I’ve been a tri-sport athlete since I was ten
years old. After I graduated high school I had no idea how to work out on my
own. I never even thought about "working out" because I was so used to training with a team and listening to a coach. My busy and ever changing college lifestyle and schedule has not since
allowed for fitness within the confines of a team sport.
It wasn't until I came across a coupon during my sophomore year for a two week trial for $20 at an all female gym on campus, now
called The Barre Code. I'd lost almost two years of working out
regularly, so starting any kind of program seemed daunting. This, however, looked manageable. Two weeks? Twenty bucks? Sure, I could do this. What
I didn't realize was that I was about to regain aspirations for health and fitness, finding fulfillment in many of the classes offered, including
ballet barre centered strength classes, hot yoga (vinyasa), and cardio
kickboxing. I surprisingly also gained back something I didn’t think I would
find outside of sports: the support of a team, guidance of a coach, and working towards a physical goal.
The Barre Code differentiates itself from other gym options in the area through their women only membership and by offering a variety of different types of classes at different skill levels. This allows for them to cater to a variety of different clients with unique offerings (Babin, 13). The classes are designed so that beginners and advanced students can attend the same ones and make adjustments. I have been to Zumba classes before, and I hated them because I totally felt like a fish out of water, but Barre classes are simple, effective and engaging. They satisfied my need to train in a group setting, and I can adjust the workout to fit my current fitness level.
Because The Barre Code caters to female college students, they create mini-programs throughout the year. For example, there is a "Spring Break Boot Camp" with individual, goal-oriented end results. Their focus on consumer orientation in Ann Arbor's highly competitive gym market (we Ann Arbor folks love to be fit) keeps retention high because they hold value and satisfaction above everything else (Babin, 10). I know my fellow "Barre Bees," as we're affectionately called, and I look forward to attending class with my friends.
My favorite thing about The Barre Code, however, is that there is not a scale in sight! The staff focus on helping us achieve tangible goals that we can keep track of qualitatively outside of weight itself. For example, for my inversion yoga practice I set the goal of holding a complete tripod position for 5 seconds by the end of the summer, and I achieved it.
Got my tripod down!
This gym doesn't feel like a gym, and I wouldn't have it any other way.
