Top 3 questions by BarreFitnessAnytime members
Align Fitness
October 12th, 2014
1. I need to be more flexible, will barre classes help me? People often say, "I can't touch my toes, I'm so inflexible! I need to lengthen my hamstrings!" But what people are actually complaining about and feeling they need to "fix" is muscle tightness. You cannot physically lengthen a muscle permanently. Think about it: muscles are attached to bones, can you lengthen your bones? Nope. Getting a lean look to your muscles appears as if they've lengthened but they have not. Flexibility comes as a by-product of mobility. Can you move freely, in many directions without strain. During a BFA class, we mobilize in the beginning and stretch between segments or at the end to keep the mobility. When you're finished, you feel more flexible because your muscles have been worked. And you might be able to touch your toes! But ... the next day, you're right back to not being able to touch your toes. Working on mobility versus static stretching will help you feel more flexible because in fact your joints have a greater range of motion that, with consistent attention, can stick with you. And F.Y.I., super flexible people have as many issues as super inflexible people, just different ones!
2. I have zero coordination and no dance experience! Can I do this workout? Absolutely! OK, so I'm just a little intimidated by ZUMBA. Yes, as an ex-ballet dancer (like 20 years ago), the idea of following a dance routine again makes me nervous. Self-doubt is a powerful obstacle, right? But let me tell you, in my own living room, I'll rock out to the latest steamy, Ricky Martin/Pitbull, salsa routines like I'm on Dancing with the Stars! Why? Because no one can see me. I am alone and in my own world, having fun, moving my body pretty much to the routine but if I mess up, WHO CARES! Or if I can't keep up, WHO CARES! Same for BFA workouts. Some of them are pretty intricate in terms of proper form and movement. But our goal is not to turn you into the next back-up dancer for Brittany Spears, but rather to be sure you are engaging the proper muscles for strengthening, toning, and endurance. If you're going left when we're going right, oh well! Just keep going.
3. And the most common question we get asked, Will this help me lose weight? Yes, but it's not the only thing you need to do to lose weight. It will only help, it's not the end-all-be-all. Losing weight is a combination of exercise AND diet. In fact, most research shows that diet is more important than exercise. Exercise has a multitude of benefits, like getting and feeling stronger, happier, more confident, having more endurance, better quality of life, yadda, yadda, yadda. However, you can be a size 12 and still have all of these benefits. This is your journey in your body. Our goal at BFA is health; not to be a size 2 or look like Cameron Diaz (awesome book, by the way, The Body Book: the Law of Hunger, the Science of Strength, and Other Ways to Love Your Amazing Body, by Cameron Diaz). But let me say, I hate the word 'diet'. It makes me think of something temporary, short term. My personal philosophy is that exercise and diet are a way of life, not a short term fix. Take a look at several covers of this month's or last month's popular women's magazines. How many of them promise to lose 10 pounds in 10 days, or 15 pounds in 30 days, or any combination? It's okay to have a short term goal, such as fitting in to a kick-ass MOB dress, but it doesn't end there. Your health is your life, not an episode of Project Runway.