan off to a good start with 2 hours and 15 minutes of exercise.